United MileagePlus provides elite status extensions, lowers qualification requirements and more

Following in the footsteps of Delta's announcement, United brought out details for the MileagePlus members detailing status extensions and more on Sunday. This news is almost an exact copy of Delta's with status extension, extensions for memberships and certificates however there are some slight differences.

Here are the key points for Canadian MileagePlus members:

If you have current 2020 Premier status, it will be extended to January 31, 2022. At a minimum, you will enjoy the same published status next year that you have today, up to and including Premier 1K®.

For the 2021 status year, United is reducing thresholds for Premier qualification by 50% for each status level, to make reaching an even higher tier easier. You'll still need a minimum of four flight segments on United or United Express®.

2021 status	Earn Premier qualifying flights	and PQP	… or meet a higher PQP goal
Silver	6	2,000	2,500
Gold	12	4,000	5,000
Platinum	18	6,000	7,500
1K	26	9,000	12,000

1K® and Platinum members, we're increasing your ability to upgrade by extending PlusPoints expiration dates by six months and expanding Skip Waitlist.

• This means a six-month extension of any PlusPoints set to expire on or before January 31, 2021.

• Last year we introduced Skip Waitlist on select flights as a benefit to 1K members, giving you more opportunities to confirm an upgrade request at the time of booking. This benefit will now be available for the rest of 2020 in a significantly expanded selection of long-haul international regions and will have expanded availability in 2021 as well.

We're extending all annual membership and subscription benefits by six months.

• We want to make sure your benefits are still there when you're ready to start flying again. That's why we're extending purchased United Club℠ memberships and purchased subscriptions for Economy Plus®, United Wi-Fi℠ and checked bags by six months. You should see this reflected in your MileagePlus account soon.

All electronic travel certificates now have 24 months to be used.

• If your travel plans have been disrupted, and you have an electronic travel certificate from us for the value of your ticket, you now have two years from the date it was issued to book a new flight, as well as up to an additional 11 months to travel. This includes all currently valid and all new electronic travel certificates issued on or after April 1, 2020.

We have removed some redeposit fees for the rest of the year.

• We are currently waiving all award redeposit fees for travel through end of May 2020.

• We are now also waiving all redeposit fees for award ticket cancellations made more than 30 days before departure for the remainder of 2020.

If you read the post about Delta's announcement we had this morning you'll see it is the elite qualifying portion where United differs. Delta did not lower elite qualifying requirements for 2020 like United has done here. United has cut the requirements to qualify for 2021 by half. This could potentially mean some of you may be close to or have already qualified for 2021 if you flew United enough prior to the non-essential travel market shutting down. Just like Delta we also see United extend the validity of certificates and membership programs like United Club. It also nice to see United waive more fees in regards to cancelling MileagePlus award tickets.

United also stated in their announcement that they will make it easier to earn 2022 status during 2021 but they will announce how at a later date.

Learn more about the United MileagePlus announcement here 

Image via United