After years of a confusing expiry policy that left everyone scratching their heads, Flying Blue, the loyalty programme of Air France/KLM, is introducing a much clearer and more generous miles-expiration rule. The changes are set to take effect on May 4, 2026, and they represent one of the most genuinely member-friendly updates the programme has seen in a long time.
The Old Maze vs The New Straight Line
Under the old Flying Blue policy, miles would expire after 24 months of account inactivity, but the rules about what counts as “activity” were layered. Certain earning sources — like flights credited to Flying Blue or spending on co-branded cards — reset your expiration clock. Others — like points transferred from bank currencies — didn’t always reset all of your miles. That could leave you with multiple expiration dates for different chunks of your balance.
Starting May 4, 2026, all of that goes away:
- Every Flying Blue mile will have a single unified expiry date, rather than different dates depending on where the miles came from.
- Any eligible earning activity — whether that’s flying and crediting a ticket, earning miles from hotel or car partners, spending on a co-branded card, or transferring points from a bank partner — will reset the entire balance’s 24-month clock.
- This applies to existing miles, too; before the change goes live, your miles will be consolidated under the most favourable expiration date already in your account.
The result? A far more intuitive “one rule covers everything” approach, so you don’t have to juggle different expiry dates or wonder if a tiny transfer just saved your balance.
Why This Matters?
Simplification is the obvious headline — but the practical impact is worth zooming in on. Members outside regions where Flying Blue credit cards are available now have real options to keep their miles alive by engaging with partners, not just flying or card spend. Casual collectors who might only transfer points occasionally no longer need to fret about mysterious expiration gaps. Existing miles earned long ago will benefit from the most advantageous expiry date under the new rule. 
In other words, if you make any valid earning move at least once every two years, your entire balance stays alive — and every mile ticks along on a unified 24-month clock.
What Doesn’t Change
It’s still not a no-expiration programme, as some U.S. domestic carriers have adopted; miles do expire after 24 months of inactivity. But compared to the old maze of rules, this is a big step forward in transparency and member friendliness.
Bottomline
Flying Blue has long been a beloved program for routes to Europe and beyond, particularly with Promo Rewards and strong SkyTeam partner availability. This expiry simplification makes it easier to sleep at night with miles in your account — and worry less about tracking tiny expiry nuances. Now, any activity will count towards extending the life of all your miles by 24 months.
What do you think of the new policy from Air France / KLM Flying Blue?
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