By now, we’re already in the second year of the coronavirus pandemic and flight traffic is still grounded to a big extent. Singapore Airlines and its frequent flyer program KrisFlyer have reacted to the current situation and will therefore allow you to earn status miles without leaving the ground until February 28, 2022.
Beside shopping at the KrisShop and through Kris+, you would be credited status miles for transferring points from banks (e.g. American Express) or other bonus programs (Accor, Hilton Honors, Hertz, Marriott Bonvoy, Radisson Rewards…). Usually, you’d get 1 status miles for each 5 converted award miles.
You need 25,000 status miles for the KrisFlyer Elite Silver status (Star Alliance Silver) and 50,000 status miles for the Elite Gold status (Star Alliance Gold) within 12 consecutive months.
In many countries, transferring American Express Membership Rewards points to KrisFlyer may be the most interesting option. In most countries, the conversion rate is 3:2, meaning that you’d need 375,000 membership rewards points to receive 250,000 KrisFlyer award miles and 50,000 status miles = KrisFlyer Elite Gold status. The conversion rate, however, varies according to your home country.
To transfer points from a bank (e.g. American Express Membership Rewards), you need to transfer a sum that leads to you getting at least 10,000 KrisFlyer award miles so that status miles are credited. If you’re transferring from non-airlines-partners (e.g. hotel bonus programs), the minimum lies at only 500 award miles.
Benefits of the KrisFlyer Elite Gold Status
KrisFlyer’s Gold status gives you all the benefits of a Star Alliance Gold status. Among other things, this includes:
- Priority check-in and boarding with all Star Alliance members
- Alliance-wide lounge access, incl. 1 guest
- Additional luggage allowance (except in some light fares)
The KrisFlyer status also offers some additional benefits that go beyond the alliance benefits, e.g. you’d also enjoy lounge access and additional luggage allowance at Virgin Australia, Virgin Atlantic (without guest), and Vistara, as well as a Shangri-La hotel status after a single night.
Conclusion
It’s nice to see that KrisFlyer is reacting to the current restrictions and is opening up for new earning options – which is obviously also in their own interest as this brings quite a lot of money to Singapore Airlines.
As this promotion runs until February 28, 2022, one should keep it in mind. Should worldwide travel be possible again later this year, this would definitely be an attractive possibility to get the Star Alliance Gold status by transferring points.
Nevertheless, don’t forget that KrisFlyer award miles expire 36 months after being credited, even for Elite Silver or Gold members! KrisFlyer, however, offers quite attractive redemption options, as they don’t charge any fees for award flights.