First-class flights, five-star hotels, champagne, and caviar are all a regular part of Avery Campbell’s travel experience, one that the Montreal law student enjoys almost free of charge.

His secret: manufactured spending. Using his credit card, Campbell purchased collectible coins at face-value. After racking up points on his card, he would immediately deposit the coins back into his bank account.

Campbell’s lavish trips became possible a few years ago, when he first saw an ad for the Royal Canadian Mint. At the time, the Crown corporation was selling collectible coins – legal tender that wasn’t meant to be part of the money supply.

“A lightbulb clicked in my head like, oh, what an interesting idea,” Campbell told CTV Montreal. “If you could do $2,500 once a week in manufactured spend, that leads to a free flight pretty darn quick.”

While the practice isn’t illegal, the Royal Canadian Mint does pay a merchant’s fee to accept credit card purchases, CTV Montreal’s Rob Lurie reports. It also pays a fee to take back collectible coins from the bank.

As a result of many bank branches returning coins and charging The Royal Canadian Mint a fee, the company has since discontinued its face-value coin program.

The Royal Canadian Mint wouldn’t disclose the size of the fee, but Campbell completed an access to information request revealing that the company pays banks an additional two per cent to take back the coins.

This would mean that for every $10,000 of coins Campbell purchased, the Royal Canadian Mint would pay at least $200 in fees.

The Royal Canadian Mint confirmed to CTV Montreal that in 2013, 25 bank branches returned coins – a number that only increased over the years. By 2015, 312 bank branches returned coins.

Campbell wouldn’t reveal the total value of the coins he purchased, or how many points he racked up; however, the student says he sometimes stays in five-star hotels at zero cost, travelling anywhere from once every few months to more than once a month. He says he also uses the points to treat family and friends.

With a report from CTV Montreal