Joining a frequent flyer program allows you to redeem your accumulated reward points for flights, flight upgrades, and other travel rewards, which is what you can expect from Singapore Airlines’ KrisFlyer frequent flyer program. Members earn miles when they fly with Singapore Airlines or any of its airline partners, as well as when they spend through any of its non-airline partners.
Benefits and privileges vary in accordance to membership levels, which include basic, silver, and gold. As a KrisFlyer member, you also get access to a number of special offers from time to time.
The origins of Singapore Airlines date back to May 1947, when a Malayan Airways Limited Airspeed Consul took off from Singapore Kallang Airport and flew to Kuala Lumpur. In the late 1960s, its annual revenue touched the one billion dollar mark for the first time. Singapore Airlines, in 1989, became the first airline in the world to cross the pacific on a B747-400 commercial flight.
In the late 1990s, this airline unveiled a range of new products and services worth around 500 million Singapore dollars. It launched KrisFlyer, its frequent flyer program, in 1999. Singapore Airlines strives to maintain a young fleet of aircrafts, and an average Singapore Airlines aircraft should be no more than around six and a half years old.
When you become a member of the KrisFlyer frequent flyer program you get to earn miles each time you fly with Singapore Airlines or any of its airlines partner, and when you shop with their non-airline partners. However, since this is not the only rewards program of its kind, comparing a few before enrolling is a good idea.
Which banks can transfer rewards points to Singapore KrisFlyer Miles?
American Express. 1:1 transfer ratio from American Express Membership Rewards Ascent points to KrisFlyer miles, minimum transfer amount of 5,000 points.
ANZ. Convert 6,000 reward points for 3,000 KrisFlyer points, starting with a minimum of 6,000 points, and then move forward in multiples of 3,000.
Citi. Get 1 KrisFlyer mile for every 1.5 Citi Reward points. You can transfer points in multiples of 15,000 rewards points.
HSBC. Allows you to transfer a minimum of 5,000 points, for which you’ll get 2,500 Krisflyer miles. The maximum amount you can transfer in a single transaction is 10,000 points for 5,000 miles.
NAB. A minimum of 3,000 NAB Rewards points will get you 1,000 KrisFlyer Miles when you have a NAB Rewards credit card.
St.George. Transfer 1 KrisFlyer mile for every 2 Amplify Points converted, with a minimum conversion of 3,000 Amplify Points.
Suncorp. Transfer a minimum of 10,000 Suncorp rewards points and get 5,000 KrisFlyer points.
Velocity. Transfer 1.35 Velocity Points to 1.00 KrisFlyer Miles with a minimum of 5,000 points per transfer.
Westpac. Transfer 2 Altitude reward points for 1 KrisFlyer point with a minimum of 3,000 points per transfer.
KrisFlyer Rewards Program
The KrisFlyer rewards program gives you the ability to earn and redeem miles in various ways. Singapore Airlines is part of the Star Alliance network, so you stand to earn miles when you fly using any airline that is part of this network as well as some of the airline’s other flight partners. You can also earn miles through Singapore Airline’s non-airline partners, including credit card providers, hotel chains, car hire companies and more.
You can redeem your miles for flight rewards to over 1,000 destinations in more than 170 countries with Singapore Airlines and any of its airline partners. You also have the option to convert your KrisFlyer miles to TapForMore Points, which you can use to get non-flight rewards.
Flying more often brings with it the possibility of moving to higher membership tiers that offer increased benefits.
Features of the KrisFlyer membership
When you sign up as a new KrisFlyer member, you’ll start off at the base level. Depending how often you fly and shop with non-airline partners, you can steadily move up to elite silver and elite gold level. The benefits you can expect will depend on your membership level:
KrisFlyer Basic. At this level you can redeem your miles for flight tickets and flight upgrades, and you can save 15% on the required miles if you redeem your miles online. You’ll also receive regular updates about the latest promotions.
