In June 2013 United announced that earning elite status would require minimum spending on tickets.
This followed almost dead-on what Delta had announced.
Status in 2015 would require not just miles flown in 2014, but a minimum amount of spending for each status level as well.
- Silver: $2500 minimum qualifying revenue
- Gold: $5000 minimum qualifying revenue
- Platinum: $7500 minimum qualifying revenue
- 1K: $10,000 minimum qualifying revenue
Anyone with an address outside of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia is exempt. Military and diplomatic (APO, DPO or FPO) addresses are exempt from the revenue requirement.
In addition they announced a one-year exemption for earning status up to Platinum (but not 1K) for Legacy Presidential Plus cardmembers and for co-brand credit card members who spend $25,000 on the card in a year.
No one expected this to be one year only, but United has been silent on extending this exemption. Until now, oddly, and via Twitter.
Assuming we can rely on United to tell us what United’s policies are, spend on a United co-brand credit card in 2015 will allow US members of MileagePlus to earn elite status up to Platinum based on miles flown alone, waiving the minimum ticket spend requirement.
Which, to me, is important given United’s challenges in actually tracking revenue.
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Do you know of AA is offering any out of the ordinary challenges to attract United and Delta flyers fleeing revenue based earning?
Guiding strategy for UA:
Rule 1 – If DL is doing it, and it benefits UA – implement
Rule 2 – If DL is doing it, and it does not benefit UA – do not implement
Where there is ambiguity, defer to Rule 2.
@Nick I haven’t heard of any right now. Call.
Presidential plus has a complete waiver, no 25k spend on the card required. The other cards have a min spend requirement.
Here we go again for 2015…Biz trips and Mileage Running (using chase points at 1.20 to buy ua revenue tickets) to 75k for plat and just a mere ms $25k spend on ua affilated chase cc in 12 months, et voila..plat again! Who said mr’s are dead.