Originally Posted by
nli007
My biggest concern right now is whether or not I will earn 5x MR for restaurant/bar/grocery purchases OUTSIDE of Canada.
Hoping someone will test out the card soon haha
Not going to happen. Amex Canada is very clear on that, and in my experience as a cardmember for 18 years now, they mean it.
You can earn Membership Rewards points for eligible consumer purchases at American Express retail merchants as follows: 5 points for every $1 at or for (i) restaurant, quick service restaurant, coffee shop and drinking establishments in Canada, (ii) stand-alone grocery stores in Canada, (iii) delivery of food and groceries in Canada as a primary business; and 2 points for every $1 at or for (i) stand-alone automobile gasoline stations in Canada, (ii) travel services or travel bookings including air, water, rail and road transport, lodging and tour operator sales, (iii) local commuter transportation in Canada including subway, streetcar, taxi, limousine and ride sharing services.
You'll notice that the only category that they do not specifically say "in Canada" is the travel bookings. So you'll get 2 MR points per C$1 for your airplane tickets and hotel, just like the Gold Rewards card; but *not* for the Uber ride you'll take from the airport to the hotel. Nor will you get the 5 points per dollar for any restaurant spend when you are on that trip.
And this is my #1 annoyance with Amex Canada. For being a company that markets itself and its products heavily as being for world travellers, they make truly terrible cards to actually use when travelling abroad.
So I'll use my Gold Card to book my flights and hotels and get the 2/1 bonus, and I'll use my Platinum Card to access the lounges and use the concierge for special reservations along the way... but when it comes to actually paying for things? Amex is at the bottom of my list thanks to the 2.5% Forex fee and the restrictions on bonus points to only being earned IN CANADA.