Dec 31, 2021, 11:08 pm
Last edit by: st530
United Global Services ("GS") is the highest tier of MileagePlus elite status. It is by invitation only, reviewed annually -- the invite criteria is not public but seems to require substantial annual spending with UA both in terms of absolute dollar amounts and purchasing higher fare classes (higher cpm - cents per mile). There are also reports of GS status being comped by UA Marketing to VIPs in companies who sign corporate travel deals with UA, and also to those individuals that purchase an annual PassPlus enrollment of $50k or greater. The sole published way to qualify is to become a 4MM, having flown 4 million BIS miles on UA metal (plus additional grandfathered credits at the time of the UA/CO merger).
GS have enhanced services / benefits over 1Ks. There is little said publicly by UA on GS benefits and/or qualification.
Last year's thread, Consolidated Global Services Thread - Qualifications, Benefits and Q & A [2021]
Known facts concerning qualification and eligibility from United:
Quote:
Global Services recognizes the extraordinary dedication of our top flyers. We consider a number of factors beyond the usual Premier-qualifying criteria.
We look at your travel spend on United-operated flights relative to that of other top Premier flyers over recent consecutive years.
Usually, members invited to Global Services tend to consistently purchase premium cabins or fully refundable tickets.
Published Benefits
Full detail of published benefits can be found at https://mystatus.united.com/gs [MP credentials login required, existing GS only]
Shortlist (incremental/different to 1K):
Most benefits noted below require calling a GS agent:
GS have enhanced services / benefits over 1Ks. There is little said publicly by UA on GS benefits and/or qualification.
Last year's thread, Consolidated Global Services Thread - Qualifications, Benefits and Q & A [2021]
Known facts concerning qualification and eligibility from United:
Quote:
Global Services recognizes the extraordinary dedication of our top flyers. We consider a number of factors beyond the usual Premier-qualifying criteria.
We look at your travel spend on United-operated flights relative to that of other top Premier flyers over recent consecutive years.
Usually, members invited to Global Services tend to consistently purchase premium cabins or fully refundable tickets.
Published Benefits
Full detail of published benefits can be found at https://mystatus.united.com/gs [MP credentials login required, existing GS only]
Shortlist (incremental/different to 1K):
- Dedicated phone number with fastest pickup times, and generally by specially-trained GS agents. Some exceptions occur, especially during busy periods (such as when weather waivers are in effect)
- Dedicated email address for MileagePlus and other inquiries, usually answered personally within hours
- Dedicated check-in at main airport stations, including private Global Reception centers at major hubs, providing priority TSA security access. May bring guests/companions into Global Reception areas or dedicated GS checkin lanes who are traveling on same itinerary as GS member.
- Instrument-supported upgrades (PlusPoints or miles) clear into PN class rather than PZ class for other elite tiers, which usually have much better availability. Instruments drawn from the GS member account and applied to other reservations will also clear into PN class.
- Complimentary Premier Upgrades (CPUs) cleared beginning 120 hours prior to flight departure (versus 96 hours for 1K) for GS member and up to one other traveling on same PNR
- Highest-priority when waitlisted for Upgrades, Award Travel, and Sold-out Flight Availability. GS members clear before any other status level or full-fare customers.
- Priority Boarding, among the first to board the aircraft (currently after unaccompanied minors, people with disabilities and/or need more time boarding, Active-Duty Military, and prior to families with children under age of 2)
- Priority handling in event of IRROPS, including next flight guarantee in case of re-accommodation, overseen by dedicated team of location-based GS Customer Service Agents (identified via gold scarves/ties)
- Mercedes-Benz Tarmac Transfer for tight connections between flights at major hubs (cannot be requested in advance)
Access to United Arrivals Lounge at SFO when arriving from international flight, regardless of cabin class (no guests permitted)Closed- Access to Arrivals Lounge at LHR T2 when arriving from inbound UA-operated intercontinental flight, regardless of cabin (no guests permitted, must present Boarding Pass or physical GS card)
- Access to Lufthansa / Swiss Welcome (arrival) Lounges in FRA and ZRH for same-day inbound UA intercontinental flight, regardless of cabin (no guests permitted, must present physical GS card)
- Effective January 2021, GS members who do not have a United Club membership may access United Clubs on domestic itineraries, but no guests are permitted.
