How much UEC does the Referral Rewards program give in 2026?

50,000 UEC of in-game currency for the new recruit. This amount was upgraded from 5,000 UEC during the July 2025 program overhaul. The bonus credits once the new account completes a qualifying Game Package purchase ($40 USD or more) and is on top of any UEC included in the Game Package itself (Starter Packs include 10,000 UEC, so the total starting wallet with referral is typically 60,000 UEC).

What are Recruitment Points in Star Citizen?

Recruitment Points are the referrer-side currency in RSI's Referral Rewards program. The player who shared a working referral code earns one Recruitment Point each time one of their recruits completes a Game Package purchase of $40 USD or more. Points accumulate on the referrer's account and unlock rewards from the official ladder at fixed tier thresholds (1, 2, 5, 10, 25, 42, 50, 100, 200, 500, 1042 recruits).

What does the Star Citizen referral ladder give the referrer?

Current 2026 ladder rewards for the referrer: 1 recruit = CDS GCD-Army Medium Armor; 2 = VOLT Quartz SMG; 5 = VOLT Parallax Assault Rifle; 10 = Big Benny's Vending Machine; 25 = Enemy of the Empire Statue; 42 = Aegis Gladius Dunlevy (flyable ship); 50 = MISC Raptor (flyable ship); 100 = Freelancer MAX plus paints; 200 = Esperia Stinger (flyable ship); 500 = Captured Vanduul Scythe (flyable ship); 1,042 = Idris-M (capital ship). Tiers updated 2 July 2025.

Does the referral bonus stack with the package UEC?

Yes. The 50,000 UEC referral bonus is paid separately from any UEC included in the Game Package purchase. For example, a Citizen Starter Pack at $60 includes 10,000 UEC by default. With STAR-JTV7-FXLR applied, the new account gets 10,000 (package) + 50,000 (referral) = 60,000 UEC total on the wallet once the purchase clears.

What is the Legacy referral ladder in Star Citizen?

The Legacy ladder is the older referral reward structure that ran before the July 2 2025 program overhaul. RSI preserved Legacy progress for existing referrers: if you had referred at least one player before that date, you can still access the Legacy ladder through Account Settings. New referrals after July 2025 count toward both the Legacy and the new ladder, meaning long-time referrers earn on both tracks at the same time. New players who joined RSI as referrers after July 2025 have access only to the new ladder.

Can I refer myself with a second Star Citizen account?

No. RSI's Referral Rewards program detects self-referrals through shared payment methods, IP addresses, device fingerprints, and account-creation patterns. Accounts flagged for self-referral lose any Recruitment Points retroactively and risk being banned. The program requires the recruit to be a genuinely different person on a separate account with a separate payment method.

RSI Referral Program · 2026

The Star Citizen Referral Rewards program, end to end

Q: What is the Star Citizen Referral Rewards program?

The Star Citizen Referral Rewards program is RSI's official two-sided incentive system. A new player who creates an RSI account using a working referral code (such as STAR-JTV7-FXLR) receives 50,000 UEC of in-game currency once they complete a Game Package purchase of $40 USD or more. The player who shared the code earns one Recruitment Point on the official ladder, which unlocks rewards from cosmetic gear at low tiers up to capital ships at the highest tier.

RSI's Referral Rewards program is the official two-sided incentive system that gives new players 50,000 UEC of in-game currency and gives the player who shared the code one Recruitment Point on a ladder that goes from a cosmetic armor set at tier 1 all the way to a capital ship at 1,042 recruits. Here's how every piece of it actually works in 2026.

By Domux · Updated 19 May 2026

The two sides at a glance

New recruit gets

50,000 UEC

In-game currency credited once a Game Package purchase of $40 USD or more clears on the new account. Pays for a full starter loadout (armor + weapon + supplies) the moment you land in Stanton.

Referrer earns

1 Recruitment Point

One point per qualifying recruit. Points accumulate on the referrer's RSI account and unlock rewards at 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, 42, 50, 100, 200, 500 and 1,042 recruits.

How the program works step by step

Existing player shares their code. Every RSI account holder who has bought a Game Package can find their personal STAR-XXXX-XXXX code at robertsspaceindustries.com/en/referral-program.
New player enters the code at signup. The Referral Rewards field on the RSI enlist page accepts a single STAR-XXXX-XXXX code. The field also exists inside Account Settings for accounts under 24 hours old.
New player buys a Game Package of $40 USD or more. The qualifying purchase triggers both sides of the bonus. Cheapest qualifying Game Package is the Citizen Starter Pack at $60.
50,000 UEC credits to the new account. Usually within minutes, sometimes a few hours during peak event windows.
One Recruitment Point credits to the referrer. The referrer's ladder progress updates on their RSI dashboard.

The Recruitment Points ladder (referrer rewards)

These are the official 2026 reward tiers for the referrer side, restructured during the July 2 2025 overhaul. Rewards unlock once you reach each threshold; you keep them permanently on your RSI account.

Recruits	Reward	Type
1	CDS GCD-Army Medium Armor Set	Cosmetic gear
2	VOLT Quartz "GCD-Army" SMG	Cosmetic weapon
5	VOLT Parallax "GCD-Army" Assault Rifle	Cosmetic weapon
10	Big Benny's "Classic" Vending Machine	Hangar decoration
25	Enemy of the Empire Statue	Hangar decoration
42	Aegis Gladius Dunlevy	Flyable ship (light fighter)
50	MISC Raptor	Flyable ship
100	Freelancer MAX + "Big Brands" Paints	Flyable ship + cosmetics
200	Esperia Stinger	Flyable ship
500	Captured Vanduul Scythe	Flyable ship (alien)
1,042	Idris-M	Capital ship

Source: official RSI referral program. Tiers updated 2 July 2025.

