When it comes to transferable points currencies, Amex Membership Rewards points and Chase Ultimate Rewards points continue to be two of my favorite currencies. Chase touts its 1:1 points transfer ratio is a USP and in most cases, it works very well. However, Chase is about to transfer one of those partners.
Chase to drop Emirates
Emirates is a fantastic airline and I’ve flown them frequently over the last decade, be it to connect between the US and India frequently or while traveling for work to the UAE. They have an amazing value proposition and have service that delivers in line with their hard product. However, their loyalty program has always been a laggard. Here are three reasons why I’m not sweating in spite of this development, This notice appears on Chase’s website when you click on Emirates:
Effective 12:00 AM ET on October 16th, 2025, the ability to transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards® points to Skywards Miles will no longer be available.
The Program wasn’t great to start with
Compared to some of Chase’s other airline partners, I barely used Chase points to convert to Emirates Skywards. Why? The mileage prices were pretty high and the surcharges were simply exorbitant.
Take the example of this simple one way flight from Mumbai (BOM) to Dubai (DXB), which is about 3 hours in duration. Here are the prices:
- 10,000 miles + $80 in Economy Class
- 54,000 miles + $280 in Business Class
Qantas is a better Option
If you have Amex Membership Rewards points, then you can transfer to Qantas at a 1:1 ratio. If you compare prices, you’ll find that in most cases, you’ll get a much better deal when you transfer points to Qantas and fly Emirates as opposed to transferring points to Emirates Skywards.
Emirates program made negative changes recently
If you were someone who transferred points to book flights with Emirates, then Emirates dealt you a gut punch recently by restricting redemptions to their First Class awards via Emirates Skywards. The new restrictions meant that only people with elite status could have access to these awards. However, you can still access these award flights via Qantas.
Starting May 12, you will no longer be able to redeem classic rewards with the Emirates Skywards program for flights in First Class on Emirates metal, unless you have Silver, Gold or Platinum elite status with the airline.
The Pundit’s Mantra
Clearly, the breakup between Chase and Emirates could have stemmed from the fact that Emirates wanted a lower transfer ratio. Chase prides itself and heavily markets its 1:1 points transfer partners and such a devaluation would’ve made a dent to their USP.
In the meanwhile, in case you missed it, Amex is going to lower their points transfer ratio from Amex to Emirates to 1:0.8, starting next month.
Effective September 16, 2025, the ratio for transferring Membership Rewards® points to Emirates Skywards® Miles will be changed from: “1 Membership Rewards point = 1 Skywards mile” to “5 Membership Rewards points = 4 Skywards miles”.
What do you think about Chase and Emirate parting ways? Tell us in the comments section.
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