British Airways Is Changing How You Earn Tier Points From 1 April 2026 — Here's What's New

Just when you'd got your head around the spend-based tier point system that launched last April, British Airways is tweaking the formula again. From 1 April 2026, how you earn tier points on flights is getting a fairly significant upgrade, and for once, these changes are mostly in your favour.

The headline? Your fare type now matters. And if you fly American Airlines or Iberia, you're finally getting a piece of the action too.

Let's break it all down, including how it compares to last years rule changes.

The basics haven't changed

Before we get into what's new, a quick reminder: you still earn 1 tier point per £1 of eligible spend. That's your fare, plus any carrier-imposed charges. This does not includes the taxes and airport fees. This part is identical to the system that launched in last year.

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Extra tier points: Now based on fare type, not just cabin

This is the big one. Since November 2025, you've been earning a flat number of "extra" tier points per flight based purely on the cabin you fly. It didn't matter whether you booked the cheapest Club Europe fare or the fully flexible one, the bonus you got was the same.

From 1 April 2026, that's changing. The extra tier points now vary by fare type within each cabin. The more flexible the fare, the bigger the bonus.

Here's the full comparison between last year's flat rate vs the new fare-type breakdown.

Short haul

Euro Traveller (was 75 across all fares):

• Plus: 75 tier points

• Semi-Flex: 175 tier points

• Fully Flex: 275 tier points

Club Europe (was 175 across all fares):

• Business: 175 tier points

• Semi-Flex: 275 tier points

• Fully Flex: 375 tier points

Long haul

World Traveller (was 150 across all fares):

• Standard: 150 tier points

• Semi-Flex: 250 tier points

• Flex: 350 tier points

• Fully Flex: 450 tier points

World Traveller Plus (was 275 across all fares):

• Premium Economy: 275 tier points

• Semi-Flex: 375 tier points

• Flex: 475 tier points

• Fully Flex: 575 tier points

Club World (was 400 across all fares):

• Business: 500 tier points

• Semi-Flex: 700 tier points

• Flex: 900 tier points

• Fully Flex: 1,100 tier points

First (was 550 across all fares):

• First: 650 tier points

• Semi-Flex: 850 tier points

• Flex: 1,050 tier points

• Fully Flex: 1,250 tier points

You will earn these tier points on British Airways Holidays packages too.

A few things jump out here.

If you always book the cheapest fare in each cabin, the base-level extras have either stayed the same (economy cabins) or gone up slightly (Club World and First both get an extra 100 tier points even on the cheapest fare). Nobody's worse off.

But if you book flexible tickets, then you're being handsomely rewarded. A Fully Flex Club World flight now earns 1,100 extra tier points, which is 700 more than last year's flat 400. A Fully Flex First earns 1,250, up from 550.

Even in economy, the difference between a Plus fare (75 tier points) and a Fully Flex (275 tier points) is nearly four times greater. If you're chasing status and tossing up between fare types, this could tip the decision.

It needn't be said that the more flexible the fare, the more expensive that fare will cost. So that's something you'll have to personally weigh up.

American Airlines and Iberia: From nothing to something

This is arguably the most significant change for anyone who doesn't fly exclusively on BA. Last year, AA and Iberia flights earned tier points purely on spend, £1 = 1 TP and that was it.

From 1 April 2026, both airlines get a flat cabin-based bonus per flight:

• Economy short haul: 75 tier points

• Business class short haul: 175 tier points

• Economy long haul: 150 tier points

• Premium economy long haul: 275 tier points

• Business class long haul: 500 tier points

• First class long haul: 650 tier points

These are per flight, so a return in AA business class long haul would net you 1,000 extra tier points on top of whatever you earn through spend.

Basic Economy fares are excluded, which is no surprise.

Again, you will earn these tier points on British Airways Holidays packages too, if they happen to contain AA or Iberia flights.

Add-ons and SAF: Double the earning rate

This is a quieter change but it's also a good one. Last year, bags, seat selection and SAF (sustainable aviation fuel) contributions all earned at the standard 1 tier point per £1 rate. From 1 April 2026, all of those move to 2 tier points per £1.

For SAF specifically, the annual cap has also doubled from 1,000 to 2,000 tier points per membership year. You'd still need to spend £1,000 to max it out, but you now walk away with twice the tier points for the same money. If you used SAF as a last-minute top-up to hit a tier threshold last year, this is a noticeably better deal.

Earning tier points from bags and seating has no stated cap. If you're someone who always pre-books a seat or adds an extra bag, those purchases are now doubling up.

Here's one bit that's easy to miss: this also applies to add-ons for Reward Flight bookings using Avios. You won't earn tier points on the Reward Flight itself, but any seat or bag you buy for your flight now earns tier points at a rate of 2 tier points per £1 spent.

What about flights before 1 April 2026?

BA has confirmed that flights taken before 1 April 2026 will be awarded tier points under the current system. So you won't see these new fare-type-based extras applied retroactively. Everything from 1 April onwards earns under the new rules.

What this actually means for you

Just as a reminder, these are the current amounts of Tier Points needed for status:

• Bronze: 3,500 Tier Points (or 25 BA flights)

• Silver: 7,500 Tier Points (or 50 BA flights)

• Gold: 20,000 Tier Points

To put this into context, let's take a simple example: ten return Club Europe flights to Madrid, with an eligible spend of roughly £4,500 across the year.

Under last year's rules, you'd earn roughly 4,500 tier points from spend, plus 3,500 in extras (175 × 20 flights). That's 8,000 tier points total, which is enough for Silver, but not by much.

Under the new rules with the same Business fare, you'd earn 4,500 from spend, plus 3,500 in extras (175 × 20 flights). This amount is identical because the base fare earns the same as before.

But switch those ten returns to Semi-Flex, and the extras jump to 5,500 (275 × 20 flights). That's 10,000 tier points total, pushing you comfortably past Silver with 2,500 to spare. Same number of flights, just a different fare type.

That 2,000 tier point difference could easily be the gap between scraping Silver and hitting it without stress. And if the price difference between Business and Semi-Flex is only £20-30 per flight, you're looking at maybe £400-600 extra across the year for a significantly more comfortable run at status.

Factor in the odd AA transatlantic or Iberia short-haul on top, and the extra tier points from those airlines are now padding your total in a way they simply weren't before.

The takeaway is pretty straightforward: if you do nothing differently and keep booking the cheapest fares, you're no worse off than last year. But if you're willing to think about fare types there are now substantially more tier points available to you.

The bottom line on this round of British Airways tier points changes

On balance, these are positive changes.

The fare-type stuff rewards people who spend more, which is hardly a shock. But the fact that even the base fares haven't been cut is reassuring. The AA and Iberia extras are long overdue. And doubling the earning on add-ons and SAF is a real improvement.

If you're planning your flying for the next membership year, it's worth running the numbers on fare types. Sometimes the jump from a basic fare to a Semi-Flex might only cost £20-30 more per flight, but the extra tier points could save you needing to book an additional trip entirely if you're nearly going to miss your tier points target.

For more detail, click here for BA's tier point write up.

Sam

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