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Credit Card Transfer Bonuses January 2026: 70% Bonus to IHG, 15% to Avianca
July 1, 2025
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Maximize your points with limited-time transfer bonuses. Active offers include 70% bonus to IHG One Rewards and 15% bonus to Avianca LifeMiles, but you'll need to act fast.
Transfer bonuses are one of the most powerful tools for maximizing credit card rewards, letting you squeeze significantly more value from your points when moving them to airline or hotel partners. January 2026 brings two active promotions worth considering, though each requires strategic timing and a specific redemption plan to make sense. Here's what's currently available and how to decide if these bonuses are worth using.
Active Transfer Bonuses (January 2026)
Chase Ultimate Rewards: 70% Bonus to IHG One Rewards
- Bonus details: Transfer 1,000 Chase points, receive 1,700 IHG points
- End date: January 15, 2026
- Best for: Topping off your IHG account for a specific hotel stay
Chase is offering a 70% transfer bonus to IHG One Rewards through January 15. While this sounds generous, the math requires careful consideration before you pull the trigger.
The value calculation:
- Chase Ultimate Rewards points: Worth approximately 2.05 cents each
- IHG One Rewards points: Worth approximately 0.5 cents each
- 10,000 Chase points = $205 in theoretical value
- 17,000 IHG points (with 70% bonus) = $85 in theoretical value
Even with the 70% bonus, you're typically getting less value by transferring to IHG compared to other Chase transfer partners like Hyatt or United. However, this bonus makes sense in specific situations:
When to use this bonus:
- You're a few thousand points short of a specific IHG redemption
- The hotel you want to book isn't bookable through Chase's travel portal
- You've found exceptional value at an IHG property (luxury properties where the points-to-cash ratio beats the standard valuation)
Strategic example: You need 60,000 IHG points to book a stay at the InterContinental Bora Bora Resort & Thalasso Spa (typically $800+/night). You have 50,000 IHG points and 6,000 Chase points. Instead of transferring 10,000 Chase points (which would give you 17,000 IHG points), you only need to transfer about 5,900 Chase points to reach your 60,000 IHG points goal with the bonus.
Capital One: 15% Bonus to Avianca LifeMiles
- Bonus details: Transfer 1,000 Capital One miles, receive 1,150 LifeMiles
- End date: February 11, 2026
- Best for: Star Alliance award bookings without fuel surcharges
Capital One's 15% transfer bonus to Avianca LifeMiles runs through February 11 and offers solid value for specific redemptions.
Why LifeMiles matters:
- Part of Star Alliance (access to United, Lufthansa, ANA, Singapore Airlines, and more)
- No fuel surcharges passed along on partner awards
- Competitive award pricing on many routes
- Allows one-way awards and mixed-cabin bookings
The value calculation:
- Capital One miles: Worth approximately 1.85 cents each
- Avianca LifeMiles: Worth approximately 1.5 cents each (when redeemed well)
- 50,000 Capital One miles = $925 in theoretical value
- 57,500 LifeMiles (with 15% bonus) = $862 in potential value
The 15% bonus helps close the value gap, making this transfer more attractive than usual. This bonus makes particular sense for Star Alliance award bookings where you'd otherwise pay significant fuel surcharges through programs like Aeroplan or ANA.
Sweet spot redemptions:
- United States to Europe on United or Lufthansa: 63,000-87,000 miles business class
- Within the Americas: Competitive rates without fuel surcharges
- Star Alliance partner awards: No added carrier charges
Strategic example: You want to book business class from New York to Frankfurt on Lufthansa. Through United MileagePlus, this would cost 77,000 miles. Through LifeMiles, it's 87,000 miles but with no fuel surcharges (which could be $400+). Transfer 75,652 Capital One miles to get 87,000 LifeMiles (with the 15% bonus), saving significant cash out of pocket.
How to Maximize Transfer Bonuses
The Golden Rule: Only Transfer With a Plan
Transfer bonuses can be tempting, but remember these critical principles:
1. Transfers are permanent and irreversible
Once you move points to a partner program, you can't get them back. The flexibility of transferable points is their greatest strength. Don't give that up without purpose.
