Emirates: Status Upgrade up to Skywards Gold

A380 Emirates

Emirates‘ frequent flyer program Skywards is offering a way to upgrade your current elite status to the next tier. This is not a formal process, mind you. But it can get you Silver status even if you’re not holding a Skywards tier at all right now. In Dubai, Silver means access to the frequent flyer lounge, so it’s not a bad deal. Unfortunately, you can not get upgraded to Platinum. You will have to fly to earn the highest tier that Emirates has to offer.

You will need to hold elite status with another airline and be able to show proof of a future flight with Emirates. There are no official terms and conditions, so we don’t exactly know if there is an ideal way that will lead to success. But there are some reports out there that we summarized and that should give you an excellent chance to get your higher tier.

How to

Use the customer service form to send a request for a status upgrade to Skywards:

Skywards CS form
Log-in to Skywards to send your request for a status upgrade

According to the information that we found and received from readers, you will need to attach the following documents to your inquiry:

  • Foto or scan of your current frequent flyer card from another airline or a screenshot of your account that proofs hat you’re holding elite status with some airline loyalty program. This status should be valid for at least 6 months to be accepted by Skywards.
  • Booking number or other proof of your future flights with Emirates

It could also be helpful to include some kind of explanation as to why Emirates should upgrade your Skywards status. You could maybe state that you’re going to travel a lot on routes that are served by Emirates in the future.

No matter which status you are holding with another airline, Emirate will now upgrade you to the next tier on Skywards. This is what separates this status upgrade from other status match challenges we’ve informed you about in the past.

Example

You are a United MileagePlus Platinum and a Skywards Blue member. If you request the status upgrade and your request gets approved by Emirates, you will only be rewarded with the next higher tier. In our case, this will be Skywards Silver. This might seem somewhat odd since the Platinum status is not comparable to Silver. But that’s the way his match goes.

According to reports, the upgrade from Blue to Silver is the most successful one. Upgrades to Gold are rare, and those from Gold to Platinum seem to be excluded from the unofficial promotion. As already mentioned, there are no terms. So it is up to Skywards to approve or deny your request, and they can decide however they want.

Info

But there is one tip that might get you a slightly better chance when requesting the upgrade: if you are currently holding a status from another airline from the Arabian Peninsula (e.g., Oman Air, Qatar, Ethiad,…) attach this one to your inquiry. Since Emirates is in direct competition with those airlines, it is way more likely that your status will be upgraded than with, let’s say, an elite tier from a US carrier.

Benefits

To give you an idea of what an elite status with Emirates is actually worth, here’s a summary of all the different levels and benefits attached to them (each tier level includes the benefits of the lower one):

Blue

  • Upgrade with award miles during check-in
  • Higher priority on waiting lists
  • Discounted access to frequent flyer lounges

Silver

  • Access to the Emirates business class lounges in Dubai
  • Upgrade with award miles on board
  • Priority check-in
  • Priority boarding
  • Additional luggage allowance
  • 25% bonus miles on Emirates flights

Gold

  • Access to all Emirates business class lounges
  • Bring a guest to the lounge
  • Priority luggage handling
  • Guaranteed seat also on sold-out flights
  • 50% bonus miles on Emirates flights

Platinum

  • Access to Emirates first class lounges
  • First class check-in and luggage handling
  • Skywards Gold card for your partner
  • 75% bonus miles an Emirates flights

If the Emirates Skywards status upgrade isn’t what you’ve been looking for, check out other fast tracks to elite status:

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Comments (2)

  1. Jonas says:

    They matched my silver status from oman air, gulf air and Qatar Airways recently

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