Nobody has announced an end to the Starlink referral program. If SpaceX did end it, the US terms say it would have to give 30 days’ notice, and that an ending “for its convenience” means it shall pay both eligible and pending referrals. A change to the program or the reward also needs 30 days’ notice, and referrals already pending when that notice is given keep the old terms during the notice period. The exception is a referrer removed for fraud, abuse or a breach of the terms: then SpaceX owes nothing more, including for pending referrals.
This guide sets out the four scenarios the terms cover, the exact clauses, what stays in your control, and the gaps in the text.
First: nothing has been announced
As of our Oct 5, 2026 check, the US Referral Program Terms were last published on Oct 3, 2026, and Starlink’s help center still describes the program, including the reward and the free month for the new customer. Our changelog records every dated change we can source. If a notice of change or ending appears, it will be logged there first.
This page exists because owners ask what would happen, and because the answer depends on which of four quite different events it is.
The four scenarios
1. SpaceX changes the program or the reward
This is the most likely kind of change, and it has happened before; why old posts still describe a different program traces the earlier version. The clause:
“SpaceX may terminate, cancel, suspend, or modify the Program or these Referral Terms (including the Reward set forth in Schedule A) at any time in its sole discretion, with 30 days prior notice to Referrer. For Pending Referrals as of the date of this notice, the terms of unmodified Referral Terms shall apply during the notice period. For referrals submitted after the date of this notice, SpaceX may apply the modified Referral Terms to such referrals. Continued participation in the Program following such notice constitutes acceptance of these modified terms.”
In plain words: SpaceX can change or end the program, or the reward, with 30 days' notice, and referrals already pending when a change is announced keep the old terms during the notice period. Referrals made after the notice can be judged by the new terms. If you keep sharing after a notice, you’ve accepted the new version.
One subtlety: the terms also say the reward details live in Schedule A, which “SpaceX may update … from time to time without amending the body of these Referral Terms.” That doesn’t remove the 30-day notice for changing the reward, which the clause above names explicitly, but it means a change to the amount could appear in Schedule A alone, not in the main text.
2. SpaceX ends the whole program for convenience
The termination clause and its “effect” clause work together:
“SpaceX may terminate the Program, any Referrer’s participation in the Program or Referrer’s eligibility for cash Rewards (except for Rewards associated with Pending Referrals), at any time for its convenience with 30 days prior notice.”
“If SpaceX terminates the Program or Referrer’s participation in the Program for its convenience, SpaceX shall pay Eligible Referrals and Pending Referrals.”
So an ending for convenience comes with 30 days’ notice, and the terms promise payment of both matured and pending referrals. That’s a stronger protection than many owners assume.
What the text doesn’t say is whether a pending referral still has to complete its two billing cycles before it’s paid. Our reading is that it probably does: the minimum-stay rule is part of what makes a referral payable, and “pay Pending Referrals” most naturally means paying them on their normal path. But that’s our reading, not a stated rule.
3. SpaceX ends your participation, or your cash option, for convenience
The same clauses cover one referrer, not just the whole program: SpaceX can end any referrer's participation, or their cash option, for convenience with 30 days' notice. The parenthetical “except for Rewards associated with Pending Referrals” and the effect clause both point the same way: pending referrals are still paid. If only your cash option ends, our reading is that future rewards would arrive as credit, since rewards arrive as service credit unless you choose cash.
4. SpaceX removes you for fraud, abuse or a breach
This is the one scenario with no safety net:
“Upon such SpaceX termination for fraud or abuse of the Program or violation of these Referral Terms, SpaceX will have no further obligation to issue any Rewards, including for Pending Referrals, unless required by applicable law.”
Add to that a reward can be limited, delayed or revoked, even after it's issued, for fraud, abuse or a terms violation, and breaking a sharing rule can mean disqualification and forfeiting pending or issued rewards. No notice period is mentioned for this kind of removal. The sharing rules list what counts as a breach.
What stays in your control
Whatever SpaceX does, one rule on your side cancels pending referrals immediately: if the referrer cancels, is suspended, or drops to Standby only, all pending referrals are cancelled. So in every scenario above, a pending referral only survives if you keep at least one high-speed plan until it matures. If you hear of a change and decide to leave Starlink, wait until your pending referrals have matured. Pausing or cancelling your own plan has the timing.
The same goes for the new customer. A program ending doesn’t change their side: they still need to stay two full billing cycles for the referral to mature.
How you’d hear about it
The terms set the channel:
“The Referrer consents to receive all notices, updates, and other communications related to the Program by electronic delivery, including by email or by posting in the SpaceX Customer Portal.”
So a notice could be an email or simply a message in your account. Keep your account email current and check your account’s Referrals area now and then. We re-read the terms and the help center regularly; a dated entry in the changelog and a news post would follow any change we can confirm.
A note for readers outside the US
The terms include a different rule for some referrers in Europe, where the law requires it: there, SpaceX may modify the terms only with the referrer’s consent. This site covers the US terms only.
How a change has looked before
The program has already changed once in ways we can date. The version in Starlink’s help center in December 2023 gave both people a service credit; today the new customer gets a free month on the second bill and the sender gets a reward set in Schedule A. The press reported the switch to cash for US referrers in late August 2026, and the new customer’s minimum stay went from one month to two. Our changelog lays out each change with its source and date, and labels which ones come from press reports rather than Starlink’s own text.
What we can’t see is how those changes were announced to referrers at the time, or whether a 30-day notice was sent. The current notice rule is in the terms published on Oct 3, 2026; we don’t have an archived copy of an earlier version of the terms to compare. That’s one reason we treat any future notice as the start of a clock, and log it the day we can confirm it.
Common mistakes
- Treating a rumour as a notice. Only a notice from SpaceX starts the 30-day clock. Press reports and forum posts don’t.
- Cancelling Starlink when you hear about a change. Your own cancellation cancels every pending referral, which a program change wouldn’t.
- Assuming “ended” means “unpaid”. An ending for convenience comes with a promise to pay eligible and pending referrals.
- Assuming a breach is treated the same way. It isn’t: removal for abuse ends all further rewards.
- Sharing after a notice without reading it. Continued participation accepts the new terms.
What we don’t know
As of our Oct 5, 2026 check, the terms don’t state:
- Whether pending referrals must still complete two billing cycles to be paid after an ending for convenience (our reading: probably yes).
- How a notice would be worded or where exactly it would appear in your account.
- Whether a notice would be sent to every referrer or only to those with pending referrals.
- What happens to unused service credit if the program ends; the terms don’t address it.
What to do next
- Want the dated history? See the changelog.
- Have referrals pending? Read what a pending referral means.
- Worried about the cash option? The August 2026 cash report, checked explains what’s confirmed.
- New to referring? Start with the owner’s guide.
