Aeroplan eUpgrades credits: changes to expiration policy

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Aeroplan program, and in an email to its Elite members, Aeroplan announced its intention to celebrate with enhancements to the member experience, starting with the expiration of eUpgrades, which are primarily earned upon attaining status.

From July 1, 2024, all eUpgrades obtained will be valid for 12 months from the date they are issued.

Previously, eUpgrades earned between January 1 and June 30 of a given year would expire in mid-January of the following year. These will now be valid for 12 months from the date of issue.

Instead, many astute Elite members waited until July 1 to select their eUpgrades as privileges, so that their expiration date could be pushed back to mid-January, two years later rather than the following year.

For example, under the current policy, eUpgrades credits issued on July 10, 2023 expire on January 15, 2025, while eUpgrades credits issued on June 29, 2023 expire on January 15, 2024. With the new policy, eUpgrades credits will simply expire 12 months later.

This will be fairer for everyone and simpler to calculate; your eUpgrades credits expire 12 months after the issue date.

Note that this good news does not apply retroactively to eUpgrades credits earned before July 1, 2024, for which the validity period remains the same.

However, unused eUpgrades credits earned up to June 30, 2024 will be carried forward to 2025 (up to a total of 50 credits). This one-off deferral will be carried out by March 31, 2025, and these credits will be valid until January 15, 2026.

These changes are excellent news for Aeroplan Members with Elite status who were looking for greater flexibility in the use of eUpgrades credits. However, you should also bear in mind that competition for a seat in business class may be fiercer now that there is no longer a limit on the number of eUpgrades credits that can be extended with a premium Aeroplan credit card. So it’s better to use your eUpgrades credits sooner rather than later to get an upgrade on Air Canada.

If you are considering becoming a cardholder of one of these cards in order to extend the expiry date of your eUpgrades, be sure to read Aeroplan’s recent changes to the program terms and conditions regarding the use of co-branded credit cards.