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Korean Air is South Korea’s national flag carrier and a founding member of the SkyTeam alliance — along with Delta. Operating multiple routes to North America, Europe, and throughout Asia from its bases in South Korea, the airline is known for the quality of its premium cabin offerings. And there are plenty of reasons Korean Air's SKYPASS program should be on your radar.
Korean Air SKYPASS miles have one of the longest validity periods ever. While you cannot extend miles validity — or reinstate miles once expired — you have ample time to accrue and use your miles.
Do Korean Miles Expire?
Korean Air miles expire 10 years after the date they were earned. However, any miles earned before June 30, 2008 will not expire. According to the Korean Air SKYPASS program terms and conditions:
“Mileage earned in Korean Air’s SKYPASS program on or after July 1, 2008, is valid for a period often years and will expire if unredeemed. All mileage earned on or before June 30, 2008 will not expire. The ten year mileage validity period is based on the date flown on Korean Air and partner airlines. The validity period for Korean Air partners is based on the date posted to the member’s account.”
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Related: How to redeem Korean Air SKYPASS miles
Boosting Your Korean Air SKYPASS Mileage Balance
Unfortunately, your options for boosting your Korean Air mileage balance via transfers are minimal. Historically, you could transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards to Korean Air. However, that relationship ended a few years back.
Of the major flexible points currencies, you can only transfer Marriott Bonvoy points to Korean Air.
Unfortunately, the standing 5,000-mile bonus for transferring 60,000 Bonvoy points does not apply to Korean Air transfers (or Delta, American Airlines, or LifeMiles).
Korean Air hotel transfer partners
You can also transfer points from a couple of other hotel programs to Korean Air SKYPASS. However, the value is really bad. That said, if you need a few miles for an award to use your miles before your Korean miles expire, then at least you have these less-than-ideal choices:
Accor Live Limitless points transfer to Korean at a ratio of 2:1, although this is poor value since you redeem Accor points at a fixed value of 2,000 points for a €40 discount on your stay. Transferring 2,000 points to receive 1,000 Korean Air SKYPASS points is not a great deal.
You can also transfer World of Hyatt points over to Korean at a ratio of 5:2. Again, this is poor value, and you are much better off using your Hyatt points for stays. You can get substantially more value from 50,000 World of Hyatt points (e.g., ten nights at a Category 1 property) than from the measly 20,000 miles they would transfer to Korean SKYPASS.
Use AwardWallet to Track Korean Air Mileage Expiration
Even though 10 years may feel like forever, it still pays to keep track of your mileage balance so you don't forfeit a single mile. The easiest way to keep track of your Korean Air miles is to use AwardWallet.
Simply link your Korean Air Account to your AwardWallet account to be able to check your balances in one place and receive a reminder if your miles are ever in danger of Korean miles expiring.
Related: How to Track Your Rewards Using AwardWallet
Our Take
The Korean Air program is not as robust as it used to be due to losses of key transfer partners. However, Korean Air SKYPASS remains a highly valuable program with some excellent Korean Air SKYPASS redemption sweet spots and a generous mileage expiration policy.
10 years is virtually unlimited time when it comes to points and miles. Since you should never be looking to hold onto any points or miles for that length of time. You are always better off earning and burning them.
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