What Happens to Your U.S. Points and Miles When You Move Abroad Permanently?
Your airline miles survive the move in almost every program. Your hotel points expire if you stop earning for 24 months. The balances genuinely at risk are the flexible points sitting with Chase, American Express, Citi and Capital One, because those die with the card account rather than with the airline.
One issuer goes further. Capital One's consumer card agreement lists permanent residence outside the United States as a condition of account default.
The short version
Delta SkyMiles, United MileagePlus, Alaska Atmos Rewards points, Southwest Rapid Rewards points and JetBlue TrueBlue points do not expire
American AAdvantage miles expire after any 24-month period with no qualifying activity, and members under 21 and primary AAdvantage credit cardholders are exempt
Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors points expire after 24 consecutive months of inactivity, IHG One Rewards after 12 months at Club level
American Express forfeits every Membership Rewards point immediately if you cancel your last linked card
Citi gives you 60 days if you close the account yourself, and possibly zero days if Citi closes it for fraud, misuse or abuse
Do your airline miles survive a permanent move abroad?
Airline miles are the safest currency you own. Delta SkyMiles, United MileagePlus, Alaska Atmos Rewards, Southwest Rapid Rewards and JetBlue TrueBlue have all eliminated expiration. Delta's SkyMiles Program Rules put it in one sentence: "Under the SkyMiles Mileage Expiration policy, miles do not expire." Alaska said the same when it launched Atmos Rewards, confirming that "points do not expire" and remain redeemable on Alaska, Hawaiian and partner airlines.
American Airlines is the exception among the large U.S. programs. The AAdvantage Terms and Conditions, effective March 1, 2026, state that "if your account has no Qualifying Activity in any 24-month period, all miles in the account will expire." Qualifying activity is broad. Redeeming an award counts, earning on an AAdvantage partner airline counts, and so does earning through hotels, car rentals and credit cards. A single partner hotel stay resets the clock. Members under 21 are exempt entirely, and so are primary holders of AAdvantage co-brand credit cards for as long as they hold the card.
The no-expiration programs share one trap. Points last only while the account stays open. Southwest's terms say that if a member closes their account, "the points in the account will be forfeited." JetBlue's terms say the points "will be terminated." Do not close any airline account to tidy up your affairs before you move.
None of the airline programs we checked requires U.S. residency. Delta, American, Southwest, Marriott, Hilton and IHG all gate membership on age of majority and on sanctioned jurisdictions rather than on where you live.
Do hotel points expire if you stop travelling in the U.S.?
Hotel points are the opposite of airline miles. Every major hotel program still expires points on inactivity, and moving abroad is exactly the life event that produces inactivity.
Marriott Bonvoy is explicit: "If a Member Account is inactive for twenty-four (24) consecutive months, that Member Account will forfeit all accumulated Points." Hilton Honors uses the same window, warning that members without eligible activity "in any twenty-four (24) consecutive month period are subject to forfeiture of all accumulated Points." IHG One Rewards is the harshest, expiring points after "any period of twelve (12) months or longer" without an earn or redeem transaction, though Elite members are exempt while they hold status.
Marriott hides a second trap inside its activity definition. Gifting or transferring points does not count as activity, and neither does receiving them. Moving 50,000 points to your brother's account resets nobody's clock. A single paid night, a points purchase, or a co-brand card charge does. The full wording is in the Marriott Bonvoy program terms.
What happens to Chase, Amex, Citi and Capital One points?
This is where people lose real money. Flexible points are not yours in the way airline miles are. They live inside a credit card relationship, and they end when the relationship does.
