MGM Grand: History, Ownership, Market Position, and Guest Experience

1. What Is MGM Grand?

MGM Grand is a casino and integrated-resort hotel name owned by MGM Resorts International. Its origins reach back to the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino opened by Kirk Kerkorian in Las Vegas in 1973. That original hotel later became Bally’s and is now Horseshoe Las Vegas. The present MGM Grand Las Vegas, which opened in 1993 on the former Marina Hotel site, is a separate property that inherited and expanded the name.

The brand operates in the full-service casino-resort segment. Its properties combine hotel accommodation with gaming, dining, entertainment, nightlife, wellness, pools, meetings, conventions, and special events. The flagship Las Vegas resort is particularly large and offers multiple accommodation tiers, from conventional rooms to luxury suites and private hospitality enclaves.

MGM Grand is not an extensive international chain with hundreds of standardized hotels. Its current identity is centered primarily on MGM Grand Las Vegas and MGM Grand Detroit, supported by MGM Resorts’ distribution, loyalty, casino, and entertainment systems. The resulting proposition is broad rather than narrowly specialized: guests can use an MGM Grand property as a leisure resort, casino destination, event venue, conference hotel, or base for exploring its surrounding city.

2. MGM Grand at a Glance

Hotel brand name: MGM Grand

Hotel family: MGM Resorts International

Brand type: Casino hotel and integrated-resort marque

Founded: 1973, based on the opening of the original MGM Grand Hotel and Casino

Founder: Kirk Kerkorian, through the business organization that developed the original resort

Place founded: Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

Modern flagship: MGM Grand Las Vegas, opened in 1993 at a different site from the original hotel

Current headquarters: MGM Grand has no separately disclosed brand headquarters; parent company MGM Resorts International is based in Las Vegas

Current ownership: The MGM Grand name is controlled within MGM Resorts International. Individual resort real estate may be owned by outside property companies and leased to MGM Resorts

Industry segment: Full-service casino resorts, integrated resorts, and convention hotels

Market position: Large-scale, entertainment-led hospitality with broad leisure, gaming, group, and premium demand

Typical property types: Urban casino resorts and destination casino hotels

Geographic focus: United States, particularly Las Vegas and Detroit

Primary guest segments: Leisure travelers, gaming customers, convention delegates, event attendees, groups, couples, and premium-suite guests

Core guest proposition: Accommodation combined with gaming, dining, entertainment, recreation, and event infrastructure

Loyalty program: MGM Rewards, with additional Marriott Bonvoy participation at eligible MGM Collection properties under applicable terms

Operating model: MGM Resorts operates the hotels, while the underlying real estate can be separately owned

Current status: Active

Official website: MGM Grand official hotel website

3. What Hotel Family Does MGM Grand Belong To?

MGM Grand is part of MGM Resorts International, a hospitality and entertainment company whose portfolio includes casino resorts, luxury hotels, regional gaming properties, entertainment venues, restaurants, and digital gaming interests. MGM Grand sits within the parent portfolio as a large, gaming-centered resort marque rather than as MGM Resorts’ most exclusive hotel offering.

The portfolio relationship matters because MGM Grand draws on shared systems for reservations, marketing, entertainment, casino operations, customer data, and loyalty. MGM Rewards members can earn and redeem rewards under program rules across participating MGM Resorts destinations. Eligible stays may also receive Marriott Bonvoy benefits through the MGM Collection with Marriott Bonvoy partnership, although benefits depend on the property, booking channel, membership status, and current program terms.

Brand ownership should not be confused with ownership of the hotel buildings. MGM Resorts controls and operates the MGM Grand hospitality business, but real estate structures have changed as the company adopted an asset-light strategy. VICI Properties owns the real estate associated with MGM Grand Las Vegas and MGM Grand Detroit following sale and leaseback transactions. MGM Resorts remains the hotel and casino operator under long-term lease arrangements.

This means a guest experiences MGM Grand as an MGM Resorts operation even when another company owns the land and buildings. The property owner receives rent and manages its real-estate investment, while MGM Resorts manages rooms, casinos, employees, food and beverage, entertainment, marketing, and guest service. MGM Grand is therefore neither an independent hotel collection nor primarily a third-party franchise system.

