Share the love: Qantas family transfers allow you to live generously by gifting Qantas Points to a loved one
Do you have a stack of Qantas Points that you’d like to share with your family, but you’re unsure how to do so? Good news – you can transfer Qantas Points to eligible family members at the click of a button!
Read on to find out everything you need to know about Qantas Family transfers.
Qantas family transfer overview
Qantas family transfers offers a way for Qantas Frequent Flyer members to share points with eligible family members. Similar to Virgin Australia, Qantas family transfers allow eligible family members to move points between accounts instantly.
While Qantas doesn’t offer the option to pool points and status credits as we see with Velocity’s Family Pooling feature, Qantas family transfers is still a handy option to take advantage of, especially if you have a specific redemption in mind.
Perhaps you’re happy with your points balance and simply want to share the love by sending your frequent flyer points to someone else so they can redeem a business class flight (or even enjoy the spoils of Emirates first class), or maybe your aim is to send your hard-earned points to the account of a family member for an upcoming holiday. Either way, transferring Qantas Points to a family member could be an attractive option.
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Step by step: How to transfer Qantas Points online
It’s an easy process to transfer Qantas Points to family members online. Simply navigate to Qantas.com and log in to your Qantas Frequent Flyer account. Once you’re logged in, toggle to the ‘Frequent Flyer’ menu option at the top of the page.
A submenu will open up, and you’ll find the ‘Transfer Points’ option listed under the menu option ‘Your Account’.
Clicking on the link will take you to a page with information about Qantas Family Transfers. The ‘Transfer Points’ link at the bottom of this screen will direct you to a form that will allow you to transfer points to a family member.
Click this link to navigate to the online Qantas Family Transfers form:
You’ll be prompted to enter the number of points to transfer, the recipient’s last name, their relationship to you, and their Qantas Frequent Flyer number. Enter this information and accept the terms and conditions to proceed.
The recipient’s name and Qantas Frequent Flyer number will be checked against each other once you submit the form. You’ll be prompted if the details don’t match.
Qantas uses two-step authentication for some transfers, so have your mobile phone at hand in the event that you need to input an SMS code.
It’s important to note that Qantas Points transfers cannot be reversed or cancelled once submitted, so check the transfer carefully before you proceed!
Which family members can I transfer Qantas Points to?
It’s important to note that you can only transfer points to eligible family members who belong to the Qantas Frequent Flyer program. Unfortunately, this means that your bestie or the local barista down the road won’t cut it! The following relationships are listed as eligible family members for the purposes of Qantas Points transfer:
- Husband/wife
- Parent/step-parent
- Domestic partner/de facto
- Child, including foster and stepchild
- Brother/sister
- Half brother/sister
- Grandparent
- Grandchild
- Son/daughter-in-law
- Brother/sister-in-law
- Father/mother-in-law
- Uncle/aunt
- Nephew/niece
- First cousin
Benefits of Qantas Family Transfer
There are a number of worthwhile reasons to consider transferring Qantas Points to family members or to take steps to consolidate points within a nominated account. Here are a few common scenarios where this approach makes sense:
Moving points due to expire in the sender’s account: A family transfer could make sense if you don’t see yourself redeeming your points in the future and your Qantas Points are due to expire soon. While transferring Qantas Points won’t count as activity for the purposes of preventing expiry, transferred points take on the expiry date of existing points in the receiver’s account. Of course, if you plan to transfer points for this reason, you’ll want to make sure your family member doesn’t have a looming expiry, either.
Consolidating multiple accounts with low balances: Many families travel infrequently, which can result in each family member’s account holding a low number of Qantas Points – often the individual balances aren’t quite large enough for a worthwhile redemption. Provided at least one account holds the minimum 5,000 Qantas Points for a transfer, it’s possible to undertake a series of points transfers, with the aim of consolidating points in one family member’s account. The consolidated points can then be used to book a redemption.
Equitable distribution of Qantas Points: Let’s say that two family members each wish to book the same Qantas Classic Reward flight redemption costing 18,000 points independently, but they hold uneven balances within their Qantas Frequent Flyer accounts. Family member one holds 24,000 Qantas Points, while family member two holds 13,000 Qantas Points. If family member one transfers 5,000 Qantas Points to family member two, both will hold enough points to be able to book in the redemption independently.
Does Qantas enforce the family transfer rules?
Yes! It’s important to note that Qantas enforces the eligible family member rule quite strictly, and there have been reported cases where Qantas has suspended or closed accounts that have been found to transfer points to non-qualifying recipients, as this breaches Qantas Frequent Flyer program terms and conditions.
While it doesn’t happen regularly, Qantas may also ask you to provide proof of your relationship with a nominated eligible family member. If this happens, you may be asked to provide documentation (such as a statutory declaration) that proves your relationship with the recipient of the points.
If you have a family member you’d like to transfer points to, but they are not a member of Qantas Frequent Flyer, you’ll be pleased to know that it is easy for them to join for free.
Are there limitations around the number of Qantas Points can I transfer to a family member?
You can make an unlimited number of Qantas Family transfers in any 12 month period. However, a maximum of 600,000 Qantas Points per 12 month period is allowed. The transfer needs to be a minimum of 5,000 points.
Does it cost anything to transfer Qantas Points?
There is no transaction fee for undertaking a Qantas Family transfer online via the Qantas website. However, you can opt to transfer points via the Frequent Flyer Service Centre at a fee. You’ll need to contact the Frequent Flyer Service Centre on 13 11 31 to complete the transfer.
Note that there is a $35 Award Assistance fee for transfers made through the Frequent Flyer Service Centre. To avoid this fee, always transfer points online.
How long do points take to post in my account?
The Qantas website states that points are deducted and transferred immediately. Speaking from personal experience, I generally find that Qantas Family transfer points show up in the recipient’s account within 5 to 10 minutes.
Will a family transfer stop Qantas Points from expiring?
Sadly, no. If you’re looking at the Qantas Family transfer option as a way to extend your points validity or the validity of points in the nominated family member’s account, you’re out of luck.
Qantas Family transfers are not classified as an eligible activity to stop your Qantas Points from expiring. Points that are transferred to a family member will be subject to the points expiry date that currently applies to the receiving family member’s Qantas Frequent Flyer account.
Let’s say, for example, that you transfer points to your son’s account in early January. at the time of the transfer, your son’s account has not had any qualifying activity for 17 months. In this scenario, all points, including those that were transferred in early January, would expire next month. As such, it always pays to know when your frequent flyer points expire.
Fortunately, however, there are many ways to stop Qantas points from expiring. One of my favourite ways to keep my Qantas Frequent Flyer balance ticking is by earning points in my sleep through the Qantas Wellbeing App. If you haven’t already, do yourself a favour and download the app as a sure way to prevent your Qantas Points from ever expiring.
Other ways to share Qantas Points with family members
Essentially, the Family transfers feature means a primary traveller can share their points and allow other family members to access Classic Flight Rewards. There are, however, a number of other ways that you can share your points with family members.
These include booking reward flight redemptions outright (consider treating mum to first-class) nominating your family member for an upgrade, shopping for them through the Qantas Shopping portal, sharing a Qantas Health Insurance policy or even getting a little carried away with purchasing at Qantas Wine.
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