Will My Delta MQMs Roll Over to the Following Year?
TPG reader Leon emailed to ask about earning Delta Medallion status:
"Will I lose my MQMs if I fail to reach Silver Elite status, or will Delta roll them over to the following calendar year?"
While the SkyMiles program hasn't done itself many favors during the past few years, there are some things Delta gets right. Among them, the airline deserves praise for allowing elite flyers to roll Medallion Qualification Miles (MQMs) over to the next year — a feature none of the other major carriers offer.
The premise is simple: Any MQMs you earn beyond the threshold for your elite status level will carry over to help you get a head start on qualifying the next year. For example, if you start at zero and earn 65,000 MQMs this year, you'll earn Gold Medallion status at 50,000, and the extra 15,000 will count toward your 2016 elite qualification. Rollover miles generally show up a few weeks into the new year, so you could end up starting the year off having nearly requalified for some level of elite status, depending on how many extra MQMs you have.
Unfortunately, you have to at least reach Silver status to be eligible for rollover miles. That means if you earn 24,999 MQMs this year, you'll come up empty and have nothing to show for it in 2016. While that might seem harsh, it helps Delta keep the lower elite tiers from becoming overcrowded.
On the positive side, MQMs roll over even if you don't meet Medallion Qualification Dollar requirements, which is especially good news since Delta raised those thresholds for this year. However, MQDs don't roll over, so you need to meet the revenue requirement for your elite status level each year unless you earn a waiver by spending on one of the co-branded Delta credit cards from Amex.
Pound for pound, I value elite status on Delta less than equivalent status on American or United, but the ability to roll over elite miles is uniquely generous, and gives frequent flyers incentive to continue flying even after they've crossed a status threshold. I'd love to see other airlines follow suit!
For more info on earning Delta Medallion status, check out these posts:
- 2015 Delta Air Lines SkyMiles Program Overview
- How to Earn Delta Medallion Status Without Flying
If you have any other questions, please tweet me @thepointsguy, message me on Facebook or send me an email at info@thepointsguy.com.
[card card-name='Gold Delta SkyMiles® Credit Card from American Express' card-id='22034414' type='javascript' bullet-id='1']
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- LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles: 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200k miles when you spend $150k in the first 6 months
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Rewards Rate
| 2X miles | 2 miles per dollar on every purchase |
| 5X miles | 5 miles per dollar on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel |
| 10X miles | 10 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Business Travel |
Intro Offer
Earn 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200K miles when you spend $150K in the first 6 monthsLIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus milesAnnual Fee
$395Recommended Credit
Credit ranges are a variation of FICO® Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.740-850Excellent
Why We Chose It
The Capital One Venture X Business Card has all the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card has to offer and more. It offers an incredible welcome bonus and requires an equally impressive spend to qualify. In addition, the card comes with premium travel perks like annual travel credit. (Partner offer)Pros
- The Capital One Venture X business card has a very lucrative welcome offer.
- In addition, the card comes with many premium travel perks such as an annual $300 credit for bookings through Capital One Business Travel.
- Business owners are also able to add employee cards for free.
Cons
- The card requires significant spending to earn the welcome offer.
- Another drawback is that the annual travel credit can only be used on bookings made through Capital One Business Travel.
- LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles: 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200k miles when you spend $150k in the first 6 months
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, everywhere—with no limits or category restrictions
- Earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars and 5X miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel
- With no preset spending limit, enjoy big purchasing power that adapts so you can spend more and earn more rewards
- Empower your teams to make business purchases while earning rewards on their transactions, with free employee and virtual cards. Plus, automatically sync your transaction data with your accounting software and pay your vendors with ease
- Redeem your miles on flights, hotels and more. Plus, transfer your miles to any of the 15+ travel loyalty programs
- Every year, you'll get 10,000 bonus miles after your account anniversary date. Plus, receive an annual $300 credit for bookings made through Capital One Business Travel
- Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®. Enjoy access to 1,300+ airport lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass™ lounges, after enrollment
- Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
- This is a pay-in-full card, so your balance is due in full every month