Balance Transfer Cards from American Express

Have you ever wondered whether you could transfer your balances to an American Express credit card? American Express has tons of cards to offer and many people wonder whether they can transfer their balances from another account to an American Express card. If you are one of these people, you are at luck! American Express, or simply AMEX, does allow the transfer of balances from another card to one of their own and even vice versa. The process, however, may not be as straightforward as other companies’ balance transfer structures.

The truth of the matter is that balance transfers are not AMEX’s specialty. After the Great Recession, it seemed like American Express has shifted away from offering cards for people with debt.

Transferring Your Balances from AMEX

One of the most important things that you should be aware of is that American Express does not have the authority to approve your balance transfers from AMEX to another card. In addition, you also cannot perform a balance transfer if both cards are issued by the same company. Hence, you cannot switch your balances to an AMEX card from another AMEX card.

This problem, though, can be avoided by finding a good balance transfer card from another issuer. Your main concern should not be the brand or the payment network (Visa or MasterCard). What you must do is to look at the length of the 0% introductory period and discern whether the timeframe is enough for you to repay your dues. There are cards that offer 6 months interest-free period on balance transfers and there are those that offer 18 months of 0% APR on balance transfers.

Transferring Balances to AMEX

Not all consumers are eligible to make a balance transfer. For you to know whether you can transfer your balances from another card to an American Express account, you should first call AMEX’s support hotline. The number can be found at the back of your AMEX card. Once you have been approved for the balance shift, you can start the transaction. Note that balance transfers are not automatically completed on the same day. You may need to wait up to 15 days for the transfer to clear. If everything is successful, you will be notified via mail.

A Few Things to Note

If you compare an American Express card, whether it is a credit or a charge card, with another card from another company, you will notice that your AMEX card only has 15 digits. The other card comes with 16 digits. Most card companies have systems that are created to recognize and validate balance transfer transactions from a 16-digit card. Some companies may allow you to enter “American Express” instead of the card number to complete your balance transfer transaction. If this is not permitted by your chosen card issuer, you may need to speak to their customer representative to explain your case.

If you have multiple cards with balances, you may need to pick a strategy that is best suited for your situation. For instance, you can choose to pay first your card with the highest interest and then work your way down to your other cards that have lower interests. This will make it easier for you to repay the rest of the balances, since the interest incurred will be much lesser once the one with the highest APR has been paid off.