Some links to products and partners on this website will earn an affiliate commission.

For a while now, Amex has been offering double the standard sign up bonus on its (free for first year) Amex Gold Credit Card – so 20,000 Amex Membership Rewards Points rather than 10,000. You also receive 2,000 more bonus points if you apply using a referral link like this one (please feel free to leave your own in the comments)

That offer is due to expire in a week (29th June 2020), so if you were thinking of applying, now is a good time to do so.

Amex Membership Rewards Points can of course be transferred to British Airways Avios, Virgin Flying Club, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, and a range of other airline and hotel loyalty programmes.

Higher referral bonus too…

One thing I hadn’t noticed about the bonus offer is that you can also currently get more points than normal for referring friends and family. Ordinarily, you get 6,000 points for a successful referral, but at the moment that has been raised to 9,000: 

As far as I can see, the 90,000 point annual limit for referrals still applies though.

Do note that you will not be eligible for any welcome bonus offer if you hold or have held any personal American Express Cards in the past 24 months.

Bottom line

I explained last month why I think that now is actually a great time to get an Amex Platinum Card, and I still believe that would be the most lucrative move for most people – but, if you are put off by the annual fee on the Platinum, it’s definitely worth considering the Amex Gold while the sign up bonus is enhanced.

In my experience new cards tend to arrive 3-4 days after application, so if you applied now, there should still be time to refer friends and family so that they (and you) can benefit from the higher bonuses before they end next week.