KrisFlyer Elite Silver. You can get to the elite silver level if you earn 25,000 Elite miles within 12 consecutive months. When you get to this level you also make it to the Star Alliance Silver status, which gives you access to priority reservation waitlist and priority airport standby services. You get 25% tier bonus on KrisFlyer miles, and you can look forward to reduced or waived KrisFlyer service fees.
KrisFlyer Elite Gold. Earning 50,000 Elite miles within 12 consecutive months gets you to the Elite Gold level. Here, you get Star Alliance Gold status, through which you can make use of priority reservation waitlist and priority airport standby services. This level offers the following benefits as well.
Access to Star Alliance Gold lounges
Priority check-in
Priority boarding
Priority baggage handling
Excess baggage allowance
Reduced or waived KrisFlyer service fees
Benefits of being a KrisFlyer member
As a KrisFlyer member you can look forward to a number of benefits, which include the following:
Earn and redeem miles. This, without doubt, is the primary benefit of this frequent flyer program. You can redeem your miles for flights and flight upgrades through Singapore Airlines and SilkAir, through Star Alliance partners, and through its other airline partners like TAM, Virgin, and Vistara. If you don’t have enough points to redeem for a particular flight reward, you can consider buying the required miles. If you don’t want flight rewards, you can convert your miles to TapForMore Points which you can redeem through your PAssion Card.
Online redemption discount. Members get a 15% discount on the number of points they need to book tickets if they turn to Singapore Airlines’ or SilkAir’s online ticketing facilities.
PPS Club. Membership to this club is only open to people who frequently travel in First or Business Class on Singapore Airlines or SilkAir, or in the Singapore Airlines Suites onboard the Singapore Airlines A380. It requires that you earn a PPS value of at least 25,000 Singapore dollars in 12 consecutive months. Membership brings with it a 25% tier bonus on the actual miles flown, as well as a class bonus when flying Singapore Airlines or SilkAir. PPS members get Star Alliance Gold status automatically.
KrisFlyer points value
Just how many miles you earn depends on the class you’re flying, and this is where this frequent flyer program rates better than most others. As you can see, flying higher classes with Singapore Airlines brings with it considerably more miles:
Economy: 100% in B, E, H, L, M, W, and Y; 50% in N and Q; and 10% in K and V
Premium Economy: 110% in P, S, and T
Business Class: 125% in C, D, J, U, and Z
First Class: 150% in A and F
Suites: 300% in R, and 150% in F
The following applies when you fly using SilkAir:
Economy: 100% in B, E, H, L, M, W, and Y; 50% in N and Q; and 10% in K and V
Business Class: 125% in C, D, J, U, and Z
Changes to KrisFlyer flight rewards
In March 2017, KrisFlyer announced it would be updating its flight redemption details. As of 23 March 2017, the following changes will be rolled out for reward flights and upgrades:
No online booking discount. Previously, redeeming KrisFlyer Miles for reward flights and upgrades online attracted a booking discount of 15%. But this discount will not apply for redemptions made on or after 23 March 2017.
Reduced charges for Singapore Airlines and Silk Air reward flights. If you use your miles to redeem a flight operated by Singapore Air or Silk Air, you won't have to pay any additional fuel charges or insurance charges. For a one-way economy flight from Sydney to Singapore, this change could save you around $148 in additional charges. Note you may still have to pay airport taxes and fees.
Saver Award rate changes. KrisFlyer has revised mileage levels for economy, business and first class Saver Awards flights that cover Zone 7, 9, 11, 12 and 13. This increases the amount of miles needed for most reward flights to and from Australia. However, the change in fuel and insurance charges does help balance out the overall cost of redemptions.
