TAP Portugal's Status Match: A Realistic Look at Star Alliance Gold

TAP Air Portugal's Miles&Go programme continues to offer one of the most straightforward routes to Star Alliance Gold status through their status match offer. For UK-based travellers with British Airways status, this presents a compelling opportunity to access Star Alliance benefits – including lounge access on carriers like Lufthansa, United, and Air Canada.

TAP Portugal will match elite status from a range of airline loyalty programmes to their Miles&Go programme, granting you equivalent Star Alliance status. The offer is managed through StatusMatch.com and is available to members from select European countries (excluding Portugal), with the UK being eligible.

For British Airways Executive Club members, the matches available are:

The real win here is for BA Silver, Gold, and Gold Guest List members who all receive Star Alliance Gold status for €199. This makes it particularly attractive if you're sitting at BA Silver (600 tier points) or have recently achieved BA Gold – you're getting the same Star Alliance benefits regardless of whether you hold Silver or Gold with BA.

The €49 (Silver) or €199 (Gold) fee includes:

The 2x Status Miles booster is a nice touch – it means any TAP flights you take in the first month after approval will earn double status miles, helping you work towards extending your status beyond the initial 12 months.

Holding Star Alliance Gold status opens up benefits beyond what your British Airways status provides. Whilst BA Gold gets you into oneworld lounges, Star Alliance Gold grants you:

This is particularly valuable if you fly routes where Star Alliance carriers are stronger than oneworld. For example, travelling to Germany, Switzerland, Austria with Lufthansa Group airlines can be significantly enhanced with Star Alliance Gold status.

The application process is managed through StatusMatch.com and works as follows:

1. Join TAP Miles&Go if you're not already a member (it's free) 2. Visit the TAP status match page 3. Select your country of residence (UK is eligible) 4. Upload proof of your British Airways status (a photo of your Executive Club card showing name, membership number, and status level) 5. You may be asked to complete identity verification using your passport or driving licence 6. Pay the applicable fee (€49 for Silver, €199 for Gold) 7. Wait up to 3 days for approval notification, then up to 10 business days for status to appear in your account

Once approved, you'll receive an email from TAP Miles&Go with details on maximising your new status. Download the TAP Miles&Go app to access your digital membership card displaying your status.

Your matched status is valid for 12 months from approval. To extend beyond the initial year, you'll need to meet these requirements:

These are the standard TAP Miles&Go requalification requirements – there's no reduced threshold for status matched members. This is significantly different from some previous iterations of the programme, so it's important to factor in whether you'll realistically be able to maintain the status beyond the first year.

That said, status miles can be earned on any Star Alliance carrier when credited to your TAP Miles&Go account, not just on TAP flights. So if you fly Lufthansa, United, or other Star Alliance carriers regularly, you can work towards these thresholds across the alliance.

At €199 (approximately £170) for Gold status, this is a more significant investment than some other status match offers. Whether it's worth it depends on your travel patterns and how much value you'll extract from Star Alliance Gold benefits.

Consider this worthwhile if you:

A single return business class flight to the US on United or Lufthansa could easily provide £170+ worth of value through lounge access, priority boarding, and extra baggage alone. If you're making multiple trips on Star Alliance carriers, the value proposition becomes even stronger.

However, if your travel is predominantly on British Airways and other oneworld carriers, or you rarely fly Star Alliance routes, the £170 investment might not be justified. Similarly, if you're unlikely to earn the 70,000 status miles or fly 50 TAP segments to extend beyond the first year, factor that into your decision.

There are several things to bear in mind before applying:

Firstly, matched members do not receive the 'Free Gold Status for a friend' benefit that regular TAP Miles&Go Gold members enjoy. All other benefits are included, but this particular perk remains exclusive to those who earned status through flying.

Secondly, this offer is only available to residents of select European countries (excluding Portugal). The UK is eligible, which is good news for British Airways status holders.

Thirdly, the offer is available on a first-come, first-served basis with limited spots, and may end at any time at TAP's discretion. If you're interested, it's worth acting sooner rather than later.

Finally, for BA Bronze members, the match to Star Alliance Silver (€49) might not offer enough value. Star Alliance Silver doesn't include alliance-wide lounge access, which limits the benefits compared to Gold status. Unless you specifically need the priority boarding and extra baggage on Star Alliance carriers, this might not be worth the investment.

As someone with BA Gold status, I can see both sides of this offer. At €199, it's a more substantial investment than some other status matches we've seen, but the value is definitely there if you fly Star Alliance carriers with any regularity.

The real sweet spot is for frequent flyers who genuinely split their travel between oneworld and Star Alliance. If you're flying Lufthansa to Germany, United to the US, or other Star Alliance carriers alongside your BA flights, having Gold status with both alliances provides excellent coverage and flexibility.

I'm less convinced it makes sense for occasional travellers or those whose trips are heavily weighted towards oneworld carriers. At £170, you need to extract real value from the status to justify the cost – and that typically means multiple trips on Star Alliance carriers where you'll use lounges, priority services, and extra baggage allowance.

For BA Silver members, this is particularly interesting. You're paying the same €199 as BA Gold members but potentially getting more relative value since you don't already have top-tier status with oneworld. The question is whether your travel patterns justify having Star Alliance Gold when you're only at mid-tier with BA.

One consideration I'd flag: think carefully about whether you can maintain the status beyond 12 months. Earning 70,000 status miles or flying 50 TAP segments is a fairly high bar. If you're planning significant Star Alliance travel anyway, great – but if not, you're essentially paying £170 for one year of benefits, which changes the value calculation.

It's worth noting that TAP's status match has evolved over time. Previous versions of this offer were available for around €99-109 and included reduced requalification requirements. The current version at €199 with standard requalification thresholds represents a different proposition.

That said, it remains one of the more accessible routes to Star Alliance Gold for UK travellers. Other options include status challenges with airlines like Air Canada or Turkish Airlines, but these typically require significant flying within a short timeframe. The TAP match gives you immediate status with no flying requirement for the first year.

If you're actively working on your BA status, you might also want to explore our guide on maximising tier points or learn more about BA Silver benefits to see if it's worth pursuing different status levels.

TAP Portugal's status match remains a viable route to Star Alliance Gold for UK travellers, though at €199 it requires careful consideration of whether you'll extract sufficient value. For frequent flyers who regularly use Star Alliance carriers, this can provide excellent coverage alongside your BA status. For occasional travellers or those primarily flying oneworld, it may be harder to justify.

The key question to ask yourself: will you make enough Star Alliance trips in the next 12 months to benefit from £170+ worth of lounge access, priority services, and extra baggage? If yes, this is a straightforward way to gain top-tier status. If no, you might be better keeping that £170 in your pocket.

Remember that this offer is available on a limited, first-come basis and could end at any time, so if you're genuinely interested, don't delay the decision too long.

Have you taken advantage of TAP's status match? I'd be interested to hear whether you found it worthwhile!

Safe travels,

Jack