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Can you make an Amex balance transfer in the UK? Can you balance transfer from Amex to another credit card? How do you balance transfer from American Express cards?
We have seen all of the above types of questions, more and more over recent months, and years. In this article, we explain how you can successfully make an American Express balance transfer, in the UK, in 2023.
A balance transfer from American Express credit cards can often be more difficult, than it is for the other more common types of Mastercard and Visa balance transfers in the UK.
An Amex balance transfer can also, often, be more likely to fail. This is usually, but not always, due to the 15 digit card number, found on an American Express card.
Amex Balance Transfer UK
You can make a balance transfer from American Express to another UK credit card. However, for Amex transfers, your choice of credit cards is more limited. A number of the credit cards, which did accept an American Express balance transfer, are now no longer available to new customers in the UK.
It is usually straight forward to make a balance transfer from a Mastercard, or a Visa branded credit card. However a balance transfer from American Express, to another UK credit card with a 0% introductory offer, can often be more difficult.
So what is the most common issue with doing an American Express balance transfer? What is it, that makes this type of transfer more difficult?
American Express credit cards are issued with a 15 digit card number. On older cards this number is on the front of the card, but most newer Amex cards, now have the number on the back. However, all of the current Visa and MasterCard credit cards issued in the UK, have a longer 16 digit card number.
This means that the UK credit card companies very often have their computer systems set up to expect at least a 16 digit card number during the balance transfer request.
As a result, the 15 digit card number for an American Express card can often lead to the computer system rejecting the Amex card number as invalid. As a result, this means that the Amex balance transfer request can often fail.
American Express Balance Transfer
How can you make an Amex balance transfer in the UK in 2023?
There are currently around 60 UK credit cards available online with 0% balance transfer offers. In our experience, the following credit card company’s systems are more compatible with accepting a 15 digit Amex card number.
The featured credit cards below are best suited to accept an Amex balance transfer online:-
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Card Offers
Card Details
- 0% interest for up to 27 months on balance transfers made within first 60 days of account opening
- 3.49% balance transfer fee applies (minimum £5)
- 0% interest on purchases for 3 months from account opening
- At end of promotional period, balance transfers and purchases will revert to standard variable rate
- Worldwide offers and discounts with HSBC home&Away
- Manage your card online
- Annual Fee: None
Application Criteria
- You have an annual income or pension before tax of £6,800 or more
- You are a UK resident
- You are aged 18 or over
- You do not hold an HSBC Basic bank account
Card Offers
Card Details
- 0% for 28 months on balance transfers made within 90 days of account opening
- 2.99% balance transfer fee, minimum £5
- 0% on purchases for 3 months from account opening
- Collect M&S points every time you shop anywhere in the world with your card
- One point for every £1 you spend in M&S and one point for every £5 you spend elsewhere
- Manage account online
- Annual Fee: None
Application Criteria
- You are a UK resident
- You have an annual income or pension of at least £6,800
- You are aged 18 or over
- You have not held a credit card with M&S Bank within the previous 12 months
Card Offers
Card Details
- 0% interest for up to 16 months on balance transfers made within first 60 days of account opening
- 3.49% balance transfer fee applies (minimum £5)
- 0% interest on purchases for up to 18 months from account opening
- At end of promotional period, balance transfers and purchases will revert to standard variable rate
- Worldwide offers and discounts with HSBC home&Away
- Manage your card online
- Annual Fee: None
Application Criteria
- You have an annual income or pension before tax of £6,800 or more
- You are a UK resident
- You are aged 18 or over
- You do not hold an HSBC Basic bank account
Card Offers
Card Details
- 0% for 15 months on balance transfers made within 90 days of account opening
- 2.99% balance transfer fee, minimum £5
- 0% on purchases for 18 months from account opening
- Collect M&S points every time you shop anywhere in the world with your card
- One point for every £1 you spend in M&S and one point for every £5 you spend elsewhere
- Manage account online
- Annual Fee: None
Application Criteria
- You are a UK resident
- You have an annual income or pension of at least £6,800
- You are aged 18 or over
- You have not held a credit card with M&S Bank within the previous 12 months
Card Offers
Card Details
- 0% interest for 6 months on balance transfers made within 60 days of account opening
- 2.99% balance transfer fee (minimum £5)
- 0% interest on purchases for 6 months from account opening
- Get reward points as you use your card
- Get 2,500 welcome points worth £25 when you make your first transaction on your card
- Online account management
- Annual Fee: None
Application Criteria
- You have an HSBC Advance Account, or an HSBC Bank Account or HSBC Premier Account
- You have paid a total of £1750 a month into your account over last 6 months
- You have an annual income or pension before tax of £6,800 or more
- You are a UK resident
- You are aged 18 or over
If you do encounter a problem making your balance transfer online, here is one tip that we know has worked in the past. When entering the credit card number, place a 0 before the first digit of your existing American Express card number. This will then give you the required 16 digit credit card number.
A very small number of UK credit cards in the past, did provide both an American Express card, and a Visa or Mastercard card, on the same account. This was most common with rewards credit cards, usually airline, or travel credit cards. If you still have one of these older type of card accounts, we would always recommend using the 16 digit Visa, or Mastercard card number to make the balance transfer.
Some Amex balance transfer customers have reported success in making a balance transfer from American Express, over the telephone with their new credit card’s, customer services. However, a transfer from American Express by telephone is still not guaranteed.
If requesting an American Express balance transfer over the telephone, it is often best to ask for a supervisor. These, typically, more experienced people are more likely to understand how to make a transfer from American Express cards.
Balance Transfer to Amex
American Express currently, do not provide any 0% transfer credit card offers in the UK. For many years now, American Express UK have not issued any Amex balance transfer cards with a 0% transfer offer.
The Amex credit cards issued in the UK are now almost all travel ,or reward credit cards. These cards offer either airline miles, hotel points, cashback or rewards points based on your card spending.
You can ask to make a balance transfer from another credit card to an Amex credit card. However, you will not benefit from the 0% rates available on balance transfers, from many other popular UK credit cards.
American Express charge cards, are not credit cards and as a result are not eligible to make any type of balance transfer.
So, in summary, can you balance transfer from Amex to another card? The HSBC balance transfer credit card for example?
Yes as described above, you can. In our experience, the card companies listed above, are more used to dealing with an American Express balance transfer. Many of the other credit card companies do not deal quite so well with the Amex balance transfer card number issue.
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