Amex Centurion Card Military Benefits – “Black Card” MLA

The information and associated card details on this page for the Centurion Card has been collected independently by Military Money Manual and have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

The American Express Centurion Card – better known as the “Black Card” – is the most exclusive credit card in the world.

Offered by invitation only, the card comes with a $10,000 initiation fee and $5,000 annual fee. It's designed for high-net-worth individuals with $1+ million annual income and $250,000+ annual spend on American Express cards.

But… what if a military servicemember or military spouse, eligible for Military Lending Act protections, was able to apply for and approved for the card? Would American Express military protections apply to the legendary Amex Black Card?

The American Express Centurion Card

Amex Centurion Card Invitation

First, our legendary military servicemember would need to secure an invitation to the Amex Centurion card. This card is invitation only and the criteria to get invited are rumored to be quite steep.

While Amex is tight lipped on the actual requirements, data points indictate $1 million of income and $250,000 of spend on Amex cards as a bare minimum to get invited. That automatically puts this card out of reach of most MLA eligible families.

But even if the steep annual fees were reduced to $0, there is apparently no welcome bonus, and the card earns a paltry 1x points purchases under $5,000 (1.5x points on purchases $5,000 and above). You can earn much better with most of the best credit cards for military servicemembers.

Amex Black Card Benefits

Most of the Amex Black card are also available with The Platinum Card^® from American Express.

Why not pick up an Amex Platinum card before trying to spend your way to an Amex Centurion card? If you want to learn more about military benefits on credit cards, check out the Ultimate Military Credit Cards Course.

The Platinum Card^® from American Express
Learn how to apply on our partner's secure site

• $695 annual fee. Reduced to $0 with American Express special military protections
• You may be eligible for as high as 175,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you're approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you're approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
• Earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel® up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year and earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel®.
• $200 Annual Hotel Credit: Get $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts^® or The Hotel Collection bookings through American Express Travel using your Platinum Card^®. Note that The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay
• $240 Digital Entertainment Credit: Get up to $20 back in statement credits each month when you pay for eligible purchases with the Platinum Card^® at your choice of one or more of the following providers: Disney+, a Disney+ Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, Peacock, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal. Enrollment required.
• $200 Uber Cash: Platinum Card® Members can get $15 in Uber Cash each month, plus a bonus $20 in December after adding their Card to their Uber account. Use your Uber Cash on rides and orders in the U.S. when you select an Amex Card for your transaction. Enrollment required.
• $200 Airline Fee Credit: Select one qualifying airline and then receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when incidental fees, such as checked bags and in-flight refreshments, are charged by the airline to your Platinum Card® Account. American Express relies on airlines to submit the correct information on airline transactions to identify incidental fee purchases. If you do not see a credit for a qualifying incidental purchase on your eligible Card after 8 weeks, simply call the number on the back of your Card. Qualifying airlines are subject to change. See terms & conditions for more details.
• $199 CLEAR® Plus Credit: CLEAR® Plus helps get you to your gate faster by using unique facial attributes to verify you are you at 50+ airports nationwide. Receive up to $199 in statement credits per calendar year after you pay for your CLEAR Plus Membership (subject to auto-renewal) with the Platinum Card®.
• This is a MAJOR time saver–$120 statement credit every 4 years for a Global Entry application fee or a statement credit up to $85 every 4.5 years for a TSA PreCheck® (through a TSA PreCheck® official enrollment provider) application fee, when charged to your Platinum Card®! Card Members approved for Global Entry will also receive access to TSA PreCheck at no additional cost.
• Lounge life! Enjoy the benefits of the Global Lounge Collection, with over $500 of annual value if you visit Centurion Lounges and each of our partner lounges including Delta Sky Club® lounges when flying an eligible Delta flight (subject to visit limitations), select Lufthansa lounges when flying Lufthansa, Plaza Premium lounges and Escape Lounges, and enroll in Priority Pass Select. See terms.
• A Walmart+ membership can get you free shipping with no order minimum on eligible items shipped by Walmart. Use your Platinum Card® to pay for a monthly Walmart+ membership (subject to auto-renewal) and receive one statement credit for up to $12.95 (plus applicable taxes. Plus Ups not eligible) each month. Free Shipping excludes most Marketplace items, freight & certain location surcharges. Paramount+ Essential plan only, separate registration required.
• Up to $100 annual Saks Fifth Avenue credit, enrollment required
• Global Dining Access by Resy gets you access premium dining experiences. Receive Priority Notify and unlock insider access to some of the world's most sought-after restaurants with Global Dining Access by Resy. Download the Resy iOS app or log into Resy.com and add your Platinum Card® to your Resy profile to take advantage of your special benefits and discover restaurants near you.
• No foreign transaction fees
• Enrollment is required for select benefits
• The Platinum Card^® from American Express – learn how to apply
• Read my full review of the Amex Platinum card for military, terms apply

But there are also benefits that are only available with the Amex Black Card. Again, these are mostly data points gathered from around the web, so some benefits might not be available.

Hotel, Airline, and Travel Benefits

• Delta SkyMiles Platinum Medallion status
• Hilton Diamond status (you can get this with the American Express Hilton Honors Aspire Card)
• IHG One Rewards Platinum status
• Hertz Platinum status
• Avis President’s Club status
• Expanded access to Centurion Lounges (fewer restrictions, reserved seating, champagne, more guesting privileges, etc.)
• Access to the Lufthansa First Lounges in Frankfurt (FRA) and Munich (MUC) when flying a Lufthansa Group airline the same day
• PS (Private Suite) membership (with facilities at LAX and ATL), plus two complimentary visits per year to The Salon at PS, with each visit including a guest
• Airport Butler service at select global airports, when bookings a first or business class ticket through Amex Travel, and in some cases it even includes an airport transfer
• Added benefits with Amex Fine Hotels + Resorts^®, including increased credits, upgrades confirmed at booking at select properties, and more

Lifestyle Benefits

• An Equinox Destination Access membership; this would ordinarily cost $300+ per month
• 24/7 concierge service for hotels, restaurant reservations, etc.
• Up to $1,000 Saks credit per calendar year (in the form of a $250 credit per quarter)

Enhanced Membership Rewards Points Program

• A rebate on “Pay With Points” bookings, which is potentially a way to redeem Amex points for more value — the personal Amex Centurion card offers a 20% bonus, while the business version offers a 50% bonus

While the Pay with Points could be potentially valuable, and PS membership is valued at $4,850, most of these benefits are a loss if you're not using that service. Although, I could definitely spend $1,000 a year at Saks Fifth Avenue. :)

Amex Centurion Card Welcome Bonus and Points

It's unknown if there is a welcome bonus offered with the Amex Centurion Card. Apparently the card earns only 1x points on purchases with no category bonuses, except on purchases over $5,000, in which it earns 1.5x points.

This is worse than nearly every card I recommend. It doesn't even have a spending bonus category on airfare like the Amex Platinum card does!

Amex Centurion Card Military Benefits

So, would Military Lending Act protections apply to the Amex Centurion card? I believe MLA benefits would apply to the elusive Amex Black Card and your annual fees would get reduced. I'm not sure about the $10,000 initiation fee.

However, I have no data points to support this. But, it's definitely possible that someone who is eligible for an American Express Centurion card would also be eligible for MLA benefits.

There are many wealthy individuals that serve in the National Guard and Reserves and while they wear a uniform for part of the year, they earn much higher salaries in the civilian world. Think of a doctor that owns her own practice and deploys with her Guard unit, or a business owner that serves part time in the Reserves.

If anyone has a data point on the Amex Centurion card and Military Lending Act benefits, please let me know in the comments!