Currency | Do points expire on their own? | What happens when the account closes |
|---|---|---|
Amex Membership Rewards | No | Forfeited immediately if you cancel your last linked product. New York cardmembers get 90 days. Amex also gives 90 days if it closes a card for inactivity. |
Citi ThankYou | No | 60 days if you close it or Citi closes it for inactivity. Points may be forfeited immediately if Citi closes it for fraud, misuse or abuse. |
Chase Ultimate Rewards | No, while the account is open | At least 30 days after ordinary closure. Immediate loss if Chase closes it for misuse, fraud or nonpayment. |
Capital One miles | No | Closed or not-in-good-standing accounts can lose unredeemed rewards. |
Airline miles | Mostly no. American expires at 24 months. | Unaffected by a card closure. The miles sit with the airline. |
Hotel points | Yes. 24 months Marriott and Hilton, 12 months IHG. | Unaffected by a card closure, but the card was likely your activity. |
American Express is the least forgiving. The Membership Rewards Program Terms state: "You will immediately lose all of the points in your Rewards Account if you cancel or unenroll your last linked Product." There is no grace period outside New York, where a 2023 change gives cardmembers 90 days after notice of closure.
Citi's terms are worth reading twice. Close the account yourself and you get 60 days. Have Citi close it for inactivity and you also get 60 days. If Citi closes it for fraud, misuse, abuse or suspicious activity, your points may be forfeited immediately.
Chase is the most generous of the four. Its rewards program agreement says points do not expire "as long as your account is open," and that after closure "you'll have at least 30 days from the date your account is closed to use your points." Chase's own education page adds the practical workaround: move the points to another open Chase card before you close anything.
The lesson is one sentence long. Transfer flexible points into an airline or hotel program before any card closes, because airline and hotel balances survive a closed credit card and issuer points do not. Our guide to what points and miles are worth covers which transfers hold value and which waste it.
Will your issuer close your card because you moved?
Capital One is the only major issuer with an explicit clause. Its consumer credit card agreement lists "you permanently reside outside the United States" among the conditions that put an account in default. The same agreement requires "a valid U.S. mailing address and residential address" and tells you that "you must tell us when this information changes." Read together, that is an issuer telling you a permanent move abroad breaches the agreement.
The other three have no such clause, and that is worth stating plainly because the internet claims otherwise. Chase's cardmember agreement contains a broad business-needs closure right, admitting that "sometimes we close accounts based not on your actions or inactions, but on our business needs." Citi's is blunter still: "We may close or suspend your Account if any of the events listed above occur, or for any reason, or for no reason." Neither names foreign residency. Amex's U.S. consumer agreement does not mention it either.
Amex does create one practical problem. Its cardmember agreement states: "We will not accept a payment made in a foreign currency or a payment drawn on an account at a bank located outside of the U.S." Keeping a U.S. bank account is not optional. We walk through the mechanics in how to pay a U.S. credit card bill from abroad.
Can you keep an American Express relationship when you move?
Yes, and it is the best feature any issuer offers expats. American Express runs a service called Global Card Relationship, which it describes as making it "seamless for Card Members to apply for a new American Express Card in select countries." It carries your membership tenure across, letting you keep your "Member Since date on your new Card," and Amex will use your U.S. account history when it reviews the application.
What it does not do is move your points. Amex is direct about this: "If you earn rewards on your current and existing Card, you can continue to keep, and redeem rewards through this current and existing account only." Membership Rewards products must be "issued by American Express or one of its affiliates in the U.S. and be billed in U.S. dollars," so a foreign Amex cannot inherit a U.S. balance.
The right move is to keep one U.S. Membership Rewards card open, pay its fee, and use Global Card Relationship for a local card alongside it.
Does elite status survive?
There is no primary-source support for the idea that moving abroad costs you elite status. Marriott reserves the right to suspend status "at any time with immediate effect and without written notice, for any reason," which is a general discretion clause rather than a residency rule. American's terms tie status purely to Loyalty Points earned in the qualification period. Hilton names no residency condition.
Delta is the one exception, and it is a real one. Delta's program rules say "country of residence is determined by the primary address in the Member's SkyMiles account," and that Delta reserves the right to audit accounts for address accuracy and residency. Accounts found in violation "are subject to penalty, up to and including termination of Medallion Status and closure of the SkyMiles account." Changing your country of residence with Delta requires supporting documentation. Update the address honestly and supply what Delta asks for.
