MASSIVE Qantas Frequent Flyer change: What you must know

Qantas is making major changes to its Frequent Flyer program, particularly how customers can earn Status Credits to progress towards Silver, Gold and Platinum.

The changes were announced by Qantas Loyalty CEO Andrew Glance in a media briefing today ahead of the airline's annual results.

Glance described the shift as "the biggest change that's been made to our program" and said Qantas' goal was to make it easier to progress to higher status while making the options less confusing.

The changes were based on "extensive feedback from thousands of our frequent flyers", he said.

How are Qantas Status Credits changing?

Currently, Status Credits reset to zero at the end of your membership year.

Under the new policy, you'll be able to roll over some of those credits into the following year.

That's potentially handy if you have already gone up a tier during the year (say from Bronze to Silver) but continue earning status credits after that happens.

"About 50% of all status credits go unused," Glance said.

The number of Status Credits you can roll over is based on your status at the end of your membership year.

• Silver members can roll over 100 Status Credits.
• Gold members can roll over 350 Status Credits.
• Platinum and Platinum One members can roll over 500 Status Credits.

The catch? Qantas will be dropping its existing "loyalty bonuses" where customers get extra Status Credits when they've earned a certain number of points.

Those changes are expected to happen in the fourth quarter of calendar 2026, with Glance saying an October or November launch was likely.

New ways to earn Platinum

Gold members will soon be granted a year of Platinum membership every time they have earned 10,000 Status Credits.

Up to 5 of those years can be earned. In practice, once you've done that, you'll have qualified for Lifetime Platinum, which Qantas introduced in 2019 but which is really difficult to earn.

Personally I'm keen on this one - I've been lifetime Gold for a long time, but lifetime Platinum has always seemed a stretch. This way I'll probably get another couple of Platinum years in the future.

These changes should happen in late 2026, alongside the rollover change.

Earning Qantas Status Credits on the ground

Qantas ran a promotion in late 2025 where customers could earn status credits through non-flight activities including credit cards, food and drink and insurance.

That's now going to become a permanent feature across 10 different categories, though the exact details are still being finalised. The maximum number of Status Credits than can be earned through this is 140 - generous, but not on its own enough to move you from one tier to another.

Extra lounge pass for Silver frequent flyers

Currently, Silver frequent flyers get a single lounge pass to access the Qantas Club. That will be increased to 2.

Qantas is also planning to offer additional "vouchers" to members, though details on that are still being worked out, Glance said.

Goodbye, Points Club and Green Tier

Naturally, it's not all good news. As part of the "simplification" goal, Qantas will be dumping Points Club, which it introduced in 2019, and Green Tier, which offered bonuses for environmentally friendly activities.

That change is expected at the end of the year. Glance said that there will be "generous" provisions to ensure any bonuses members have earned in those schemes are retained.

Changes to Status thresholds

Currently, members need to earn more Status Credits to attain the next status level than to retain it.

That will be changing, with the higher attain figure now needed all the time.

So as an example, currently you need to earn 1,400 Status Credits in a year to move from Gold to Platinum, then 1,200 in subsequent years to retain it. You'll now need to earn 1,400 Status Credits every year to maintain the status.

"Our view here is we believe the flexibility we're providing through the rollover provides our members with ample opportunity to continue to move through those tiers," Glance said.

Qantas also says it will be rolling out a new tool to make it easier to find Classic Rewards flights next month.

Qantas adjusted the number of points needed for Classic Reward flights in July last year. My ongoing analysis shows that even with that change, the value of points has remained steady over time.

However, moves like that seem to have dampened Australia enthusiasm for points. Finder research shows that 57% of Australians don't see value in frequent flyer schemes.

Qantas is currently running its annual double Status Credits offer, which lets frequent flyers earn additional Status Credits or Qantas Points on new flight bookings.