KrisFlyer’s partners
Below are some lists of KrisFlyer partners that give KrisFlyer members the ability to earn additional KrisFlyer miles:
Partner hotels
Accor
Anantara
Carlson Rezidor
Hilton
Hyatt
InterContinental
Kempinski
Kerzner
Marriott
Okura
Park Regis
Shangri-La
Starwood
Taj
Credit card partners
Westpac (Australia)
American Express (Singapore, Malaysia, and Taiwan)
BOC (China)
JCB (Japan)
Mitsui Sumitomo (Japan)
BCA (Indonesia)
Other partners
AVIS
Europcar
Hertz
Rentalcars.com
Sixt
M1
Travelling Connect
Club 21
The Economist
Shell
TIME and FORTUNE magazines
How to join KrisFlyer
You can sign up to the KrisFlyer frequent flyer program online for free by visiting the Singapore Airlines website and following the prompts. Once you have clicked on the "sign up" botton, you will have to fill out a secure form and provide the following information:
Your complete name, gender, date of birth, and nationality
Your email address
Name you want displayed on your KrisFlyer card
A six-digit PIN
Your correspondence address
During the application process, make sure you read the terms and conditions for the program. It's also worth noting that anyone under the age of 12 will need parental consent to join the program.
Pros and cons of the KrisFlyer membership
Pros
Earn miles. This, without doubt, is the biggest benefit of the KrisFlyer frequent flyer program, and you get to earn more points if you spend at partner merchants.
Multiple partner airlines. The long list of partner airlines not only helps you earn miles easily, but this network is useful when it comes to redeeming your points as well. Some of the popular names on this list include Air Canada, Air China, Air India, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, South African Airways, Thai Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Virgin Australia, and Vistara.
Added travel benefits. As you move up membership tiers, you can look forward to additional benefits like priority check-in, priority boarding, priority baggage handling, excess baggage allowance, priority reservation waitlist, and priority airport standby.
Cons
Limited Australian credit card partners. As of now, Westpac is the only Australian credit card provider who offers Singapore Airlines co-branded credit cards that come linked to the KrisFlyer program.
Expiry of miles. Your KrisFlyer miles expire in three years, so you have to make sure you keep using your points or they could end up going waste.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. KrisFlyer members can nominate up to five individuals for whom they can redeem miles for rewards. They can give such nominees the authority to collect tickets for flight rewards on their behalf.
Yes, but you can increase your miles using cash only if you have at least half of the miles needed to redeem any given flight reward. You can, in such a scenario, buy blocks of additional miles at the rate of USD $40 per 1,000 miles.
You have to start by purchasing a commercial ticket in an eligible booking class. When flying Singapore airlines, you can use your miles to upgrade from economy to business class or from business class to first class/suites. When flying SilkAir, you can upgrade from economy to business class. You can also get upgrades to the next cabin class onboard select Star Alliance partners.
Amy Bradney-George was the senior writer for credit cards at Finder, and editorial lead for Finder Green. She has over 16 years of editorial experience and has been featured in publications including ABC News, Money Magazine and The Sydney Morning Herald. See full profile
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I have signed up to KrisFlyer and have a trip coming up but I don’t know how to get points for the flights. Also, can I claim for a trip I did 3 months ago?
You surely will earn your KrisFlyer miles by presenting your membership card when you get to the airport check-in counter. If you’re checking in online, log in with your KrisFlyer membership number and PIN.
As a new member, you can make claims for Singapore Airlines flights that took place up to six months before your enrolment date. You can do this by logging into your KrisFlyer account and make a request for ‘Retroactive Mileage Credit’. Partner airline flights are not eligible.
Should you wish to have real-time answers to your questions, try our chat box on the lower right corner of our page.
What you have a membership card which has been Expired and you didnt know about it. I flew SIA last year what happen to the points and how can i renew my membership
Kindly note that your KrisFlyer account will remain valid for 39 months from the end of the month of your last earning transaction. Your account will also expire if you don’t make a qualifying transaction within 18 months of your enrolment as a KrisFlyer member.
Since you mentioned flying with Singapore Airlines last year, if you earned points at that time, there is a big probability that your account is still active.
I was a Krisflyer member Joining in Aug 2004. No 800 598 7886
The travel agent says the membership is not recognized.
I have travelled Singapore airlines before without any claims.
I wish to claim for recent travel and future travel.
