Question about using the 100,000 MQMs re extending status.

Have had Diamond status for years, but will probably NOT fulfill the requirements this year. So towards the end of the year when I want to convert those MQM's, will I be able to extend Diamond status ?
Or is Delta's plan that I can only extend the status that I achieve this year ? In which case, it might not be the best use of those MQMs.

Thnx in advance.

MQM rollover conversion of 100K to extend status can only extend 2024 status achieved by EOY 2023. The first 100K MQMs converted extend 2024 status (earned in 2023) to 2025.

Thank you chipbennett,

So just a follow-up:
If I would be fortunate enough to earn Diamond status during 2024 (giving me Diamond for 2025), would my 100K rollover then extend status to 2026 ?

no, in this case where you only have 100k rollover, you can only use it for the 2025 calendar year. If you achieve status naturally then you are left with the MQD conversion or Sky Miles conversion options.

If you have multiple years of rollover then it's not a buffet, you are to use 100k MQM for each year consecutively and then whatecer excess you have are either MQD or Sky Miles conversions.

Eg let's say you have 225000 rollover MQMs and want to extend status. They will use 200k of it for 2025 and 2026 calendar years. Then the excess 25k as MQD or Sky Miles. And, if you'd already naturally earned status for 2025 calendar you can't then use just 100k of the rollover amount for the 2026 calendar year. Or, said another way, you cannot leap frog a year with the rollover banked year option. It's 1 year or more, but all joined together.

You also cannot do it bit by bit. You can't use say 10k excess MQM now as MQD conversion and then later in the year decide how else to use the balance. It's one time.

Not quite. If you have 225K in rollover you can use up it 200K of it to extend status, but can also choose to do a single year of extension for 2025 for 100K MQMs. But as noted, you can't do bit-by-bit and you cannot extend status first earned during 2024. You can only extend your status earned during 2023 calendar year (2024 program year status). If you didn't earn DM during 2023, it's too late to do any DM extensions and it would be pointless to choose extension option if you earn DM status during 2024 (which will qualify you for 2025 program year DM status). Hopefully DL will make this all clear when conversions open up on Feb 28th so that people don't make foolish mistakes.

"Using the 100,000:1 ratio, Members may select the number of years of Status extension they desire, up to the number for which they are eligible. Medallion Status will not be awarded for partial years; any Rollover MQMs exceeding a 100,000 threshold, and which are not used for Status extension, can be converted into miles or MQDs using the applicable conversion rate above"

Nothing more to add there. That's exactly the way I interpret the rollover conversion rules.

right. I am saying if you have more than 1 year of 'banked' rollover allowance (say 200k excess MQM) then you cannot leapfrog a year.

If you're a DM this year, 2024, and have 200k rollover MQM then as at late this month you have a choice.

You can use 100k or 200k for 1 or 2 years rollover. It is for next year and so on. 100k will extend your 2024 status (as earned in 2023) for 1 year. 200k will extend it for 2 years. Etc.

But.....if you decide to extend this years status to next year, you have rendered your natural status earn worthless because if you also earn DM this year, naturally, you just used 100k rollover miles needlessly. You cannot therefore earn DM this year naturally for 2025 calendar status, and say to Delta by Dec 31 2024 "please use 100k of my rollover MQM for 2026 calendar status banked year".

If you use 100k of rollover for banked year....they will apply that to 2025 calendar year status regardless of whether you earned it naturally or not.

Hope that makes sense? Choice made now could bring a relief to travelers who know they won't hit it otherwise. A choice made later in the year once full status spend for 2024 is close to being done will be clearer but also gives less options.

Choose wisely!

I am DM with 200k to rollover. I will organically hit 28k MQD in calendar 2024 but the way I look at it is I am locking in 2026 DM (earned in calendar 2025) in exchange for foregoing 100k SM as no one knows what the 2026 DM MQD requirement will be (probably in the range of 28k to 35k MQD).

this is an important case as the example. If you will organically qualify for DM for next year you cannot use your excess rollovers for only a year of your choosing. It is cumulative. You must use 200k to get next year AND the year after. Ie the 2026 year for rollover 'free' will cost you 200k instead of 100k. They'll use the 100k for 2025 calendar (even though it's not needed) and then the next 100k for the next year.

You cannot leapfrog a year just because. The rollover banked year is all or nothing.

If you rollover 1 year it will be for and MUST be for only calendar 2025.

If you rollover 2 years
..it will be calendar 25, and 26.

Etc.

Make sense?

more bluntly.....the ONLY reason you use just 1 Rollover year as banked is if you don't qualify naturally for next year. If you have lots of extra MQMs the additional cost of next year's banked MQMs even if used and not needed can be amortized and won't hurt as much. Say you had 1mm excess MQMs for example. That guarantees 10 years banked, locked in now. Who cares if you earn $50k MQD this year....you're basically guaranteeing the next 9.

Surely the threshold will be known before the MQM rollover conversion deadline, won't it?

The only downside I see to waiting to do the conversion is that everyone who converts before I do will get a slight advantage in the UG queue, all else being equal.

Yes, they generally announce qualification thresholds for the next year (as well as Choice Benefits) sometime in October.

Right - and IIRC, the rollover deadline is 31 December?

As someone said above: not a lot to add. Well done by everyone. Mine will be the proverbial "game time decision". I have approx 325,000 roll over miles. If i think I am coming in hot for 2024 and will hit the $28,000 organically, i will cash them in. If I am coming in light, i will extend my DM for 3 more years and not have to watch my dollar spend like a telethon tote board

This is still likely to be the determining factor for me. Locking in DM for 2026, even if there's a chance I can hit DM for 2025 organically, is likely still worth the expenditure of 200,000 rollover MQMs.