What the July 2025 overhaul actually changed

On 2 July 2025, RSI shipped a major Referral Rewards rework. Three real changes affect both sides:

New-player bonus increased from 5,000 UEC to 50,000 UEC. Tenfold. This is the biggest direct change for someone using a referral code in 2026.
Referrer ladder tiers were restructured. Pre-2025 the Gladius was unlocked at 10 recruits. Post-2025 it requires 42 recruits. The Idris-M tier moved correspondingly higher.
Counters were reset. Referrer point totals reset at the program overhaul. The Legacy ladder preserves earned rewards from before the reset.

The user-facing dashboard at robertsspaceindustries.com/en/referral-program was also redesigned around the new structure.

The Legacy ladder (for pre-2025 referrers)

RSI did not erase pre-2025 referral progress. If you referred at least one player before 2 July 2025, you can still access your Legacy ladder progress through your account settings. Critically, new referrals after the overhaul count toward both the Legacy and the new ladder simultaneously, meaning long-time referrers earn on two tracks at once.

If you joined RSI as a referrer after July 2025, you only have access to the new (post-overhaul) ladder. No backfill, no Legacy progress.

The rules nobody reads carefully

$40 minimum is checked, every time

The new recruit must complete a Game Package purchase of at least $40 USD for the bonus to trigger. Discounted bundles, gift codes, and any package under $40 do not qualify. Every standard Starter Pack ($60+) clears this comfortably, so the rule mainly bites on stacked promotional bundles.

24 hour window to attach the code

The Referral Rewards field on the RSI signup form must be filled in at account creation, or added through Account Settings within exactly 24 hours of account creation. After that the field disappears, and RSI support does not manually re-open it. The clock starts when you click Enlist Now on your RSI account, not when you buy the Game Package.

Self-referral is detected and disqualified

RSI's program flags self-referrals via shared payment methods, IP addresses, device fingerprints, and rapid account-creation patterns. Flagged accounts lose Recruitment Points retroactively and risk being banned. The program requires the recruit to be a genuinely different person on a different account.

Periodic bonus events

RSI occasionally runs limited-time Referral Bonus events that boost or modify the standard program:

Ship Showdown referral bonuses: themed bonuses tied to RSI's annual Ship Showdown event in spring.
Alpha patch referral bonus weeks: time-limited boost periods around major alpha patches (3.9, 3.12, etc were past examples).
IAE Referral promotions: in November, during the IAE event, RSI sometimes adds limited cosmetics on top of the standard 50,000 UEC.

The base 50,000 UEC bonus is always active. Bonus-event extras stack on top when they are running.

How to use the program if you're brand new

Open robertsspaceindustries.com/enlist (the orange button below pre-fills the code).
Fill in your account details.
Paste STAR-JTV7-FXLR in the Referral Rewards field at the bottom of the form.
Tick Terms and click Enlist Now.
Buy a Game Package of $40+ (cheapest is the Citizen Starter Pack at $60).
50,000 UEC credits to your account once the purchase clears.

If you forgot the code at signup, you have 24 hours to add it inside Account Settings under Referral Rewards. See the signup walkthrough for screenshots of the exact field location.

After you buy a Game Package, your personal STAR-XXXX-XXXX code appears at robertsspaceindustries.com/en/referral-program. Share it with people who genuinely want to try the game. Best places:

RSI Spectrum referral-exchange sub-forums (designed for this exact purpose).
Reddit's r/starcitizenreferrals sub (link with context, not spam).
Friends and gaming circles where SC is on-topic.
Your own personal site or social channels, with honest framing about how the bonus works.

Don't spam

RSI's program flags pattern abuse, but more importantly so do Reddit, YouTube and Google. Mass posting your code in unrelated subreddits or YouTube comments gets your account flagged and your code attached to a spam signal that follows you. One genuine recommendation in the right place beats fifty drive-by posts.

50,000 UEC for you. One Recruitment Point for the maintainer of this page. Same package price either way.

STAR-JTV7-FXLR Use code at RSI signup

FAQ

What is the Star Citizen Referral Rewards program?

RSI's official two-sided incentive system. New player gets 50,000 UEC on signup; referrer earns one Recruitment Point toward a reward ladder that goes from cosmetic gear up to a capital ship at 1,042 recruits.

How much UEC does the program give in 2026?

50,000 UEC for the new recruit. Upgraded from 5,000 UEC during the July 2025 overhaul. Credits once a Game Package purchase of $40+ clears. Stacks on top of any UEC included in the Game Package (Starter Packs include 10,000 UEC, so total starting wallet with referral is usually 60,000 UEC).

What are Recruitment Points?

The referrer-side currency. One point per qualifying recruit. Points unlock ladder rewards at fixed thresholds (1, 2, 5, 10, 25, 42, 50, 100, 200, 500, 1,042).

What does the referral ladder give the referrer?

Cosmetic armor and weapons at low tiers, hangar decorations at mid tiers, flyable ships from the Gladius at 42 recruits up to the Idris-M capital ship at 1,042. Full ladder table is above this FAQ.

Does the bonus stack with the package UEC?

Yes. Package UEC and referral UEC are separate credits. A Citizen Starter Pack ($60) with the referral code gives you 10,000 (package) + 50,000 (referral) = 60,000 UEC total.

What is the Legacy referral ladder?

The pre-July-2025 reward structure. Referrers who earned at least one recruit before 2 July 2025 keep access to Legacy progress through Account Settings. New referrals after July 2025 count on both the Legacy and the new ladder for those long-time referrers.

Can I refer myself with a second account?

No. RSI detects shared payment methods, IPs, device fingerprints, and account creation patterns. Self-referrals are disqualified retroactively and risk a ban.