Earn rewards with a corporate credit card

By Jeremy M. Simon

Although your employer probably is the one who ultimately pays for corporate credit card expenditures, you may still be able to enjoy the rewards some of these cards provide.  If the corporate credit card offers rewards points, that could mean you get free air travel, cruises, and more.

For frequent travelers, credit card rewards points can add up fast.  Flights around the country, meals, and hotel stays charged to your corporate card could all mean more rewards for you.

Generous employers may even pay the annual fee attached to many of these types of credit cards.  For example, some companies pay the yearly cost to participate in the rewards programs for American Express Green and Gold credit cards.

But overall, just 25 percent of companies with corporate credit cards offer rewards programs as an option for employees, since credit card issuers charge businesses for rewards programs.  The cost for rewards programs is used by credit card issuers to fund the programs, as well as for customer service and the various discounts the credit cards provide.

While American Express is the giant in the corporate rewards program space, MasterCard has increased its business offering in recent years, with corporate credit cards for executives at major corporations as well as small business credit cards for entrepreneurs.

Meanwhile, Visa's corporate credit card option is primarily used for small and midsized businesses.  At VisaExtras.com, most of the rewards come in the form of gift certificates.

Employees that use the Starwood Preferred Guest Business Credit Card, which was introduced in fall of 2006 by Starwood and American Express, earn 10,000 points with their first card purchase.  That generous amount can be redeemed for three free nights at a Starwood hotel.

Company owners sometimes encourage employees to use the corporate credit card for all spending, including for personal items they must pay for themselves, due to the rewards points employees can earn. 

Published: April 13, 2007

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