Qantas’ Massive Changes To Frequent Flyer Status & New Benefits

Qantas has announced a number of significant changes to the Qantas Frequent Flyer program, particularly surrounding how members earn, retain and benefit from elite status. Having stayed largely the same for the past ten years, Qantas’ elite status tiers will start to see updates in 2026.

Members will be able to earn Status Credits without flying, roll over unused Status Credits into the next membership year, and access new rewards designed to recognise loyalty. Pain points related Classic Reward bookings on the Qantas website will also be addressed, with a new search tool to launch within weeks.

There are also a number of setbacks, with members soon required to earn the same number of Status Credits to retain their elite tier as they do to earn it in the first place. At the same time, Qantas will scrap its much-loved and rewarding Points Club and Green Tier programs entirely.

The overhaul is described by the airline as the “biggest changes to status in program history”, and was revealed alongside a record $1.46 billion pre-tax profit for the six-month period, at Qantas’ half-year results presentation on Thursday. Qantas Loyalty also saw a 19% increase in revenue.

Here’s a quick overview of what’s changing with Qantas Frequent Flyer in 2026 and 2027:

1. Improved Booking Experience For Classic Reward Redemptions (March 2026): new search tool to help find international Classic Reward seats on Qantas and partner airlines.
2. Scrapping Points Club & Green Tier (2026): retirement of sub-programs Points Club and Green Tier.
3. Earning Status Credits without flying (2026): new permanent ways to earn Status Credits without flying, based on the success of a recent promotion.
4. Status Credit roll over (2026): ability for tiered members to roll over up to 50% of their excess Status Credits from one membership year to the next.
5. Retaining elite status becomes harder (2027): removal of separate attain and retain requirements for status qualification.
6. Lifetime Gold members can bank years of Platinum status (2027): bank up to five years of Platinum Status for use at a later date.
7. Additional status benefits (2027): an additional lounge invitation per year for Silver members, plus new vouchers and discounts for all higher tiers.

Qantas Group CEO Vanessa Hudson said the changes represent a new era for Qantas Frequent Flyer in the face of a changing loyalty landscape.

“Our members have an incredible appetite for earning points, but we know they also place immense value on their status. Our most frequent flyers tell us that status retention is the single most important milestone as a member.”

That’s certainly an interesting comment to make when Hudson’s airline is about to hike the status retention requirements across every tier from Silver to Platinum.

Commenting on the new Status Credit roll over benefit, Qantas Loyalty CEO Andrew Glance mentioned many members are earning well above their tier thresholds.

“We are giving value back, ensuring hard-earned status credits in one year give members a head start in the next.”

"Our new reward seat search tool is also a significant investment in our digital experience…the tool will provide a seamless window into our network and drive a further increase in flight redemptions,” added Mr Glance.

1. Improved Booking Experience For Classic Reward Redemptions

From as soon as next month, March 2026, Qantas will roll out a new search tool on its website. The enhanced booking experience has been designed to make redeeming Qantas Points for Classic Reward flights easier and faster. In fact, Qantas says that the new tool will display Classic Reward seat inventory on Qantas and 30 partner airlines in seconds.

It’s great to see this common gripe addressed, as redeeming Qantas Points is naturally one of the most important things to frequent flyers. We actually saw the Red Roo post job listings for a dedicated team to enhance their booking system, specifically the points side of things, two years ago, so it’s wonderful to finally see some progress.

2. Scrapping Points Club & Green Tier

Later in 2026, Qantas will gradually phase out its Points Club and Green Tier sub-programs. The airline claims they plan to integrate some of the most valued Points Club and Green Tier benefits into the main Qantas Frequent Flyer program.

This is easily one of the worst aspects of today’s announcements, especially for big Qantas Points earners, rather than those flying a lot. The biggest loss is the ability to earn Status Credits on Classic Flight Rewards - which happens to be one of the biggest reasons I choose to earn Oneworld status with Qantas. Once this benefit is removed, it’s likely many savvy flyers will decide not to aim for Qantas status, and focus on another Oneworld carrier instead.

3. Earning Status Credits Without Flying

Later in 2026, members will have the ability to earn up to 140 additional Status Credits each year without flying. There will be ten everyday categories in which members can unlock Status Credits on the ground. Based on a 2025 trial of this offer, you would receive 10-20 Status Credits for earning just 1,000 Qantas Points across a number of categories like credit cards, retail partners, and utility providers.

This permanent offer will no doubt make earning and retaining elite status with Qantas a little easier. That’s especially the case when many members are already meeting the thresholds for those 140 additional Status Credits each year.

Status Credits earned on the ground will also count towards Lifetime tier balances.

4. Status Credit Roll Over

Later in 2026, Qantas flyers will have the flexibility to roll over up to 50% of their unused Status Credits into their next membership year. That’s to say a portion of the Status Credits you earn beyond the retention requirement for the current year will count towards retaining status for the following membership year.

Roll overs will be capped at 100 Status Credits for Silver members, 350 for Gold, and 500 for Platinum. The change will replace the previous loyalty bonus offered to some members.

5. Retaining Elite Status Becomes Harder

In 2027, Qantas will make it harder to retain frequent flyer status by moving to a single Status Credit target for each tier. Instead of offering a lower thresholds to retain status, you will need to earn the same number of Status Credits to both earn or retain elite status.

For example, Gold status will require 700 Status Credits annually, whereas previously it was 700 to attain and 600 to retain. This makes it harder for loyal frequent flyers to hold onto their perks.

The new Qantas status requirements will be:

• Silver: 300 to earn/renew (was 250 to renew)
• Gold: 700 to earn/renew (was 600 to renew)
• Platinum: 1400 to earn/renew (was 1200 to renew)
• Platinum One: 3600 to earn/renew (unchanged)

6. Lifetime Gold Members Can Bank Years Of Platinum Status

In 2027, Qantas will offer the ability for Lifetime Gold members progressing towards Lifetime Platinum. For every 10,000 Status Credits earned beyond the Lifetime Gold threshold, members will receive a complimentary year of Platinum status. These years can be banked and activated at a time of your choosing.

Here’s how that would look in practice:

• 7,000 SC - Lifetime Silver
• 14,000 SC - Lifetime Gold
• 25,000 SC - one year of banked Platinum
• 35,000 SC - one year of banked Platinum
• 45,000 SC - one year of banked Platinum
• 55,000 SC - one year of banked Platinum
• 65,000 SC - one year of banked Platinum
• 75,000 SC - Lifetime Platinum

7. Additional Status Benefits

In 2027, Silver members can look forward to enjoy an additional lounge invitation each membership year. This means they will receive two entries to the Qantas Lounge, instead of one.

Qantas is also promising some new on-the-ground vouchers and discounts for all tiered members Silver and above. These benefits will be announced before the new-look tiers launch in 2027.