4. Who Founded MGM Grand, and How Did It Begin?

MGM Grand was founded by Kirk Kerkorian, an investor whose businesses included airlines, hotels, casinos, and the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film company. Kerkorian had already developed the International Hotel in Las Vegas before opening the original MGM Grand Hotel and Casino on December 5, 1973.

The first MGM Grand stood at the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Flamingo Road, not at the location occupied by today’s MGM Grand Las Vegas. Its name connected a large casino hotel with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s film identity. Movie-inspired interiors, entertainment, and a theatrical sense of scale supported that association.

The original property was conceived during a period when Las Vegas, Nevada was expanding from a gaming destination into a broader resort and entertainment market. At opening, the hotel contained more than 2,000 rooms and was widely described as one of the largest hotels of its time. Its size demonstrated the commercial potential of combining rooms, gaming, shows, restaurants, and convention demand in one complex.

The relationship between that property and the modern brand requires an important distinction. The 1973 hotel established the MGM Grand name, but it was sold and renamed Bally’s in 1986. Kerkorian later developed a new MGM Grand on another Las Vegas site, opening it in 1993. The current flagship carries forward the name and entertainment emphasis, but it is not the original building.

5. What Is the History of MGM Grand?

1973: The original MGM Grand opens. Kirk Kerkorian opened the original MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. The resort combined a large hotel, casino, restaurants, and entertainment in a format that anticipated the increasing scale of Las Vegas resort development.

1980: A fatal fire transforms hotel safety. A fire at the original MGM Grand on November 21, 1980, killed 85 people. The disaster led to intense scrutiny of fire protection, evacuation, smoke control, and building codes in casino hotels. The resort reopened after repairs, but the event remained a defining chapter in the property’s history and influenced safety regulation well beyond MGM Grand.

1986: The original hotel is sold. Bally Manufacturing acquired the original MGM Grand and renamed it Bally’s Las Vegas. The MGM Grand name consequently became separated from the first building. That property is now Horseshoe Las Vegas following another later rebranding.

1989 to 1993: A new MGM Grand is developed. Kerkorian’s MGM Grand organization acquired the Marina Hotel and surrounding land near Tropicana Avenue. The Marina closed, and the site was incorporated into a much larger resort development. The present MGM Grand Las Vegas opened on December 18, 1993 with more than 5,000 rooms, a casino, extensive entertainment, and an adjoining theme park.

The 1993 resort initially used a strong movie-studio and family-entertainment theme. It had an emerald exterior, an entrance shaped like a lion, Wizard of Oz references, and the MGM Grand Adventures theme park. At opening, it represented an effort to combine gaming with attractions intended to broaden the Las Vegas visitor base.

Late 1990s and early 2000s: The resort moves away from overt theming. MGM Grand replaced the lion-shaped entrance, introduced a large bronze lion statue, and gradually reduced the property’s movie-theme elements. MGM Grand Adventures closed, and the former theme-park land was redeveloped or repurposed. The transition reflected a broader Las Vegas shift toward restaurants, nightlife, adult entertainment, conventions, and more contemporary resort design.

2000: The parent company becomes MGM Mirage. MGM Grand, Inc. acquired Mirage Resorts, creating a larger casino-resort portfolio that included properties such as Bellagio, The Mirage, and Treasure Island. The company adopted the MGM Mirage name. In 2010, it became MGM Resorts International, reflecting a broader hospitality and entertainment identity.

2005 to 2007: Entertainment and accommodation expand. Cirque du Soleil’s KÀ opened at MGM Grand Las Vegas in 2005. The Signature at MGM Grand, a set of non-gaming all-suite towers connected to the main resort, opened in phases during 2006 and 2007. These additions allowed MGM Grand to serve guests seeking either direct casino-resort access or a quieter residential-style environment.

2007: MGM Grand Detroit opens its permanent resort. MGM had operated a temporary Detroit casino since 1999. Its permanent downtown complex opened in October 2007, combining a casino with a hotel, restaurants, spa, meeting space, and entertainment. This extended the MGM Grand name beyond Las Vegas in a major United States regional gaming market.