Do I have to join again ? If so can you enroll me again
As stated in the KrisFlyer T&CSs: “accounts which have activity are valid for 36 months from the end of the month in which the last activity occurred, after which the membership accounts will expire. KrisFlyer accounts which do not have any activity for a period of 18 months since enrollment will expire after that period of 18 months.”
Unfortunately, multiple enrolments to KrisFlyer by a single person are not allowed and each member may maintain only one KrisFlyer account.
I’ve sent to your email the link to the T&Cs of the KrisFlyer program, for your reference.
Unfortunately, I’m unaware of any other cards that allow you to earn points directly with the Singapore Airlines Krisflyer program. However, you can take out a card that allows you to transfer points into the krisFlyer program. One example is the range of American Express credit cards linked to the Membership Rewards program.
Hi there,
I wanted to get a credit card, which will allow me to enroll for the KrisFlyer points AND also allows me to access any of the KrisFlyer Lounges (on the International Airports).
Thanks,
Amit
You may refer to our Krisflyer credit card comparison page for a list of cards that are linked to the frequent flyer program. You can also check our article on airline lounge access for information about what cards offer access to which lounges.
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I have signed up to KrisFlyer and have a trip coming up but I don’t know how to get points for the flights. Also, can I claim for a trip I did 3 months ago?
Hello Kerry,
Thank you for your comment.
You surely will earn your KrisFlyer miles by presenting your membership card when you get to the airport check-in counter. If you’re checking in online, log in with your KrisFlyer membership number and PIN.
As a new member, you can make claims for Singapore Airlines flights that took place up to six months before your enrolment date. You can do this by logging into your KrisFlyer account and make a request for ‘Retroactive Mileage Credit’. Partner airline flights are not eligible.
Should you wish to have real-time answers to your questions, try our chat box on the lower right corner of our page.
Regards,
Jhezelyn
What you have a membership card which has been Expired and you didnt know about it. I flew SIA last year what happen to the points and how can i renew my membership
Hi SVilasani,
Thanks for your question.
Kindly note that your KrisFlyer account will remain valid for 39 months from the end of the month of your last earning transaction. Your account will also expire if you don’t make a qualifying transaction within 18 months of your enrolment as a KrisFlyer member.
Since you mentioned flying with Singapore Airlines last year, if you earned points at that time, there is a big probability that your account is still active.
Cheers,
Anndy
I was a Krisflyer member Joining in Aug 2004. No 800 598 7886
The travel agent says the membership is not recognized.
I have travelled Singapore airlines before without any claims.
I wish to claim for recent travel and future travel.
Do I have to join again ? If so can you enroll me again
Hi T Audrey,
Thanks for your inquiry.
As stated in the KrisFlyer T&CSs: “accounts which have activity are valid for 36 months from the end of the month in which the last activity occurred, after which the membership accounts will expire. KrisFlyer accounts which do not have any activity for a period of 18 months since enrollment will expire after that period of 18 months.”
Unfortunately, multiple enrolments to KrisFlyer by a single person are not allowed and each member may maintain only one KrisFlyer account.
I’ve sent to your email the link to the T&Cs of the KrisFlyer program, for your reference.
Cheers,
May
Westpac no longer offers a card linked to this program.
Do you know of any new programs other than listed on this site?
Hi Darron,
Thanks for your question.
Unfortunately, I’m unaware of any other cards that allow you to earn points directly with the Singapore Airlines Krisflyer program. However, you can take out a card that allows you to transfer points into the krisFlyer program. One example is the range of American Express credit cards linked to the Membership Rewards program.
I hope this has helped.
Thanks,
Elizabeth
Hi there,
I wanted to get a credit card, which will allow me to enroll for the KrisFlyer points AND also allows me to access any of the KrisFlyer Lounges (on the International Airports).
Thanks,
Amit
Hi Amit,
Thanks for your question.
You may refer to our Krisflyer credit card comparison page for a list of cards that are linked to the frequent flyer program. You can also check our article on airline lounge access for information about what cards offer access to which lounges.
I hope this helps.
Cheers,
Jacob