American Express® Velocity Escape Card

Earn uncapped Virgin Australia Velocity points and $0 Annual Fee with the American Express Velocity Escape credit card.

Points Earned: 0.75 Velocity Points per $1 on all eligible purchases, excludes spend at government bodies; 1.75 Velocity Points per $1 spent on selected Virgin Australia purchases; 0.5 Velocity Points per $1 on government spend
Annual fee: $0 p.a.

Australian Frequent Flyer is currently not accepting applications for this card offer.
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Why we like the American Express Velocity Escape Card

The American Express Velocity Escape card is a no-frills co-branded credit card that lets you earn uncapped points with Velocity Frequent Flyer, the loyalty program of Virgin Australia.

This card has $0 Annual Fee and you can earn 0.75 Velocity points per $1 spent on this card (with a reduced earn rate for government payments). You’ll also earn a bonus Velocity point for every dollar spent with Virgin Australia.

If you’re looking for an entry-level credit card that earns Velocity points, and don’t want to pay an annual fee, Amex Velocity Escape could be a suitable option. That said, some people may prefer to pay the annual fee of the American Express Velocity Platinum card and receive extra benefits such as a free annual return flight, airport lounge passes, travel insurance and a higher points earning rate.

Key Information & How to Apply

Key facts about this card

Card type: American Express
Annual fee: $0 p.a.
Interest rate: 23.99% p.a.
Interest-free days: Up to 55 days
Minimum monthly repayment: 2.5% or $30, whichever is greater
Minimum credit limit: $2000
International transaction fee: 3%

To apply for this card, you will need

To be an Australian citizen, resident or long-term visa holder aged 18 or over
No history of bad debt or payment default
Your Australian driver’s licence number and proof of income
10-15 minutes to complete your application

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Australian Frequent Flyer is currently not accepting applications for this card offer.
Get notified when it’s live.

Contents

Earning Points

With the American Express Velocity Escape card, you’ll earn 0.75 Velocity Frequent Flyer points per $1 spent on eligible transactions (excluding government payments).

There is no monthly or annual point-earning cap. You can earn an unlimited number of points at the full rate.

Plus, you’ll earn an extra Velocity point for every dollar spent (bringing the total to 1.75 Velocity points per $1) on eligible Virgin Australia purchases.

Virgin Australia 737 lands in Queenstown, New Zealand — Earn 0.75 Velocity points per $1 on everyday spend, and 1.75 Velocity points per $1 spent with Virgin Australia. Photo: Virgin Australia.

Velocity points may expire if there is no activity in your Velocity Frequent Flyer account for 24 months. But earning Velocity points with your credit card will keep your account active.

Earning points for ATO & government payments

Payments made directly to the Australian Tax Office (ATO) or other government bodies in Australia with your Amex Velocity Escape card will earn at a reduced rate of 0.5 Velocity points per $1.

However, you can use a payment service such as pay.com.au or Sniip to pay tax and other bills with this card, and still earn points at the full rate.

Using Velocity Frequent Flyer points

There are many ways to redeem Virgin Australia Velocity points, both in the air and on the ground.

If you don’t want to use your points in the air, Velocity points can be redeemed for wine, hotels, car hire bookings and products or gift cards from the Velocity Rewards Store.

But you’ll generally get the best value for your Velocity points by redeeming for UpgradeMe Points upgrades on Virgin Australia or reward seats.

You can use Velocity Frequent Flyer points to upgrade to Virgin Australia Business Class. Photo: Virgin Australia.

You can use Velocity points to book reward seats on Virgin Australia or any of its partner airlines. These include Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways, United Airlines, Etihad Airways, Air Canada, Hawaiian Airlines, South African Airways and Virgin Atlantic.

Qatar Airways business class Qsuite — You could redeem Velocity points to fly Qatar Airways’ Business Class Qsuites! Photo: Qatar Airways.

You can check the number of Velocity points you’d need to book a reward seat on the Velocity Frequent Flyer website.

It’s also possible to convert Velocity Frequent Flyer points into Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles! You’d just need to transfer at least 5,000 Velocity points at a time, and the conversion rate is 1.55 Velocity points = 1 KrisFlyer mile.

Singapore Airlines 777 — You can redeem Velocity points for Singapore Airlines flights as a Velocity Reward Seat, or by converting your Velocity points into Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles. Photo: Singapore Airlines.

Note that taxes are payable in addition to the points on reward seats, as well as carrier charges when booking reward seats on Virgin Australia, Etihad, Qatar Airways or Singapore Airlines. The availability of reward seats may also be limited, particularly in Business/First Class on popular international routes and during peak travel periods.

