How can I qualify for elite status on AC?

There are four main ways to qualify for status:

• Earn a sufficient number of SQM/SQS/SQD (sometimes collectively referred to as “SQx” on FT) to qualify for status
• Achieve Everyday Status Qualification, which requires only earning 100K qualifying Aeroplan points (EDQ) in a calendar year to earn 25K status
• Be gifted status from an existing member. Super Elite may choose as a select benefit to gift an E50 package and E75 can gift an E35 package
• Through the Chase Aeroplan credit card, which:
  • Grants 25K status for the year in which it’s first obtained, and the following year; after that, 25K status can be maintained by spending US$15K on the card in a calendar year
  • Allows you to boost your status one level by spending US$50K on the card in a calendar year

There are also reports of status being given through the following methods. There is no published criteria or even rhyme or reason that has been detected given limited data points..

• Some have received E25 through their Canadian credit card provider. TD specifically did issue some E25 packages one year

For further questions on Everyday Status Qualification or the Chase cards, please see the threads dedicated to those topics, which are linked above.


What are the levels of status?

The Aeroplan Elite program has five published levels of status:

• 25K
• 35K
• 50K
• 75K
• Super Elite

Before the late-2020 revamp of the Aeroplan program, the 25K level was formerly known as Prestige 25K, the three middle tiers were known as Elite 35K / Elite 50K / Elite 75K, and Super Elite was Super Elite 100K. You may see the terms P25K, E35K, E50K, E75K, and SE100K on FT as references to the former branding (sometimes minus the K, e.g. P25).

Air Canada also operates an unpublished VIP program. Unlike UA GS, AA CK, and DL 360, it is not possible to qualify for VIP through flying. AC’s VIP program is targeted at a different audience that would not normally qualify for a high level of status through their own level of flying. For example, they might award VIP status to the CEO of a large corporation that buys a lot of travel from AC. Those curious about the VIP program can visit that thread; no discussion of the VIP program will be permitted in this thread.


What are the qualification requirements?

For the level you want to qualify for, it is necessary to the requirements for:

• SQM OR SQS; and
• SQD

The requirements are:

• 25K: 25,000 SQM / 25 SQS / 3,000 SQD
• 35K: 35,000 SQM / 35 SQS / 4,000 SQD
• 50K: 50,000 SQM / 50 SQS / 6,000 SQD
• 75K: 75,000 SQM / 75 SQS / 9,000 SQD
• Super Elite: 100,000 SQM / 100 SQS / 20,000 SQD

Beginning in 2022, all members must meet the SQD requirements. (Prior to 2022, non-residents only had to achieve 50% of the SQD requirements).


What are SQM, SQS, and SQD, and how do I earn them?

SQM are Status Qualifying Miles. You earn them by taking flights with AC or Star Alliance airline partners. They can also be earned by spending money on certain Aeroplan credit cards.

For flights, SQM are equal to approximately the distance between the two airports, multiplied by the earning rate for the fare type purchased. For example, Aeroplan calculates the distance from YYC to YYZ as 1,669 miles. A flight in Flex would earn 100% miles, i.e. 1,669 SQM. A flight in Standard would earn 25% miles, i.e. 417 SQM.

Certain credit cards award 1,000 SQM for each $10,000 spent on Core credit cards or $5,000 spent on the Premium "Black" credit cards.

Premium credit cards allow you to roll over up to 200K SQM over the level you qualified for in the previous year. For instance, if you flew 56,700 SQM and qualified for 50K status, you would roll over 6,700 SQM to the following year. Please see this thread for more information about the rollover benefit.

SQS are Status Qualifying Segments. You earn them by taking flights with AC or Star Alliance airline partners, by using certain Aeroplan credit cards, or as a Select Benefit selection (as of 2024).

Each qualifying flight earns 1 SQS; there are no multipliers.

Certain credit cards award 1 SQS for each $10,000 (Core credit cards) or $5,000 spent (Premium credit cards).

Starting in 2024, a new Select Benefit is available to Aeroplan 50K, 75K and SE status holders that awards 5,000 SQM and 5 SQS. This replaces the "Lower Requalification Level" Select Benefit offered in 2023 and prior years.

There is no SQS rollover.

SQD are Status Qualifying Dollars. These are equal to the base fare plus carrier-imposed surcharges for the ticket. Or you can think of SQD as the total amount paid for the ticket minus taxes and 3rd party surcharges (e.g. airport improvement fees). On receipts from AC, the amount listed as “Air Transportation Charges” will equal the total SQD for the ticket.