Most benefits noted below require calling a GS agent:
- GS can create saver economy award space (XN) if T inventory is available. United-operated flights only. Update 12 Dec 2018: Only for GS member + 1 companion.
- GS can create saver business award space (IN) if PZ inventory is available. United-operated flights only. Update 12 Dec 2018: Only for GS member + 1 companion.
- GS can upgrade economy awards (XN or YN) into Business / First with PlusPoints if PN inventory is available. United-operated flights only. Can now be completed online/via the app, in most circumstances.
- GS can confirm any waitlisted instrument-supported upgrade (miles/co-pay or PlusPoints) within T-72 hours to flight departure provided at least 2 (two) J class premium seats remain for sale after the upgrade is processed and they are at the top of the waitlist.
- GS are entitled to one Saver Award seat in the same class of service for one segment of the itinerary with their purchase of any premium cabin fare. GS agents can open space if it is not available provided that at least 2 seats remain for sale afterwards. United-operated flights only.
- GS can upgrade a companion with an instrument (PlusPoints or miles) from Economy to Business / First when flying on a paid premium cabin fare, even if PZ or PN is not available, as long as J > 2 after upgrade processed. Companion needs to be ticketed in W class or higher on international cash fare itineraries, or ticketed in X/XN for upgrades from award tickets.
- (Note: Only ONE of the two above options can be exercised per premium fare purchased, and for one segment in the itinerary, per caveats noted below. GS traveler must remain in same itinerary as companion)
- GS can buy up from Basic Economy fares, which is usually forbidden
- GS can access VIP Lounges (former Global First Lounges) in NRT, LHR, and HKG when booked in Polaris Business on an international itinerary. One guest permitted (two guests if a United Club member). Not accessed if booked in United Economy. (Note: VIP Lounges in NRT and HKG remain closed due to Covid-19; LHR VIP now open.)
- Post 12/12/2018, agents have been instructed to grant only one "exception" when opening award space for a companion. Thus, you can open T->XN for a companion, or you can force a companion upgrade into PN, but you can't convert T->XN and then force clear an upgrade into PN. Some have reported success by requesting this in two separate calls.
- Some agents will allow GS to open economy award space for a companion to allow for an upgrade with an instrument, even if XN or T are unavailable
- According to GS Customer Service, a GS on a paid coach fare using an instrument will clear into Polaris business before a lower-status passenger with a paid PremiumPlus fare (i.e. O, A, R). In other words, for example, a paid O, A, R for a 1K will not give higher priority than a GS with a W fare if both are using 40 PlusPoints. This is true even on the gate waitlist.
- Post 12/12/2019, agents have been instructed that they can only grant a companion exception for one segment per round trip journey. Thus, if you have a roundtrip premium fare, they will only open saver space, or force an upgrade, for one segment. This means you must either waitlist (if upgrading) or use a standard award, for the remaining segments.
Consolidated Global Services Thread: Benefits, Questions, Experiences [2022]
Nov 24, 2022, 12:59 pm
#1336
Join Date: Nov 2015
Posts: 158
GS qualification pro-rata?
So by the end of this year I'll have accrued 33k pqp from TATL business flights with spend only starting in May. Do UA do GS on whole year or do they ever look at partial year for GS qualification? Thanks.
Nov 24, 2022, 1:50 pm
#1337
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: BOS, PVG
Programs: United 1K and 1MM, Marriott Ambassador
Posts: 10,000
Nov 24, 2022, 4:36 pm
#1338
Join Date: Mar 2007
Programs: UA 1MM 1K/AF Plat/Marriott Titanium/Hertz PC (who isn't?)/National Exec Elite/CFA Signature
Posts: 193
Situation:
- I (GS) booked in D
- Wife (1K) booked in X with her miles, with upgrade waitlisted with my GS PPs
- Flight is wide open and a couple weeks away
I just called and got Tim, who IME is knowledgeable and helpful. He initially said « sure let me take care of that for you, no problem », but then he came back and said he unfortunately could not because both the miles and the PPs had to come from my account. I was going to cancel her ticket and rebook her with my miles, but the X award has since jumped from the 30k she paid to 72k right now, so I’m just going to have to wait until battlefield…
Btw, I asked if that rule would be easier to overcome come T-72 and he said nope, the checklist would still include a check of whether the miles came from my account.