2010s to the present: Renovation, asset-light ownership, and loyalty integration. MGM Grand Las Vegas completed major room renovations and continued updating restaurants, entertainment, nightlife, and meeting facilities. MGM Resorts also sold significant real estate while retaining resort operations through leases. More recently, MGM Grand became part of the MGM Collection with Marriott Bonvoy, adding another distribution and loyalty channel while remaining an MGM Resorts operation.

6. What Industry Segment Does MGM Grand Occupy?

MGM Grand belongs principally to the integrated-resort and casino-hotel segment. An integrated resort combines lodging with several major demand generators, usually including a casino, entertainment, restaurants, bars, retail, recreation, and meeting facilities. The objective is to encourage guests to spend a substantial part of their trip within one resort complex.

Within conventional hotel terminology, MGM Grand is also a large full-service hotel. Full-service properties offer more than rooms and limited breakfast. They typically provide multiple restaurants, bars, room service or in-room dining, concierge functions, pools, fitness or spa services, and significant meeting and event space.

MGM Grand should not automatically be described as an ultra-luxury brand. Its flagship accommodates a broad market through a wide range of room types and price points. Standard rooms, large convention blocks, casino offers, entertainment packages, premium suites, Skylofts, and the private Mansion serve materially different customer needs. Luxury is present within the accommodation hierarchy, but exclusivity is not the defining characteristic of the entire resort.

Individual properties can also receive property-level star or diamond ratings, but those classifications are not the same as the brand’s industry segment. Ratings assess a particular hotel under a particular system. Segment classification instead describes how MGM Grand operates and competes. The most accurate overall description is a large-scale, full-service casino and entertainment resort with premium and luxury components.

7. How Is MGM Grand Positioned in the Market?

MGM Grand is positioned as a high-capacity entertainment resort capable of serving many guest segments simultaneously. The flagship Las Vegas property is designed to attract casino customers, leisure tourists, show audiences, sports spectators, conference delegates, nightlife visitors, and guests seeking premium accommodation. Scale and variety are central to the proposition.

Functionally, guests are offered convenience through concentration. They can stay, dine, gamble, attend a show, visit a pool, hold a meeting, and participate in nightlife without leaving the complex. This can be particularly relevant in Las Vegas, where resort selection often depends on the combination of room price, location, entertainment, gaming, restaurants, and loyalty benefits rather than on accommodation alone.

The brand balances accessibility and premium experiences. MGM Grand Las Vegas sells a large inventory of mainstream rooms, but it also offers suites and more private accommodation products. This tiered structure enables the resort to address mass leisure and group demand while still serving guests who value space, privacy, or personalized service.

MGM Grand’s identity is more energetic and activity-oriented than intimate. Its competitive context includes other major Las Vegas integrated resorts, large convention hotels, and regional casino destinations. Compared with small luxury hotels, MGM Grand provides greater on-site variety but less inherent seclusion. Compared with limited-service hotels, it provides many more entertainment, dining, and event functions, usually with a more complex and potentially higher-cost resort experience.

The MGM Resorts network adds another element to its position. MGM Rewards can influence selection among travelers who already gamble, attend events, or stay across participating MGM properties. Marriott Bonvoy participation also broadens distribution to travelers who use a global hotel loyalty ecosystem. These networks do not change MGM Grand’s ownership, but they can improve visibility and provide additional reasons to book through eligible channels.

8. Where Does MGM Grand Operate?

MGM Grand is a United States-centered marque. Its current operating identity is concentrated in two major properties: MGM Grand Las Vegas in Nevada and MGM Grand Detroit in Michigan. This is a much narrower footprint than that of MGM Resorts International as a whole.

Las Vegas: MGM Grand Las Vegas is the flagship and the property most travelers associate with the name. It occupies a prominent site on the south-central Las Vegas Strip near major sports, entertainment, and convention infrastructure. Its scale, room inventory, casino, arena, theaters, pools, restaurants, and meeting facilities make it a destination resort as well as a base for visiting the wider city.

