Weekly News Roundup: Jul 20 - Jul 26, 2026

This is a historical roundup for 20–26 July 2026. The booking and activation offers below have expired. I have used the terms and reports published for that week; check current program rules before you make a new booking or transfer.

Virgin Australia Holidays offered double Status Credits

On 20 July, Virgin Australia opened a sale that included double Velocity Status Credits on the eligible flight part of a Virgin Australia Holidays flight and hotel package. The booking window was 20–27 July 2026, for travel from 25 August 2026 to 22 June 2027. The booking offer has expired, even though some eligible travel dates fall later.

The Virgin Australia announcement and terms limit the bonus to eligible domestic, short haul international and Trans-Tasman Virgin Australia flights in a Holidays package booked through Hopper. Each traveller needed a valid Velocity number on the booking by check-in. Cancelled or unflown bookings earned no Status Credits. Australian Frequent Flyer explained why the package flight earn table could make the offer useful for a member seeking status.

I would compare the full package price and the Status Credits for the actual route. The double rate alone says nothing about the value of the hotel or the cost of the trip.

NAB-issued rewards cards faced October cuts

On 21 July, Finder reported changes to NAB-issued Virgin Money and MyCard rewards cards, due to take effect on 1 October 2026. That date has passed. For the tracked Virgin Australia Velocity High Flyer Card, Virgin Money's fee schedule now shows a $349 annual fee, up from $329. Its Velocity earn table shows 0.75 point per $1 of eligible spend up to $5,000 per statement period, then 0.25 point per $1. Finder recorded the earlier rates as 1 point per $1 up to $8,000, then 0.5 point per $1. On $10,000 of eligible spend in one statement period, that is 9,000 points before versus 5,000 after the change.

MyCard's own change notice gives another example: a $100 gift card moved from 20,900 to 33,770 MyCard Rewards Points. MyCard also said it would add points once to eligible existing balances, with the amount dependent on the card held. The higher redemption price alone therefore does not measure the effect on an existing balance.

Velocity members reported trouble after Qatar reward flight cancellations

On 24 July, Australian Frequent Flyer reported that some members whose Qatar Airways flights were booked with Velocity Points and then cancelled had been offered a points and taxes refund when no replacement reward seat was available. Its report included member accounts and a response from Virgin Australia, which cited limited operating schedules and cabin availability. This was a reported disruption to affected bookings, not a change to every Velocity reward ticket.

The practical point for a member with an affected booking was to check the flight's status and contact Velocity about available alternatives before accepting a refund. The July report did not establish that every cancelled flight could be rebooked or that a replacement seat would be available.

KrisFlyer restricted some award searches

During the week, Singapore Airlines added safeguards that stopped some KrisFlyer accounts with low mile balances from using its normal online award search. In a statement to The MileLion on 24 July, the airline confirmed the restriction and said affected members could contact it for help. Australian Frequent Flyer also covered the change on 24 July.

Singapore Airlines did not publish an exact balance threshold. For Australians who planned to transfer bank points only after finding a seat, the restriction made the search step harder. I would confirm a useful redemption path before moving flexible points into KrisFlyer solely to enable a search.

A targeted NAB offer had a 22 July activation deadline

NAB's July terms set 22 July 2026 as the activation deadline for selected existing cardholders offered bonus Qantas Points or NAB Rewards Points on eligible international purchases. The activation deadline has expired; the spend period also ended on 8 September 2026.

These were targeted offers, not a public bonus for every NAB cardholder. The required spend and bonus depended on the email sent to each selected customer, and NAB's terms stated a 3.5% international transaction fee. Without that personal offer and the fee in the calculation, I cannot put a reliable points value on it.