Worth HUCA?
Nov 24, 2022, 9:09 pm
#1339
Join Date: May 2002
Location: US
Programs: UA GS 2MM
Posts: 1,740
Well, didn’t work for me.
Situation:
- I (GS) booked in D
- Wife (1K) booked in X with her miles, with upgrade waitlisted with my GS PPs
- Flight is wide open and a couple weeks away
I just called and got Tim, who IME is knowledgeable and helpful. He initially said « sure let me take care of that for you, no problem », but then he came back and said he unfortunately could not because both the miles and the PPs had to come from my account. I was going to cancel her ticket and rebook her with my miles, but the X award has since jumped from the 30k she paid to 72k right now, so I’m just going to have to wait until battlefield…
Btw, I asked if that rule would be easier to overcome come T-72 and he said nope, the checklist would still include a check of whether the miles came from my account.
Worth HUCA?
Situation:
- I (GS) booked in D
- Wife (1K) booked in X with her miles, with upgrade waitlisted with my GS PPs
- Flight is wide open and a couple weeks away
I just called and got Tim, who IME is knowledgeable and helpful. He initially said « sure let me take care of that for you, no problem », but then he came back and said he unfortunately could not because both the miles and the PPs had to come from my account. I was going to cancel her ticket and rebook her with my miles, but the X award has since jumped from the 30k she paid to 72k right now, so I’m just going to have to wait until battlefield…
Btw, I asked if that rule would be easier to overcome come T-72 and he said nope, the checklist would still include a check of whether the miles came from my account.
Worth HUCA?
Nov 25, 2022, 1:22 am
#1340
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: SFO, TPE, HNL
Programs: UA GS 4MM, RCC life member (paid), Marriott Lifetime Titanium, Hyatt Globalist, CLEAR
Posts: 1,822
Well, didn’t work for me.
Situation:
- I (GS) booked in D
- Wife (1K) booked in X with her miles, with upgrade waitlisted with my GS PPs
- Flight is wide open and a couple weeks away
I just called and got Tim, who IME is knowledgeable and helpful. He initially said « sure let me take care of that for you, no problem », but then he came back and said he unfortunately could not because both the miles and the PPs had to come from my account. I was going to cancel her ticket and rebook her with my miles, but the X award has since jumped from the 30k she paid to 72k right now, so I’m just going to have to wait until battlefield…
Btw, I asked if that rule would be easier to overcome come T-72 and he said nope, the checklist would still include a check of whether the miles came from my account.
Worth HUCA?
Situation:
- I (GS) booked in D
- Wife (1K) booked in X with her miles, with upgrade waitlisted with my GS PPs
- Flight is wide open and a couple weeks away
I just called and got Tim, who IME is knowledgeable and helpful. He initially said « sure let me take care of that for you, no problem », but then he came back and said he unfortunately could not because both the miles and the PPs had to come from my account. I was going to cancel her ticket and rebook her with my miles, but the X award has since jumped from the 30k she paid to 72k right now, so I’m just going to have to wait until battlefield…
Btw, I asked if that rule would be easier to overcome come T-72 and he said nope, the checklist would still include a check of whether the miles came from my account.
Worth HUCA?
Why can’t UA post the rules/benefits of GS? That way there is no ambiguity. I have to imagine very few GS even know these benefits, given how opaque they are. And for those who know, it’s frustrating because the rules are applied differently depending on who answers the phone…
This upgrading award ticket benefit was the only GS benefit (other than non-revenue relevant ones, e.g., special phone line, GS check in lobby, and on tarmac transport) stated on the web page. The companion upgrade when a GS buys revenue J, confirmation in D-72h when J>2, T turns into XN, etc., were not stated.