Detroit: MGM Grand Detroit is an urban regional casino resort serving customers from Detroit, Michigan, and neighboring markets. Its hotel is much smaller than the Las Vegas flagship, but the property follows the integrated model by combining gaming, rooms, dining, wellness, and event facilities. Regional casino demand is a more important part of its business than destination tourism alone.

The MGM Grand name has appeared in other markets historically. MGM Grand Macau, for example, became MGM Macau, while MGM Grand Ho Tram in Vietnam was rebranded after MGM’s management relationship ended. These historical uses should not be counted as current MGM Grand properties.

MGM Resorts operates more widely across the United States and has international interests, but a parent-company presence does not automatically represent an MGM Grand location. Similarly, announced MGM Resorts developments should not be treated as MGM Grand pipeline hotels unless the company specifically assigns the MGM Grand name.

9. What Does MGM Grand Provide?

Accommodation

MGM Grand properties provide full-service hotel rooms and suites. MGM Grand Las Vegas has a particularly broad inventory that includes standard rooms, larger suites, wellness-oriented room categories when available, and high-end products such as Skylofts and the Mansion. The connected Signature at MGM Grand offers residential-style suites in non-gaming towers. MGM Grand Detroit provides a smaller, more conventional casino-hotel inventory.

Gaming

Casinos are central to the operating model. Offerings typically include slot machines, table games, and higher-limit gaming areas, subject to local regulation and property configuration. Gaming floors, rewards programs, and casino-host relationships are important parts of customer acquisition and retention. Exact games and operating hours can change.

Dining and beverages

MGM Grand resorts contain multiple restaurants, bars, lounges, and casual dining options. The Las Vegas property has historically combined chef-associated restaurants, steakhouses, international concepts, quick-service venues, and nightlife. Detroit’s selection is smaller and tailored to its regional resort scale. Restaurants change more frequently than the hotel brand, so no single venue should be assumed to be permanent or brand-wide.

Entertainment and nightlife

The Las Vegas flagship provides major theater productions, comedy, concerts, nightlife, and sporting events. The MGM Grand Garden Arena is an important venue for concerts, boxing, mixed martial arts, and other live events. Individual productions and residencies change over time. Detroit offers entertainment and events at a smaller scale.

Wellness, pools, and recreation

Property-dependent amenities include swimming pools, spa treatments, salons, and fitness facilities. MGM Grand Las Vegas operates an extensive seasonal pool complex and has offered adult pool and daylife experiences. These resort-style amenities should not be generalized to every MGM Grand property, particularly because climate, regulation, and site size differ.

Meetings and events

Convention and group business is a major component of MGM Grand Las Vegas. The resort provides ballrooms, meeting rooms, exhibition areas, catering, production support, and access to a very large guest-room inventory. MGM Grand Detroit can host business meetings, social events, and weddings, but at a smaller scale.

Guest and digital services

Common services include front-desk assistance, housekeeping, concierge support, transportation coordination, valet or self-parking options, mobile account functions, and digital access through MGM Resorts systems. Some services incur additional charges. Resort fees, parking policies, check-in options, and loyalty benefits vary by property and booking terms.

10. Why Do Guests Choose MGM Grand?

1. A large concentration of activities

One reason travelers may choose MGM Grand is the ability to combine accommodation, gaming, restaurants, shows, nightlife, pools, and events in one complex. This is particularly relevant to leisure travelers who prefer a resort with multiple options and to groups whose members have different interests.

2. Access to major entertainment

MGM Grand Las Vegas hosts theatrical productions, comedians, concerts, boxing, and other arena events. Staying at the resort can reduce transportation requirements for guests attending an on-site performance. Entertainment travelers may therefore select the hotel based on a particular event rather than on the room product alone.

3. Convention and group capacity

The flagship’s extensive room inventory and meeting facilities allow large groups to sleep, meet, dine, and attend functions at one property. Corporate planners, trade associations, incentive organizers, and event producers may value this operational convenience, especially when moving participants between several venues would add cost and complexity.

