In India, if you’re an American Express cardholder and have been enjoying the Reward Multiplier program to fast-track your Amex membership rewards on purchases from Apple, Nykaa, Myntra, MakeMyTrip, and other participating brands, here is what you need to know right now: The program comes to a close on September 30, 2026. All purchases after this date will not benefit from the Reward Multiplier of the Amex reward points, regardless of the time of purchase.
Amex sent this information to its card owners via email on August 26, 2026. If you didn’t, you are not alone. And if you are wondering what this actually changes for your points strategy going forward, this blog gives you the complete picture without the bank’s carefully worded positioning.
What the Amex Reward Multiplier Actually Was
The Reward Multiplier was Amex India’s version of HDFC SmartBuy, ICICI iShop, or Axis Grab Deals. You would log into the Reward Multiplier portal, click through to a participating merchant, and complete your purchase as usual. By routing the transaction through that portal, you earned accelerated Amex membership rewards on top of your card’s base rate.
The program offered up to 5x Membership Rewards points on eligible purchases at select brands across shopping, travel, and dining categories. For someone making a large purchase, say a MacBook through Apple’s Amex portal or a hotel booking through MakeMyTrip’s Reward Multiplier link, the additional points could translate into thousands of rupees in redemption value on a single transaction.
It had been running for six years. And for anyone who had built their Amex strategy around maximizing Amex rewards points through strategic merchant routing, its removal takes away one of the simplest and most reliable acceleration mechanisms available on any Indian card.
The Deadline That Actually Matters
The deadline to remember is September 29, 2026, at 11:59 PM. Amex says eligible purchases made by then will still earn Reward Multiplier points under the current terms. After that, the program ends.
Starting a transaction before 11:59 PM is not enough. The purchase must meet the existing eligibility rules and be completed before the deadline. If you have been sitting on a large eligible purchase, a MacBook, a high-value Myntra order, a jewellery purchase, or a travel booking through a Reward Multiplier partner, this is your final window. Do not leave it until the last minute and assume the portal will cooperate at 11:45 PM on September 29.
As always with American Express rewards, card members should pay attention to the program’s terms and the actual transaction eligibility rather than simply assuming that a transaction initiated before the deadline will qualify.
What Is Not Changing
Your existing Amex membership rewards points balance is safe. The base earn rate on your card is untouched. What is being removed is specifically the direct-purchase Reward Multiplier mechanism, the ability to click through to a participating merchant and earn accelerated points on that specific transaction.
While accelerated Membership Rewards points on purchases made with select brands will no longer be available, you can continue to earn accelerated Membership Rewards points on eligible purchases through ShopWise, an independent platform offering e-vouchers from 200 plus brands across shopping, dining, and travel.
ShopWise is the e-voucher platform that survives this change. You buy a voucher for a brand through ShopWise, load it into the app, or use it at checkout, and earn up to 5x the Amex reward multiplier equivalent points on the voucher purchase. It is a two-step process rather than a one-click routing, and it requires thinking about your purchase in advance rather than routing through the portal at the time of buying.
The distinction matters because ShopWise puts the planning burden on you. The reward multiplier was seamless. ShopWise requires a voucher purchase, loading, and redemption sequence that some categories and merchants handle better than others.
What This Change Actually Costs You in Points
The impact varies significantly by how you were using the reward multiplier. For someone who made one or two large purchases a year through the portal, the annual points loss is relatively contained. For someone who consistently routed shopping, travel, and dining through Reward Multiplier partners every month, the gap is material.
Here is a practical illustration. An Rs. 80,000 MacBook purchase routed through the Apple Reward Multiplier link on a Platinum Charge card would earn 5x points on that amount. At the Platinum Charge’s base earn rate, that same purchase without the portal earns significantly fewer points. The difference between 5x and the base rate on an Rs. 80,000 transaction, multiplied across two or three similar purchases per year, represents a meaningful points gap that ShopWise vouchers can partially but not fully replace for every category.
Use our Rewards point Calculator to run your own numbers. Plug in your typical monthly spend across the categories you were using the Reward Multiplier for and compare what your Amex card returns at base rate against what alternative cards return in the same categories. The calculation may or may not change your card decision, but it will give you a real number rather than an assumption.
The Bigger Pattern Amex Cardholders Need to See
The Reward Multiplier shutdown does not happen in isolation. This, along with the other recent changes to American Express credit cards in India, feels like a major shift.
Earlier this year, the Amex Platinum Travel card lost its Rs. 1.9 lakh milestone bonus and had its Rs. 7 lakh milestone points replaced by a Taj voucher. The lounge access structure was made conditional from October 2026. Now the reward multiplier ends September 30. Three meaningful changes in one year, each positioned carefully as a program update rather than a devaluation.
After six years of offering it, American Express is removing one of the most lucrative ways for Indian card members to earn accelerated Membership Rewards points.
For platinum Amex benefits holders specifically, the question worth sitting with is whether the card’s remaining value proposition, its base earn rate, ShopWise access, RewardXcelerator, transfer partners, lounge benefits, and lifestyle perks still justifies the annual fee at your specific spend level after these cumulative changes.
That is not a rhetorical question. For some cardholders it absolutely does. Amex’s transfer partners, particularly for airline miles, still deliver value that no Indian-issued card fully replicates. The chargeback protection remains best-in-class. The Fine Hotels and Resorts program for travel bookings is still a genuine differentiator for international travelers. These things have not changed.
For a detailed reference on what Amex’s current reward structure looks like post all these changes, American Express India has the authoritative breakdown of what survives and what does not.
What to Do Before September 30
If you have a large eligible purchase planned: Complete it through the Reward Multiplier before September 29 at 11:59 PM. Prioritize high-value categories where the 5x rate delivers the most absolute points: electronics, travel bookings, and jewelry have historically been strong Reward Multiplier categories.
If you hold points and have not redeemed: Your points are safe. But use the September 30 deadline as a prompt to review your accumulated balance and decide whether you are holding points for a specific redemption or holding them without a plan. Points sitting without a redemption target are points at devaluation risk.
If you are evaluating whether to keep your Amex card: Run your actual numbers first. Do not make the decision based on the reward multiplier removal alone. Factor in your transfer partner usage, your ShopWise purchase frequency, your international travel pattern, and whether the remaining Platinum Amex benefits on your specific card variant still cover the annual fee.
Frequently Asked Questions
September 30, 2026. Eligible purchases must be completed by September 29 at 11:59 PM to qualify under current terms.
Yes. Your points balance and base earn rate are completely unaffected. Only the Reward Multiplier direct-purchase mechanism is being removed.
Yes, through ShopWise. The e-voucher platform continues offering up to 5x points across 200-plus brands in shopping, dining, and travel categories.
Electronics like Apple, fashion platforms like Myntra and Nykaa, and travel bookings through MakeMyTrip’s Reward Multiplier link will feel the biggest gap since direct merchant routing disappears entirely.
Not based on this alone. If you hold the card for transfer partners, chargeback protection, or FHR benefits, those are unchanged. If Reward Multiplier was the primary reason you held it, that warrants a proper review.