Nov 25, 2022, 1:51 am
#1341
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: SFO
Programs: AC SE MM, BA Gold, SQ Silver, Bonvoy Tit LTG, Hyatt Glob, HH Diamond
Posts: 44,345
Nov 25, 2022, 4:03 pm
#1342
Join Date: Mar 2007
Programs: UA 1MM 1K/AF Plat/Marriott Titanium/Hertz PC (who isn't?)/National Exec Elite/CFA Signature
Posts: 193
Not worth HUCA. Tim is near correct, My understanding from past interaction with GS agents and from reading the limited UA guidance on line is that the miles and PPs have to come from GS for GS PP to upgrade an award ticket (whether X or YN). Where Tim is not exactly correct is that the GS PP and GS miles do not have to be from the same GS member. However, there is a known bug online that allows GS to use PP to upgrade any award ticket - the miles for the award ticket can come from any account, GS or not. This is a know bug online. If you call an agent, he or she will not allow it. In fact, you are lucky that the agent did not invalidate your PP upgrade waitlist.
Nov 28, 2022, 1:27 pm
#1343
Join Date: May 2016
Programs: UA GS, Marriott Titanium
Posts: 9
GS Invitation Timing
One naive question: when does the GS invitation happens? Already spent ~80k but nothing happens. Are you invited whenever they think you're qualified, or the review occurs at the end of each year? Thanks.
Nov 28, 2022, 1:34 pm
#1344
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: TPA
Programs: UA Global Services 3MM, Hyatt Lifetime Globalist
Posts: 2,927
They review at the end of the year; pre-COVID requalification notifications came out throughout December, and new invitations came out in January. I presume they will follow a similar pattern.
Nov 28, 2022, 1:46 pm
#1345
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: ORD / PHX
Programs: UA LT 1K 3MM (former 12 yr GS), Bonvoy Amb/LT Plat
Posts: 1,341
Years ago (at least IME), UA would offer mid-year invitations based on spend rates/patterns. I was invited in August I believe, in my first year of GS (2010).
Nov 28, 2022, 1:59 pm
#1346
Join Date: Jan 2019
Programs: United Global Services, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Platinum Elite
Posts: 59
I've always been re-invited in early January (5 years now) - but maybe that's because I'm in a small market (Tampa).
Nov 28, 2022, 3:17 pm
#1347
Join Date: Aug 2011
Programs: UA 1K | Marriott LT Platinum
Posts: 459
Unclear if they did any mid-year invites this year though as they may be waiting to get a full calendar year of spend data now that travel is resuming new patterns to see what the thresholds should be in each market.
Nov 28, 2022, 3:46 pm
#1348
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: STL
Programs: UA GS, QR Platinum, IHG AMB; Marriott Platinum
Posts: 8
This has probably already been discussed but trying to assess my chances of GS again this year. Hubing out of STL, 51K PQPs so far in 2022, 39 PQFs. Unfortunately, most of the PQPs were on ANA as code share given the curtailment of so many flights to Narita. Thoughts on the likelihood of keeping GS?
Nov 28, 2022, 3:53 pm
#1349
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: BOS, PVG
Programs: United 1K and 1MM, Marriott Ambassador
Posts: 10,000
This has probably already been discussed but trying to assess my chances of GS again this year. Hubing out of STL, 51K PQPs so far in 2022, 39 PQFs. Unfortunately, most of the PQPs were on ANA as code share given the curtailment of so many flights to Narita. Thoughts on the likelihood of keeping GS?
Nov 28, 2022, 4:06 pm
#1350
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Los Angeles, California
Programs: United, American, Delta, Hyatt, Hilton, Hertz, Marriott
Posts: 14,802
This has probably already been discussed but trying to assess my chances of GS again this year. Hubing out of STL, 51K PQPs so far in 2022, 39 PQFs. Unfortunately, most of the PQPs were on ANA as code share given the curtailment of so many flights to Narita. Thoughts on the likelihood of keeping GS?