Folks in the rest of the world are often shocked to learn that Qantas actually charges Australians to join its frequent flyer program.

Now, the easiest way around this is to use an address elsewhere, I joined Qantas Frequent Flyer for free here in the U.S. Or credit your miles to American if you can (e.g. if most of your miles are from flying, and if you aren’t going to fly enough where upgrades are an issue), American has a more generous premium class long-haul award chart for sure.

But this Flyertalk thread points out that you can save the AUD$85 joining fee by signing up through Woolworths Everyday Rewards.