On itineraries with more than one segment, SQD are allocated across the segments based on distance, regardless of what you paid for each segment. For example, if you purchase a YYC-YYZ round trip, each segment (YYC-YYZ and YYZ-YYC) will earn 50% of the SQD, even if you paid different amounts for the two segments. Let’s say you paid $300 for YYC-YYZ and $500 for YYZ-YYC (excluding GST, AIFs, etc). The total SQD would be 800, and each segment would earn 400 SQD.

SQD are earned only from flying (one-time promotions aside). Only flights themselves, eUpgrade add-ons, and unlimited flight pass monthly payments qualify. Fees for extra services (e.g. baggage fees, seat selection, on-board purchases, etc) do not count towards SQD.

There is no SQD rollover.

SQD: Air Canada Vacation / ACV: The one exception to "only from flying" for SQD is the purchase of an Air Canada Vacation Package. Air Canada will take 25% of an eligible package value and split it equally amongst all passengers over two years old. So a $10,000 package with two adults and two teens will see each passenger get 625 SQD. An “Eligible Package” refers to a vacation package consisting of a flight-inclusive vacation package or a Flight & Cruise package.

SQD: Companion Pass / Buddy Pass: If through a credit card or Aeroplan you have earned a buddy pass or companion pass that allows a second traveller at no-charge or low-charge the primary pax receives 100% of the SQD and the second pax does not receive any credit.


Do all flights qualify for SQx?

No. Many flights do not earn SQx.

Basic Economy fares on AC earn no SQx, although they do earn Aeroplan points.

Points tickets redeemed from Aeroplan or a Star Alliance partner airline do not qualify, even if paying with a mix of cash and points.

Points redeemed from 3rd party loyalty programs (e.g. Air Miles, RBC Avion) have a mixed track record. Be very cautious relying on ANY ticket you purchased through a "points" programme even if previous tickets have earned SQx or the website says it will. The companies operating this can (and have) changed the way they source tickets without notice. The Air Canada Aeroplan T&C explicitly say anything points related does not earn SQx and thus any dispute will almost certainly be denied.

• Air Miles have generally never posted
• RBC Avion used to consistently earn SQx but many flights booked now don't earn (see thread)

Certain fares are also ineligible, e.g. consolidator fares, K fares on Lufthansa. If the fare class is not listed on the AC website, it is not eligible for accumulation.

In recent years, AC has added a number of non-Star Alliance partners. Flights on most of these partners only earn Aeroplan points (i.e. no SQx), and some only earn Aeroplan points on certain routes (e.g. Cathay Pacific).

SQD can only be earned on:

• Flights operated by AC
• Flights operated by *A partners, ticketed by AC

To illustrate, let’s use an itinerary consisting of (i) YYC-EWR, operated by AC, and (ii) EWR-CHS, operated by UA. If this itinerary were purchased from AC, both flights would earn SQD. If purchased from UA, only the YYC-EWR flight would earn SQD.


How do I know how many SQx I’ll earn for a given itinerary?

AC doesn’t tell you when you book a ticket, but it’s relatively simple to calculate. The AC website lists all partners, eligible fares, and accumulation rates.

To make life easier, some FTers have built a tool to calculate SQM/SQD earnings, discussed in this thread: Calculator for SQM, Aeroplan miles, & SQD

Important caveat for flights involving partners: miles earned always depends on the operating carrier. This is the airline whose aircraft you are sitting on when you fly. Sticking to the YYC-EWR-CHS example from above, you would earn miles according to the AC accumulation chart for YYC-EWR, and according to the UA chart for EWR-CHS, regardless of which airline sold the ticket and whether the flight is a codeshare.

This can create confusion in several ways:

• During the booking flow on the AC website, AC displays only the earning rates for AC flights. You may buy a Flex fare thinking you will earn 100% miles, only to find out that on a partner flight you were booked in a fare class that earned less. For instance, if you buy a business class fare involving an intra-Europe flight on Lufthansa in a P fare, the website will show that you'll earn 150% miles, but you will earn only 50% on the Lufthansa leg
• When booking codeshares, it may be impossible to know the operating carrier's fare class. For instance, the AC website may sell you UA's EWR-CHS flight as "AC5678" and show you an M fare when you select Flex. But you may actually be actually be booked on a UA Q fare and only earn 75% miles
• When booking AC flights through a partner airline, you may not know the fare brand (Flex, Latitude, etc). United might show you an H fare on YYC-EWR, but this could map to Flex, Standard, or Comfort, and your earning would be impacted accordingly

What are Premium and Core credit cards?

Premium cards are the highest tier Aeroplan credit cards that have an annual fee of around $600 – Amex Reserve cards or Visa Infinite Privilege cards from TD or CIBC.

Core cards are mid-tier Aeroplan credit cards with an annual fee of around $120 – Visa Infinite from CIBC or TD, the Chase card, or Amex’s basic card.