Can you move points to someone in the U.S. before you go?
Sometimes, at a price. Delta charges "$0.01 USD per mile, plus a $30 USD processing fee per transaction" to transfer miles, capped at 150,000 miles sent per member per year. At one cent a mile you are paying roughly what the miles are worth, so this rarely makes sense.
American does not permit it. AAdvantage terms state that rewards "are not transferable and may not be combined among AAdvantage members," outside the paid Transfer Miles product and the AAdvantage Business program.
Hotels are friendlier. Hilton allows up to 500,000 points sent and 2,000,000 received per member per calendar year. Marriott permits 100,000 sent and 500,000 received. World of Hyatt lets two members combine points, with transfers limited to once every 30 days and both accounts required to be active. Southwest allows member-to-member transfers from 2,000 points, though points "may not be transferred to a Member's estate or as part of a settlement, inheritance, or will."
The cheaper alternative is usually an authorized user rather than a transfer. A trusted family member spending in the U.S. keeps earning into your account, which we cover in how to keep earning U.S. points while you live abroad.
What should you do in the 90 days before you move?
Work through five things in order.
Empty your flexible points. Transfer Chase, Amex, Citi and Capital One balances into airline or hotel programs, or book with them, before any card closes
Decide which one U.S. card stays open. For Amex, that decision keeps your entire Membership Rewards balance alive
Keep a U.S. bank account and set up autopay from it
Put a calendar reminder at 20 months for every hotel program you hold points in, and use a co-brand card or a paid night to reset the clock
Update your address with the airline programs, and supply documentation where a program asks for it
For which cards to hold once you are settled, see our guide to the best credit cards for Americans living abroad and our best travel credit cards guide. If you are moving before you have a credit file, start with how to build U.S. credit history when you live overseas.
FAQ
Do airline miles expire if you move abroad?
Delta SkyMiles, United MileagePlus, Alaska Atmos Rewards points, Southwest Rapid Rewards points and JetBlue TrueBlue points do not expire at all. American AAdvantage miles expire after 24 months with no qualifying activity, and any partner hotel stay, car rental or card charge resets that clock.
Will Capital One close my card if I move overseas?
Capital One's consumer credit card agreement lists "you permanently reside outside the United States" as a condition of account default, and requires a valid U.S. mailing and residential address. Verify the agreement for your specific Capital One product, since terms differ by card.
What happens to Membership Rewards points if I cancel my Amex?
American Express forfeits all Membership Rewards points immediately if you cancel or unenroll your last linked product. Cardmembers in New York get 90 days after notice of closure. Keeping one Membership Rewards card open preserves the whole balance.
How long do Marriott and Hilton points last without activity?
Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors both forfeit points after 24 consecutive months without qualifying activity. For Marriott, gifting or receiving transferred points does not count as activity, so a transfer will not reset the clock. IHG One Rewards expires points after 12 months at Club level.
Can I keep my Amex card if I move to another country?
American Express offers Global Card Relationship, which lets existing cardmembers apply for a card in select countries while keeping their Member Since date. Your existing U.S. cards stay open unless you ask to close them, and U.S. Membership Rewards points remain redeemable only through the U.S. account.
Does moving abroad cost me elite status?
No program we checked ties elite status to U.S. residency, though Delta audits SkyMiles accounts for address accuracy and can terminate Medallion Status for violations. Marriott, Hilton and American reserve broad discretion but name no residency condition.
The Bottom Line
Rank your risk by who holds the balance. Airline miles sit with the airline and survive almost anything. Hotel points sit with the hotel and need one transaction every 12 to 24 months. Flexible points sit inside a credit card account, and they are gone the day that account closes, with American Express giving you no grace period at all. Move those first, keep one U.S. card and one U.S. bank account open, and the rest of your portfolio travels with you.
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