How often do Emirates miles expire?

Skywards miles expire three years after you earn them. However, if you have one of the co-branded Emirates credit cards or Platinum status, your Skywards miles do not expire.



Emirates Skywards miles are valid for three years from the date they are earned. Specifically, the miles will expire at the end of your month of birth in the third year after the activity took place. For example, if you earned miles in June 2023 and your birthday is in October, those miles would remain valid until October 31, 2026. Unlike some other loyalty programs where any activity "resets" the clock for your entire balance, Emirates miles have a hard expiration date based on when each individual batch was earned. In 2026, Emirates allows members to pay a fee to extend miles that are due to expire within the next three months for an additional 12 months. You can also "Buy, Gift, or Transfer" miles to prevent them from going to waste. To manage this effectively, frequent flyers are encouraged to check their "Expiring Miles" tab in the Emirates app regularly, as miles can be used for "Instant Upgrades" at the airport or for "Cash+Miles" bookings to lower the ticket price.

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For every 5,000 Miles you redeem, you'll get AED 110 (USD equivalent in the United States based on our exchange rates) off your package. Booking a holiday where you wish to redeem your Skywards Miles against the cost of your holiday must be booked through one of our expert Travel Consultants by calling 020 8972 8951.

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You can convert your Skywards Miles into cash and put them towards the cost of your flight. The conversion rate will vary. So even if you don't have enough Miles in your account to book a Classic Reward flight with Miles alone, you can still use your Miles to bring down your fare.

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How long do Emirates Skywards points last? Miles expire three years after they are earned or transferred, unless you have Platinum status, in which case they never expire. Additionally, Emirates lets you pay to extend any miles that are set to expire in the next three months.

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Frequent flyer miles earned from the following major domestic airlines do not expire: Delta Air Lines SkyMiles, JetBlue TrueBlue, Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards, United Airlines MileagePlus. Other airlines, including American and Alaska, have varying mileage expiration policies and ways to keep your miles active.

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Here's the catch. Air Miles themselves do not expire. But, if your account “expires” by being “dormant” (or inactive) for 24 consecutive months, then the points on it will disappear. An account is considered inactive if there are no points transactions within that period.

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Upgrades depend on your original economy ticket (saver, flex or flex plus). Upgrading a round trip ticket from New York to Dubai, for example, costs 190,000 miles if you have a saver ticket, 140,400 if you have a flex ticket, and 108,000 if you have a flex plus ticket.

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Miles can only be bought by Skywards members who have at least one prior earning activity in the history of the account. Mile purchases are non-refundable.

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Miles and points earned on co-branded hotel and airline travel rewards cards do expire usually if you are not active in redeeming them for 12 to 24 months, depending on the terms of the hotel or airline loyalty program.

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Skywards Miles can be transferred via the Points Platform from one Eligible Skywards Member to another (“Transfer Miles”) in blocks of 1,000 Miles at a cost of US$15 per 1,000 Miles. The initial minimum purchase required is 2,000 Miles; a member may send and receive a maximum of 50,000 Miles per calendar year.

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