Air Canada Launches Targeted Double SQC Offer for Aeroplan Elite Members

Air Canada has launched a targeted promotion that allows selected Aeroplan Elite Status members to earn double Status Qualifying Credits (SQC) on eligible flights between Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport and four U.S. destinations.

The offer is valid for new bookings made by April 30, 2026, for travel completed by August 31, 2026.

What’s the offer?

For this promotion, eligible members will earn:

• 4 SQC per $1 spent on eligible base fares and carrier-imposed surcharges
• An additional 4 SQC per $1 spent as a bonus

In other words, you are effectively earning 8 SQC per $1 spent on eligible flights. There is also a cap of 5,000 bonus SQC per member under this offer.

Eligible fares and booking rules

This offer is only valid on new bookings made during the offer period, and only on eligible fares booked directly with Air Canada.

The eligible fare types for this promotion are:

• Economy Flex
• Comfort
• Latitude
• Business Class Lowest
• Business Class Flexible

Economy Basic, Economy Standard, Aeroplan Flight Rewards, Points + Cash bookings, and Unlimited Flight Pass purchases are not eligible.

Only Air Canada operated flights qualify, including Air Canada Rouge and Air Canada Express services. Codeshare flights, partner airlines, and interline itineraries are excluded.

A key point here is that the booking must be new during the offer period. If you change an existing booking, even if the travel dates fall within the travel window, it will not qualify as a new eligible booking.

Example: How the SQC earning works

Air Canada provides a fairly clear example of how this plays out in practice. If you book and travel on a round trip between LaGuardia (LGA) and Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (YTZ) in Economy Flex, with base fare and carrier-imposed surcharges totaling $500:

• You would earn 2,000 standard SQC
• Plus 2,000 bonus SQC
• For a total of 4,000 SQC on that trip

You would then still have the opportunity to earn up to an additional 3,000 bonus SQC under the promotion before reaching the 5,000 SQC bonus cap per member.

Eligible routes

This offer is only valid on select transborder routes from Billy Bishop Airport (YTZ):

• Chicago (ORD)
• Washington (IAD)
• Boston (BOS)
• New York LaGuardia (LGA)

With U.S. preclearance now available at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, these routes have become noticeably more convenient than they used to be, especially for frequent cross-border travellers.

Who is this for?

This is a targeted offer, which means it will only show up for selected Aeroplan Elite Status members who receive the email invitation. If you do not already have Aeroplan Elite Status, you will not see this offer.

Realistically, this is most useful for:

• People requalifying for status
• Travellers who are close to the next tier
• Anyone who already flies these Billy Bishop transborder routes regularly

If you are not based in Toronto or do not use these routes, this one is probably easy to ignore.

My thoughts

This is an exciting development, and it is great to see Air Canada follow through on something they hinted at when the new Aeroplan status program launched last year. At the time, Air Canada alluded to the fact that they would be offering promotions similar to the old Double SQM offers. Now we’re getting our first real glimpse of what that looks like under the new program.

That said, it is fairly narrow in scope. It is limited to Billy Bishop Airport and just four U.S. routes, so it will naturally appeal most to Toronto-based travellers who already fly these corridors regularly.

Still, the good news is that U.S. pre-clearance is now available at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, making these routes more convenient than ever. If you have been on the fence about trying them, this could be the perfect time to try.

If you want a deeper breakdown of how SQC earning works and all the different ways to accumulate Aeroplan status, you can check out our guide: How to Earn Aeroplan Status: A Complete SQC Guide.

Bottom line

This is a solid targeted offer if you are eligible and already fly to the eligible US destinations from Toronto. For everyone else, it is more of a “nice to know” than something worth changing your travel plans for.

As always, check your email to see if you have been targeted before booking.