How to Recover a Lapsed Frequent Flyer Account

A lapsed frequent flyer account usually means one of two things. Either you have lost access to the account, or the points inside it have expired. The first problem is always fixable. The second depends heavily on the frequent flyer program. The frequent flyer program can determine whether you can recover a lapsed account.

This is because Qantas, Velocity and KrisFlyer each take a different approach to inactive accounts and expired points. The recovery options range from a genuine second chance to none at all.

Step one: get back into the account

Before worrying about the points, re-establish access to the account. All three programs let you retrieve a forgotten membership number using your name and the email address on file. You can then reset your password or PIN from there. The harder cases involve accounts linked to old email addresses or phone numbers. You’ll usually need to call the frequent flyer program to regain access.

You can contact each frequent flyer program here:

• The Qantas Frequent Flyer Service Centre on 13 11 31
• The Velocity Membership Contact Centre on 13 18 75
• Singapore Airlines’ KrisFlyer support through singaporeair.com, or calling +61 2 7209 4388

Expect identity questions based on your account’s details, so have your full name, date of birth, and any old membership cards or statement emails ready.

Two things to note once you are in. Velocity has introduced multi-factor authentication. You can update your mobile number and email first, or you may be locked out again at the next login. In all three programs, update your contact details before doing anything else, because expiry warnings are only useful if they reach an inbox you can access.

Qantas: 18 months, and a second chance worth asking for

Qantas Points expire after 18 consecutive months without earning or redeeming a single point. The time runs from the date of your last eligible activity. There are two important details inside that rule. Family Transfers do not count as activity for expiry purposes, nor do points transferred in from Qantas Business Rewards. So an account can still lapse even when points are being transferred from it.

If your Qantas Points have already expired, do not write them off. Qantas operates a reinstatement practice, usually called the Qantas Points Challenge, through the Frequent Flyer Service Centre. It is not a published policy, and the terms are set case by case. In many cases, members who contact Qantas within six months of their points expiring may be offered a reinstatement option. They may reinstate the expired balance once you earn around 2,500 Qantas Points within three months.

At times, there may also be a requirement that the earnings come from more than one source. A modest credit card spend, a Qantas Shopping purchase or a fuel purchase with an eligible fuel partner can often help people meet the requirement. As the practice is unpublished, ask directly for a points reinstatement option, and get the agreed terms confirmed before you hang up.

Once the balance is back, keeping it alive is crucial. Earn or redeem one point every 18 months. A points-earning credit card can do this automatically. See our guide to the best Qantas Frequent Flyer credit cards if you need to re-establish an earning stream. Our Qantas Frequent Flyer guides can show you the broader picture of the program.

Velocity: 24 months, and no way back

Velocity gives you more time before your points expire, but less of a recovery time. Points expire if there is no earning or redemption activity on the account for 24 months. Once your points are gone, they cannot be reinstated. There is no equivalent of the Qantas reinstatement option. Rare exceptions have been reported where extenuating circumstances such as serious illness or hardship were involved. A call to the Membership Contact Centre on 13 18 75 costs nothing, but you should expect reinstatement requests are usually declined. Our guide to Velocity points and Status Credits expiry covers the mechanics in detail.

If you have reopened a lapsed Velocity account and found a zero balance, treat it as a fresh start rather than a recovery mission. The account itself is still perfectly good. Your membership number, Family Pooling eligibility and any Forever Gold progress from past flying all remain relevant. Expiry applies to your points, not your membership. Restart your points expiry time by earning Velocity Points. This could be a Velocity e-Store purchase or a single credit card transaction, and the 24-month window will reset. From there, anything in our Velocity Frequent Flyer guides on earning applies as normal.

KrisFlyer: a three-year expiry that cannot be saved

KrisFlyer is different because keeping your account active does not prevent miles from expiring. Under Singapore Airlines’ KrisFlyer rules, miles expire three years after they are earned, at the end of the equivalent month, regardless of anything else happening on the account. Earning more miles does not extend the old ones.

The recovery options are quite narrow. Miles approaching expiry can be extended once, for a fee of 1,200 miles or USD 12 per 10,000 miles. This extends the validity of your miles by six months for standard members and by 12 months for KrisFlyer Elite Silver and Elite Gold members. Expired miles, however, cannot be extended or reinstated.

So a lapsed KrisFlyer account is really about deciding which miles you can still save. Log in to your account and open Miles, then Miles Validity. See what is still alive and what is expiring soon, and either redeem them or pay to extend the miles expiring first. Our KrisFlyer guides cover the redemption sweet spots.

Keeping all three active from here

The maintenance burden differs by program, so set your habits accordingly. Qantas and Velocity are activity-based. Earning or redeeming points every 18 and 24 months, respectively, keeps the entire balance alive indefinitely. While an everyday credit card can earn points automatically. KrisFlyer is calendar-based, meaning no amount of activity protects old miles. The best approach is to earn KrisFlyer miles with a redemption already in mind, and transfer from flexible points programs only when you are ready to book. A yearly diary note to check all three balances only takes a couple of minutes and can help you avoid the need for a reinstatement challenge.

Frequently asked questions