It’s been a while since I’ve had reason to call attention to any kinds of travel rewards, which makes sense given the total lack of travel I’ve done over the last year. But here’s an easy travel rewards tip around tax time: Through the Southwest Shopping Portal, you can snag yourself a free 1,000 Rapid Rewards points for doing your taxes through TurboTax. Considering that millions of people already use TurboTax, if you’re among them you might as well collect some Southwest points in the process.

The TurboTax/Southwest Rapid Rewards Offer

This isn’t an ad for TurboTax, nor is there any affiliate link nonsense here. This is just a great standing offer that I’ve taken advantage of in each of the last three tax seasons. The TurboTax/Southwest points offer is up there with linking Delta & Hilton rewards to Lyft (for triple rewards action!) as one of my favorite, and easiest, rewards offerings.

TurboTax costs me $70 (if your taxes are very basic, it can be free), but using The Points Guy’s Southwest valuation of 1.5 cents per point, I’m getting $15 of value back simply for visiting the TurboTax site via Southwest’s shopping portal. TurboTax is now a part of Intuit, which also runs my beloved Mint, allowing you to track your return directly through Mint should you be so inclined.

Doing your taxes is never fun. You either have to pay the government more money, or worse–you realize you’ve given Uncle Sam an interest free loan for a year and you get some money back. Sucker. With this Southwest offer, even if you don’t get a tax return, there’s no reason not to get a small reward points return for your efforts.

Taking Advantage of Shopping Portals and Dining Programs

Shopping portals and restaurant programs are a great way to earn points through the various airline mileage and rewards programs. If you plan on shopping online anyway, it never hurts to check any offers at your favored airline program before you buy. Likewise, I’ve linked all of my credit cards to various restaurant programs (such as Southwest’s) and am occasionally surprised with an email after dining at a place that, unbeknownst to me, is on the list of partners for a particular dining program (most of the partners are the same for each of these separate programs). With restaurant programs in particular, though, I would advise a separate email address to handle the constant barrage of promotional emails. Last I checked, you are required to receive such emails in order to be enrolled in the program.

If you’re considering a dining program, it’s worthwhile to check the list of restaurants that are included before you sign up. Most of these programs will offer bonus points for dining at your first few restaurants within the first 30 days or so of signing up.

Earning Travel Rewards During a Pandemic

If there’s one thing the pandemic has been good for, it’s cut my spending significantly. Counterintuitively, that cramps my travel rewards style. Credit card points are earned through credit card spending, and I’ve all but eliminated my most expensive categories over the last 12 months (travel and dining out). I’ve done so, happily of course, at the expense of accruing rewards points.

The travel delay has also meant that rather than open a new card for the sign-up bonus, use those bonus points, and close the card, I’ve been stuck with a couple cards that I ordinarily would have canceled after splurging the points on a nice trip. I’m stuck paying annual fees—one of which I was successfully in getting partially waived—for another year. With sign up bonuses valued at nearly $1,000, paying the $99 fee for another year isn’t the end of the world, but obviously it eats into the net value of the bonus.  

Burning Rewards Points Post-Pandemic

As for travel plans, the hope is to get back out there this summer. I did actually take a flight during the pandemic, and found it no more uncomfortable than a trip to the grocery store. But that was an exception and not the norm over the last 12 months. When shots are in arms later this year, though, those credit card rewards points are going to go as quickly as you can rip a mask off your face.

What kind of travel do you have planned in a post-pandemic world? If any of it involves a domestic flight on Southwest Airlines, enjoy a free 1,000 Rapid Rewards points simply for using the popular TurboTax software.