Adam Smith

I'm shocked that this launched two day ago and no one here has either noticed or cared enough to post about it

So here goes...

On May 6, Air Canada launched "Everyday Status Qualification", allowing qualification for Elite 25K status by earning 100K Aeroplan points through "eligible transactions". No SQD required, so you could qualify for status entirely through credit card spend or flying with partner airlines.

But what constitutes an "eligible transaction" is tricky. There are a lot of things excluded. The list on the AC website (towards the bottom of this page) is one long run-on sentence, so I'll try to break it down a bit more clearly here (with my editorial comments [like this]). Points earned from the following are not eligible:

• CC sign-up bonuses
• Conversion from other programs [presumably this includes Amex MR as well as hotel programs and any other conversion options]
• Elite status bonus from flights (including from partner airlines)
• Elite status bonus from Aeroplan eStore
• Flight activities not operated by AC, *A member airlines, Canadian North (5T), or Air Creebec (YN) [So this would exclude miles earned on CX, VA, and many of the other new partners added in recent years]
• Points purchased, received as a gift, transferred between member accounts, or reinstated following account inactivity
• Contest prizes
• Participating in Aeroplan research [really, AC? You won't let people count the measly 50 or 100 or whatever Aeroplan miles you give them for doing your own surveys? I don't get this one at all]

So, in addition to SQM, SQS, and SQD, we now have EDQ ("EveryDay Qualifying", maybe? Why not EQP, Everyday Qualifying Point, to stay consistent with the xQx theme? Whatever) to track your accumulation that's eligible towards this program.

The bloggers love this. One Mile at a Time, Prince of Travel, The Points Guy, all have nice things to say. Of course, with CC sign-up bonuses and transfers from other programs out, this may not do a lot for the churning community that makes up so much of their base.

Qualification for the program is retroactive to January 1, but apparently activity between then and May 1 may not display until end of May.

Credit to AC for adding another component to the program that may appeal to a few more customers, I guess, but my question is why did they have to make it so complicated? Some of the exclusions make perfect sense - CC sign-up bonuses and conversions from other programs, in particular. But why exclude status bonus miles from flying or eStore? The survey one seems really chintzy. And why is earning a mile with a hotel or car rental more important than earning one via the excluded airlines, e.g. the CX codeshare partnership? And what about the *A-adjacent airlines like OA, EN, EW, Juenyao? Will those qualify? Kind of looks like no, as it's written, but will that actually be the case in practice, and if so, why? Some of those are likely more significant partners than 5T or YN. Just seems like some odd choices that make it harder to understand and engage with.

Anyway, I wonder how many people this will actually appeal to. The exclusion of CC bonuses and transfers would seem to cut out the churning crowd, so I guess it will be a small number of high-CC-spending, low-travelling people?

canadiancow

It was completely announced and detailed in November. I think the only change now is it actually works?

I even included it in a blog post (disclaimer: This link is to an online source to which I contribute.) in December (https://canadiankilometers.boardinga...oplan-tickets/).

There's nothing new as far as I can see.

mileageking

Agree knew back in November.

Adam Smith

I know they had announced it last fall, but was the list of exclusions provided at that time? I know they had said CC bonuses and transfers were excluded, but I don't recall that lengthy and complex list of things that don't qualify being around at the time. "EDQ" was also not detailed at that time, as far as I recall.

Regardless, I launched the dedicated thread not because I thought that this was brand new, but because after six months of "coming soon", it's now here (hence why I said "launches" rather than "announces"), and there's not much discussion on it in the big 2020 Aeroplan thread. I believe there have also been a couple of comments on the board recently suggesting that SQD was still required to qualify for any status. So I thought, now that this is live, it would be helpful to have a comprehensive thread specific to this one component of the Aeroplan program that would have all of the relevant information and allow for any discussion of this program to take place here, as opposed to further bloating the 2020 re-launch mega-thread.

Apologies if that was not clear

mileageking

You are probably right on the exclusion list as I don't recall it spelt out as above. I see few of these bloggers wrote on this in past few days.

canadiancow

November 13: https://web.archive.org/web/20201113...ification.html

The toggle doesn't work for me there, but under More Information, it had:

So yes to the exclusions, no to EDQ.

RangerNS

So letting J seats go empty keeps the integrity of the cabin, but non-flyers can get status.

Is that right???

FlY2XS

That survey one made no sense to me; do they really think there is a Barbarian horde of people willing to fill out a few hundred surveys so they score Zone II boarding? Most other industries go out of their way to incentivize otherwise free data collection.
I had actually considered creating a thread a little while back to ask if folks thought this would meet 25k CC rollover criteria without SQD, but then decided to just see how things sussed out, given I should hit 25k by BEFORETIMES criteria unless there is a 3rd wave. Still not certain the answer, but hopeful. You know, "the T+C specifies that you have to qualify for 25K by legacy criteria so you still need SQD," Yada yada yada. I don't have the spare time or expertise to go down those rabbit holes solo.

Still, I do make the high CC descriptor, so if late Summer and Fall trips become compromised, I will be happy that concentrating spend on one card will help me keep rollling rolling rolling.

jazzsax

It's helpful for those of us who don't fly a huge amount, but buy premium fares when we do to have a chance to upgrade a bit easier and / or have a few extra perks. I usually book higher fare classes, or LMU, so the extra perks with saving a bit of cash along the way are an incentive to stick with AC.

keitherson

Yes -- like the cold boxed meals keeping you safe.

zkzkz

So having earned 25k through this what do you have to do to earn 35k? Start from zero and and get 35k BIS miles and qualifying spend? Or just the difference from 25k to 35k?

Adam Smith

35K requires (i) one of (a) 35,000 SQM or (b) 35 SQS, and (ii) $4K SQD. EDQ is irrelevant, except to the extent that those EDQ were SQM.

FlY2XS

35k still needs to be earned the old fashioned way other than rollover from 2019 or 2020 now from everything I have seen.
I ask again, what are thoughts that this new stay at home 25k designation gets CC points SQM rollover for 2022, given rollover 25k from 2019 didn't last year ?

Adam Smith

The language from AC's announcement regarding 2022 rollover is: "For Aeroplan members who earn any Elite Status through their 2021 flight activity", which seems pretty clear the answer is no.

FlY2XS

Thx, that is my assumption, but these days you never know.