2. Always verify award availability first
Before transferring anything, search the airline or hotel partner's site to confirm:
- Your desired dates are available at the award level you need
- The total points required (including the bonus)
- Any cash taxes or fees you'll pay
3. Calculate the actual value
Just because a bonus exists doesn't mean it's worth using. Compare:
- The value of keeping points in the original program
- Other transfer partners that might offer better redemptions
- Redeeming directly through your card's travel portal
4. Consider timing carefully
Most transfers are instant, but some take 1-3 days. Don't wait until the last minute if award space is limited—you could lose the seat while your transfer processes.
Pairing Transfer Bonuses with Strategic Credit Card Earning
The real power comes from combining transfer bonuses with category-specific earning. Here's how to maximize the strategy:
For Chase Ultimate Rewards:
Build up your Chase points balance with category bonuses, then strategically transfer during bonus periods:
- Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card: 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3X on dining, 2X on all other travel
- Chase Sapphire Reserve®: 10X points on hotels and car rentals through Chase Travel℠, 3X on dining and travel
- Chase Freedom Flex℠: 5% cash back on rotating quarterly categories (converts to Chase points when paired with Sapphire cards for the Chase Trifecta)
- Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card: 3X points on the first $150,000 spent in combined purchases on travel, shipping, internet, cable, phone services, and social media advertising each account anniversary year
Stack these earning rates with transfer bonuses to multiply value. For example: Earn 3X points on a $3,000 vacation booked through Chase Freedom Flex during a travel quarter (9,000 points), then transfer with a 70% bonus to IHG for 15,300 points.
For Capital One miles:
Capital One's flat-rate earning structure makes every purchase count:
- Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card: 10X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, 5X on flights, 2X on all other purchases
- Capital One Venture X Business: 10X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, 5X on flights, 2X on all other purchases
- Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card: 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, 2X on all other purchases
- Capital One Spark Miles for Business: 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, 2X on all other purchases
Since you earn 2X on everything, every dollar spent gets you closer to transfer bonuses. A $2,000 monthly business spend on the Spark Miles card earns 4,000 miles, which becomes 4,600 LifeMiles with the 15% bonus.
Evaluating Whether to Transfer: A Decision Framework
Use this framework to decide if a transfer bonus makes sense for you:
Step 1: Define Your Specific Redemption
- What exact hotel or flight do you want to book?
- How many points does it require?
- What's the cash price of this redemption?
Step 2: Calculate the Transfer Math
- How many points will you need after the bonus?
- How many original points must you transfer to reach that number?
- What's the value of those original points in other programs?
Step 3: Compare Your Options
- Could you book this through your card's travel portal for similar value?
- Are there other transfer partners offering better rates for this redemption?
- Would waiting for a better transfer bonus make sense?
Step 4: Check the Timeline
- When does the transfer bonus expire?
- How long do transfers take to this partner?
- How stable is the award availability?
Step 5: Make the Decision
If the transfer bonus offers better value than alternatives AND you have a confirmed redemption ready, then transfer. Otherwise, keep your flexible points.
How Kudos Helps You Track Transfer Opportunities
Staying on top of transfer bonuses requires monitoring multiple programs and calculating values on the fly. Kudos simplifies this by:
- Calculating optimal card usage: Maximize category bonuses to build transferable point balances faster
- Track welcome bonuses: Make sure you hit the required spend to earn welcome bonuses so you can transfer points and miels sooner
- Monitoring for better earning opportunities: Get recommendations for cards that help you reach transfer thresholds
When you use Kudos to optimize your everyday spending, you naturally accumulate more transferable points, putting you in position to take advantage of transfer bonuses when they appear.
The Bottom Line
Transfer bonuses can significantly amplify the value of your credit card points, but they require strategic thinking and specific redemption plans. January 2026's active promotions - 70% to IHG One Rewards (ending January 15) and 15% to Avianca LifeMiles (ending February 11) - offer solid opportunities for travelers with the right redemption goals. Remember the fundamental rule: Only transfer points when you have a specific, confirmed redemption ready to book. The flexibility of transferable points is their greatest asset. Don't surrender it without clear purpose. Whether you take advantage of these current bonuses or wait for better opportunities, focus on building your transferable point balances through strategic card usage. When the perfect combination of transfer bonus and redemption opportunity appears, you'll be ready to maximize value.
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Editorial Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are those of Kudos alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
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