Airpoints™ Advance

If you are the primary cardholder or nominated earner for a qualifying Airpoints credit card, you will have access to an Airpoints Advance. You can check our Airpoints Credit Card Comparison table or contact your Airpoints credit card provider directly to find out whether your card gives you access to an Airpoints Advance.

When you book a flight or make a purchase from the Airpoints™ Store using Airpoints, you will use your earned Airpoints first - that is, Airpoints you have earned through flying, credit cards, or with our Koru partners. If the flight or purchase you make requires more than your earned Airpoints balance, you will start to dip into your Airpoints Advance and your balance on your account will show as a negative value. If you only use some of the Advance, then you will see the remaining balance that is available to you. You can check the status of your account at any time by logging into your Koru account or via the Air NZ app.

Helpful hint: If you login to your Koru account you can see a full view of your balance, and how your balance is made up of earned Airpoints and Airpoints Advance funds. This is best viewed on a desktop computer.

This is the balance you have available to spend including funds from your Airpoints Advance.

We are unable to remove the Advance facility from your credit card as this is part of the credit card offering, so if you do not wish to use the Advance you will need to ensure you have enough earned Airpoints in your account before you purchase a reward. You can check your balance any time using the Air NZ app or by logging in to your online account.

Even if you are the primary cardholder or nominated earner of multiple Airpoints credit cards that offer an Advance facility, you can only have access to one Advance. The value of your Advance will be for whichever card has the highest Airpoints Advance limit.

If you dip into your Airpoints Advance and have a negative balance, you will need to earn back the Advance amount you spent within the following 12 months. You can do this by earning Airpoints with your Airpoints credit card, through flights, by spending with Koru Partners, or when you shop online through the Airpoints Mall. Any Airpoints you earn will go towards paying back the Advance before topping up your balance. If you don't manage to repay the amount within 12 months, we may take legal action to recover the monetary value of any Airpoints deficit.

If you choose to close your Airpoints Credit Card, you can do so directly with your bank or American Express. If you have used your Airpoints Advance and you have a negative balance, you can earn back the outstanding balance over time by earning Airpoints through flights or by spending with Koru Partners. Any Airpoints that you earn will go towards paying back the balance. If you decide to close your Koru account, you will be asked to repay the full amount before your account can be closed.

Each member of a Shairpoints group is responsible for their own personal balance and only the members who hold an Airpoints Advance can use it.

If you are part of a Shairpoints group and your personal Airpoints balance goes into negative from the use of your personal Airpoints Advance, you will need to repay the Advance amount spent, even if the Shairpoints group collectively has a positive balance.

If a member of your Shairpoints group has a credit card with an Airpoints Advance, it will be unavailable for spend by any other members. The responsibility for any use of an Airpoints Advance lies with the owner(s) of any Airpoints Advance facilities.

All the Shairpoints member balances are added together, excluding any Airpoints Advances, to give a total balance available to all Shairpoints members in the group. Only the 'Owner' and the 'Spenders' are able to spend Airpoints in the Shairpoints account.

Only a 'Spender' who holds an Airpoints Advance is able to spend using funds from both the Shairpoints group and their Airpoints Advance. 

When you are part of a Shairpoints group, your Airpoints Advance balance is only available to you. Other 'Spenders' in your Shairpoints group cannot use your Airpoints Advance funds.

If you spend Airpoints using funds from your Airpoints Advance, you are responsible for ensuring it is repaid by earning more Airpoints. You can do this through any of the normal ways - flying, credit cards, or with our Koru partners.

Helpful hint: If you login to your Koru account, you can see the full view of your balance and how your balance and Shairpoints balance is made up of earned Airpoints, Airpoints Advance and other Shairpoints group members' balances. This is best viewed on a desktop computer.

If you do not have enough Airpoints to cover the full cost of a flight or to complete a purchase from the Airpoints™ Store, you can choose to pay using a mix of Airpoints and cash with Airpoints Flexipay*. It is important that you check your Airpoints balance before booking your flight or making your purchase to ensure you are only spending the Airpoints you have earned.

*Eligibility criteria and service fee applies, read more about Airpoints Flexipay.

We have updated the way we display your balance, to make it easier to understand how many Airpoints you have available to spend. If you have an Airpoints Advance, it is now easier to see how much of this you have used or have left available to spend. To see the new display, you will need to update your Air NZ app through the App Store or Google Play Store. You will see the new display in your Airpoints Update email very soon.