See our Overview of Velocity Frequent Flyer Redemptions for more details about using Velocity points.

There is currently no sign-up bonus available on this card.

If you would like an American Express credit card that offers bonus Velocity points when you apply, you may wish to consider the Amex Velocity Platinum credit card. You could also choose a card that comes with bonus Amex Membership Rewards points, such as the Amex Explorer card, and then transfer those Amex Membership Rewards points into your Velocity Frequent Flyer account.

Note that American Express does not generally award sign-up bonus points to customers who already have an Amex card or have held one in the past 18 months. Therefore, be aware that signing up for this card may exclude you from accessing sign-up bonus point offers on other Amex credit cards in the short term. However, American Express does from time to time offer bonus points to card members who upgrade to a different card on an invitation-only basis.

Card Purchase & Refund Cover

Unlike many other American Express credit cards which have annual fees, the American Express Velocity Escape card does not come with complimentary travel insurance.

However, you can benefit from complimentary Card Purchase Cover which covers stolen or damaged items purchased using your card. There’s also Card Refund Cover, which covers the cost of eligible items purchased with your card if a store refuses a return.

Read the full card insurance PDS here.

You can also access American Express’ Fraud Protection Guarantee, emergency card replacement and choose pay off your card using Plan It instalments.

Summary

Pros

$0 Annual Fee
Earn Velocity points with no monthly or annual earning cap
Earn bonus points on Virgin Australia purchases
Possibility to convert Velocity points earned from this card into Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles
Lower minimum income requirement compared to Amex Velocity Platinum card
Card Purchase Cover & Card Refund Cover
Compatible with Apple Pay, Google Pay & Samsung Pay

Cons

Earns Velocity points at a lower rate than other Qantas American Express credit cards
International transaction fees apply
American Express cards are not as widely accepted as Visa & Mastercard
High interest rate (this could be a problem if you don’t think you’ll be able to repay your balance in full each month)
By earning Velocity points rather than Amex Membership Rewards points, you forfeit the flexibility to transfer points to other frequent flyer programs (other than KrisFlyer)

Points Earned: 0.75 Velocity Points per $1 on all eligible purchases, excludes spend at government bodies; 1.75 Velocity Points per $1 spent on selected Virgin Australia purchases; 0.5 Velocity Points per $1 on government spend
Annual fee: $0 p.a.

Notify Me

Australian Frequent Flyer is currently not accepting applications for this card offer.
Get notified when it’s live.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What are the requirements to apply for an American Express Velocity Escape credit card?

To apply for an Amex Velocity Escape card in Australia, you would need to be an Australian citizen, resident or long-term visa holder. Other criteria may apply.

What is the minimum credit limit on the American Express Velocity Escape card?

The minimum credit limit is $2,000.

What are the differences between the American Express Velocity Escape and Velocity Platinum cards?

The Amex Velocity Escape card has $0 Annual Fee and earns 0.75 Velocity points per $1 spent on eligible purchases. The Amex Velocity Platinum card has an annual fee, but earns Velocity points at a higher rate and comes with other benefits including a free annual return Virgin Australia flight, complimentary travel insurance and airport lounge passes.

Can you use the Amex Velocity Escape card to pay the ATO?

Yes, but payments to government bodies including the Australian Tax Office (ATO) will earn points at a reduced rate of 0.5 Velocity Frequent Flyer points per dollar (instead of the usual 0.75 points per dollar on everyday purchases). You can still earn full points on ATO payments by using a bill payment service such as Sniip or pay.com.au.

What Virgin Australia benefits come with the Amex Velocity Escape card?

Earn 0.75 Virgin Australia Velocity points on everyday spend, and 1 bonus Velocity point per dollar spent on Virgin Australia purchases.

Do Velocity Frequent Flyer points expire?

Velocity Frequent Flyer points will only expire if you do not earn or redeem at least one Velocity point for two years. As long as your Velocity account remains active, i.e. by earning and/or redeeming points at least once every 24 months, your points will not expire.

Is the American Express Velocity Escape card compatible with Apple Pay?

Yes, the American Express Velocity Escape card supports Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay. So, you can still use this card to make purchases when you’re out and about without carrying the physical card.

Can you add additional cardholders?

Yes, Amex Velocity Escape cardholders can add up to four additional cardholders at no cost. Additional cardholders must be at least 16 years old.

Discuss this card with the Australian Frequent Flyer community

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