BA has extended status for some (not all) expecting a mid-year drop

British Airways appears to have extended elite status for some people who were due to lose it part-way through the 1st April 2025 to 31st March 2026 membership year.

This includes my wife and I which is good news if it sticks.

Let’s take a closer look.

Back in February 2024, when British Airways announced the moved to fixed membership years (1st April to 31st March), some people were NOT given a 31st March end date for their current status.

This was done out of fairness to those who had just earned status. It wasn’t perfect but it helped.

Here’s an example:

• Imagine that you earned Gold during a membership year which ended on 8th October 2024

• Your Gold status was due to expire on 30th November 2025

• When the new membership year system was announced, it was assumed that this Gold period would be shortened with status ending on 30th April 2025

A few days after the original announcement, BA changed its T&C to clarify that:

Any existing status valid beyond 31 March 2025 will continue for the full duration.

This meant that everyone would get the ‘rest of their current year plus the full following year’ to benefit from their status.

It wasn’t the perfect solution. Your ‘soft landing’ period was still reduced. In the example above, even though British Airways allowed you to keep your Gold status until 30th November 2025, your soft landing to Silver – assuming you didn’t requalify, and assuming soft landings continue – would only last until 30th April 2026 and not 30th November 2026.

What has changed?

Both my wife and I were impacted by this.

My status was due to end on 30th November 2025. My wife’s was due to end on 30th September 2025.

However, looking at my British Airways Club membership card:

…. my Gold status will now run to 30th April 2026. My wife’s account shows the same. I’ve gained an extra five months, she has gained an extra seven months.

British Airways seems to have decided that dropping some members down a tier during the new fixed membership period doesn’t make sense.

If your British Airways Club status was due to expire mid-year, take a look at your BA account. You may be pleasantly surprised. However, looking at the comments below, it seems 50/50 as to whether you were extended.

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Run your own business?

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