Air France-KLM's Flying Blue program is offering a paid status match to US travelers

Flying Blue, the loyalty program of Air France-KLM, is offering a generous online status match for elite members of the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan, American Airlines AAdvantage, JetBlue TrueBlue Rewards and United Airlines MileagePlus programs.

Delta Air Lines SkyMiles elite members are excluded from this offer, likely because Delta is a fellow SkyTeam member with Air France-KLM.

The following statuses will be matched to Flying Blue Silver (SkyTeam Elite): Alaska MVP and MVP Gold, American Gold, JetBlue Mosaic 1 and 2, and United Premier Silver.

If you hold the following statuses, you can be matched to Flying Blue Gold (SkyTeam Elite Plus): Alaska MVP 75K and 100K; American Platinum, Platinum Pro, Executive Platinum and Concierge Key; JetBlue Mosaic 3 and 4; and United Premier Gold, Premier Platinum, Premier 1K and Global Services.

Note that unlike with status match challenges offered by other airlines, U.S. and Mexican residents must pay. It will cost $99 to be matched to Flying Blue Silver status or $299 to be matched to Flying Blue Gold status.

What are the benefits of Flying Blue Silver and Gold status?

Status matches are offered by airlines from time to time to try and tempt regular travelers on competing carriers to shift their business to another airline while giving them a head start on their elite status goals.

Unfortunately, Flying Blue Platinum status, with its valuable ability to book Air France's famed La Premiere first class with miles, is not available to U.S. and Mexico residents with this match offer.

Related: 10 things that wowed me about Air France's incredible La Premiere first class

Flying Blue Silver is the lowest tier of Flying Blue elite status and includes some basic benefits:

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• 6 Flying Blue miles per euro spent on Flying Blue-issued tickets
• Free standard seat selection
• Priority check-in and boarding
• SkyTeam Elite benefits (the most notable SkyTeam Elite benefit is a free checked bag on all Flying Blue and SkyTeam partner flights)

Flying Blue Gold members have access to the Flying Blue Silver benefits as well as:

• 7 Flying Blue miles per euro spent on Flying Blue-issued tickets
• Access to SkyTeam lounges on international flights operated by a Flying Blue or SkyTeam airline (valid for you and a guest)
• Access to partner lounges on airlines like Virgin Atlantic, Qantas and Air Mauritius
• SkyTeam Elite Plus (benefits like SkyPriority boarding, fast-track immigration and more)
• 50% discount on preferred seats and Delta Comfort+

Related: The ultimate guide to earning and redeeming with Air France-KLM Flying Blue

We are big fans of Flying Blue here at TPG, even without elite status, as the program is a transfer partner of every major credit card currency, making Flying Blue miles easy to earn, and you can book business-class flights to Europe starting at just 50,000 Flying Blue miles, which is an incredible deal.

To apply for the match, you must have a valid Flying Blue account (which can be opened for free online). A decision will be made within three business days, and the new status will appear in the member's account within five business days.

Once matched, Flying Blue status is valid for 12 months. To retain your status, you must requalify by meeting the standard Flying Blue qualification levels; there is no short track to extended status during the matched period.

Remember, while status matches offered by other programs are usually free, U.S. and Mexican residents must pay $99 for Silver status or $299 for Gold status.

Bottom line

This is a generous, though unusual, offer from a solid airline loyalty program. However, requiring members to pay to match their status — while other programs will do this for free — may put some members off. Still, if you have upcoming travel with Air France-KLM or other SkyTeam member airlines like Delta, Korean Air or China Eastern Airlines, especially international travel, it could be a great time to try the perks of another loyalty program.

You can apply for the Flying Blue status match online here.