Chase Doubles the Aeroplan Card's Fee to $195 — and Three Perks Quietly Disappear in January
Card refreshes follow a script now. The fee goes up, a stack of statement credits arrives to justify it, and somewhere in the fine print an earn rate you actually used gets deleted. Chase's rework of the Aeroplan card, effective September 10, runs that script — but it breaks from it in one way that matters, and existing cardholders have a decision to make before December 31.
What changed
The card is now the Chase Air Canada Aeroplan Card, and the annual fee is $195, up from $95.
In exchange, every cardholder gets automatic Aeroplan 25K status with no spending requirement attached — which carries priority check-in, Zone 2 priority boarding, and five eUpgrade credits a year. Add a 15% discount on eligible Air Canada flight rewards booked with Aeroplan points, up to $100 a year in Air Canada statement credits delivered as two $50 halves, a free checked bag for the cardholder and up to eight companions on the same reservation, and a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit every four years.
New applicants get the best welcome offer this card has ever carried: up to 115,000 Aeroplan points, structured as 75,000 after $4,000 of spending in three months, plus another 40,000 after reaching $20,000 within twelve months.
What existing cardholders lose
This is the part that won't arrive by email with a headline on it.
Current cardholders keep the $95 fee through December 31, 2026. On January 1, the fee becomes $195 — and three benefits end at the same moment:
The monthly bonus of 500 points per $2,000 spent, capped at 1,500 a month
The 10% bonus on Ultimate Rewards transfers to Aeroplan, up to 25,000 points a year
3X points on grocery and dining purchases
If you have been treating this card as a grocery earner, or using the 10% transfer kicker as a routine part of moving Chase points into Aeroplan, your reason for holding it expires on the same day the price doubles.
Why this one is different
Most refreshes replace flat earning with conditional credits — coupons you have to remember, spend against, and often forfeit. The Aeroplan rework does some of that, but the two headline additions aren't coupons at all.
Aeroplan 25K status normally requires flying for it. Here it arrives with the card, on day one, regardless of spend. The 15% award discount works the same way: it's not a credit you have to trigger, it's a reduction applied to bookings you were making anyway. Both have real value to anyone who flies Air Canada with any regularity, and neither requires you to change your behavior to capture it.
That's a meaningfully better trade than the industry norm, which is why the fee increase is easier to defend here than it is on most of the cards that raised prices this year.
Whether to keep it
Keep it if you fly Air Canada more than once or twice a year. The free checked bag alone runs to real money on a round trip with a companion, the $100 in credits is straightforward to use if you buy any Air Canada travel, and 25K status improves the actual experience of flying. Together they clear $195 without requiring a spreadsheet.
Reconsider if Air Canada is incidental to you. If you held this card for the grocery multiplier and the transfer bonus, both are gone in January and the replacement benefits are worth nothing to someone who doesn't fly the airline. Downgrade or cancel before the 2027 renewal posts rather than paying $195 to find out.
If you're applying, 115,000 points is the best this card has offered, but note the structure: the second tranche of 40,000 requires $20,000 of spending within a year, which is a different proposition from the $4,000 that unlocks the first 75,000. Judge the offer on the 75,000 you'll actually earn, and treat the rest as a bonus if your spending gets there.
One stacking note worth knowing: Chase is currently running a transfer bonus to Aeroplan through September 30 — 20% for everyone, 30% for holders of this card. Combined with the card's 15% award discount, that's two independent reductions on the same booking.
Before you transfer
A caution specific to Aeroplan: surcharge treatment on award tickets varies depending on which airline actually operates the flight, and Aeroplan's published policy also carries a $39 CAD booking fee on partner awards. Price the full out-of-pocket cost of the specific award you want before moving any points. Transfers into Aeroplan are permanent.
Fee, benefit and welcome offer details confirmed against Chase's announcement of the refresh, September 11, 2026. Transfer bonus terms sit behind issuer logins — confirm the current ratio in your own Ultimate Rewards portal before transferring.