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Did you know Marriott Bonvoy points expire after 24 months of inactivity? It’s not as dire as it sounds since Marriott has a generous policy for what constitutes “activity”. In any case, let’s look at the details of when points expire and how to prevent them from doing so.
Marriott Points Do Expire
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Marriott Bonvoy temporarily paused points expiration, eventually extending the pause through December 31, 2022. Many members were caught off guard when expiration resumed in 2023 and, as of 2026, yes, Marriott points are back to expiring.
The expiration clock runs for 24 months and your entire balance will expire if there is no activity during that time, unless you’re a Lifetime Elite. Any tier, even Lifetime Silver Elite is enough.
There’s particular emphasis on “entire balance” because all points will expire, regardless of when you earned them.
Marriott’s terms state that once points are forfeited, they cannot be reinstated, so prevention is definitely the better move here.
Check Your Expiration Date
Marriott at least does make it easy to check when your points are expiring. It’s easiest via the Marriott Bonvoy mobile app, simply login and click “Account” on the bottom right.
The right side shows your current balance and the left side has a label “Points Balance”. The expiration date will show right beneath these words.
Where the expiration policy is displayed (empty because of Lifetime Elite status)
If you have no recorded activity, Marriott will display the following message: “Our records show no account activity for at least 24 months. If you believe we missed something, please contact customer support.”
Prevent Marriott Points From Expiring
To prevent Marriott Bonvoy points from expiring, you must have account activity within a rolling 24-month period.
Qualifying Activities
Here is Marriott’s list of qualifying activities that count towards resetting the 24-month clock:
- Completed Stays posted to the Account
- Food and Beverage Earned without a Stay (where applicable)
- Loyalty Dining Redeem
- Completed Marriott Bonvoy Event (based on departure date)
- Marriott Bonvoy Points earned from Marriott Bonvoy CoBrand Credit Cards
- Transfers from Chase Ultimate Rewards or American Express Membership Rewards to Marriott Bonvoy
- Receiving Marriott Bonvoy Points from a Bank Partner
- Marriott Bonvoy Points earned from program partners
- Sheraton Vacation Club and Westin Vacation Club Owners exchanging week or Points
- Purchasing Marriott Bonvoy Points online at least every 24 months (for your own Account)
- Converting Marriott Bonvoy Points to Miles (based on Issue Date)
- Converting Miles to Marriott Bonvoy Points (based on Transaction Completed Date)
- Converting Marriott Bonvoy Points to other designated partners or converting from designated partners to Marriott Bonvoy Points
- Earning Marriott Bonvoy Points from a Marriott Bonvoy Tours and Activities
- Purchasing Marriott Bonvoy Gift Cards if purchased with a Marriott Bonvoy Cobrand Card
- Redeeming Marriott Bonvoy Points (non-stay Rewards such as Moments, Donation of Points, Merchandise and Retail/Dining Gift Cards using Points, Marriott Bonvoy Gift Cards using Points)
- Merging Accounts (only Qualifying if one of the Accounts is “active”).
- Starbucks earning for Marriott Bonvoy Weeks (Sip, Dream, Go weeks).
- Marriott Bonvoy transfers to Starbucks Rewards
- Rakuten Point Transfers
- Points transferred from BetMGM to Marriott Bonvoy
- Eat Around Town earning
I highlighted the easiest options to keep your points active: complete a stay, transfer points from Chase or Amex, or buy Marriott Bonvoy points.
Non-Qualifying Activities
With the comprehensive list above, a few notable omissions are activities that do not reset the 24-month expiration clock:
- Gifting or Transferring Points to another Member
- Receiving Points as a Gift or Transfer
- Redeeming Marriott Bonvoy Points for an upcoming stay
Marriott allows you to transfer up to 100,000 points to another member and receive up to 500,000 points in one calendar year. Neither activity counts toward resetting your Marriott points expiry date.
On another point, an actual stay does reset your 24-month clock, but simply booking an upcoming award stay won’t cut it.
Takeaway
Marriott Bonvoy points expire after 24 months of inactivity, but fortunately, keeping them alive is incredibly easy. You don’t even need to stay at a Marriott property, as transferring as few as 1,000 Amex Membership Rewards points or purchasing Marriott points is enough to reset the clock for another two years.
Just remember that transferring points between Marriott Bonvoy members and redeeming for an upcoming stay don’t count as qualifying activity. With so many ways to keep your account active, there’s really no reason to let your entire points balance expire.
Featured Image Credit: Ritz-Carlton Fukuoka