4. A range of accommodation tiers

MGM Grand can serve travelers with different budgets and service expectations within the same resort environment. Standard rooms support mainstream leisure and convention demand, while suites, Skylofts, and the Mansion address guests seeking more space, privacy, or assistance. The Signature adds a quieter suite option connected to the resort.

5. Gaming and rewards relationships

Casino customers may choose MGM Grand because of gaming preferences, hosted offers, account history, or MGM Rewards benefits. Loyalty can be especially influential when customers use several MGM Resorts properties. Eligible Marriott Bonvoy participation may also matter to travelers who want recognition or points within that program.

6. Las Vegas Strip location

The Las Vegas resort offers access to the Strip, nearby entertainment venues, and transportation connections. Location can appeal to first-time visitors who want a recognizable base and to repeat visitors attending events in the surrounding area. Detroit offers a different benefit: an integrated urban casino resort within a major regional market.

7. Choice within a single stay

MGM Grand’s size supports multiple dining, entertainment, and recreation formats. Guests who value variety may find this more practical than a smaller hotel with limited facilities. The trade-off is that large resorts can involve longer walking distances, busier public areas, and more operational complexity than intimate hotels.

11. Who Does MGM Grand Serve?

Leisure and entertainment travelers

This segment includes couples, friends, first-time Las Vegas visitors, weekend travelers, and people attending shows or sporting events. They are generally drawn by the combination of accommodation and entertainment rather than by the hotel room alone. Pools, restaurants, nightlife, and access to the wider destination are particularly relevant.

Gaming customers

Casino guests range from occasional leisure players to frequent customers with established gaming histories. Their needs may include rewards, promotional offers, casino-host service, preferred games, and convenient access between rooms and the gaming floor. In Detroit, regional gaming demand is especially important.

Convention, corporate, and group travelers

MGM Grand Las Vegas serves conferences, exhibitions, corporate meetings, incentive groups, and social events. These customers value large room blocks, event production, catering, flexible meeting space, and after-hours entertainment. Individual delegates may be business travelers during the day and leisure consumers after scheduled sessions.

Premium and privacy-oriented guests

Guests booking large suites, Skylofts, or the Mansion may seek more space, privacy, transportation support, and individualized service while retaining access to a large resort. This segment has different expectations from the customer buying a standard room, even though both stay within the MGM Grand environment.

Loyalty-oriented travelers

MGM Rewards members may select the resort to earn or use eligible benefits and maintain a relationship across MGM Resorts destinations. Marriott Bonvoy members form an additional audience where the MGM Collection partnership applies. Program affiliation can influence booking, but benefits are governed by specific terms rather than guaranteed equally on every stay.

12. What Defines the MGM Grand Guest Experience?

The MGM Grand experience is defined primarily by activity, scale, and choice. At the Las Vegas flagship, arrival introduces guests to a large resort environment in which the casino, hotel towers, restaurants, theaters, meeting facilities, and pools form interconnected zones. Navigation and walking distance are meaningful parts of the experience.

Service varies by accommodation tier and purpose of stay. Standard-room guests encounter a high-volume resort operation with digital and staffed service channels. Premium-suite guests may receive more personalized arrival, concierge, transportation, or butler-style assistance depending on the product booked. MGM Rewards status and casino relationships can add another layer of recognition.

Public spaces are designed to support continuous activity. Gaming, dining, entertainment, and nightlife produce a more energetic atmosphere than would be expected at a secluded resort or small boutique hotel. MGM Grand Detroit follows the same broad casino-resort logic, but its smaller hotel and regional-market role create a different sense of scale.

The brand has also evolved away from the heavily themed presentation used in 1993. Contemporary MGM Grand emphasizes live entertainment, food and beverage, events, and flexible hospitality products more than film-set imagery. The lion symbol remains closely associated with the name, but the guest proposition no longer depends on a literal movie-studio theme.

Not every experience is brand-wide. The Las Vegas arena, Cirque du Soleil production, large pool complex, Signature towers, Skylofts, and Mansion are specific to the flagship. MGM Grand should therefore be understood through recurring characteristics such as gaming, entertainment, and full-service hospitality, with individual properties determining the exact expression.

13. What Distinguishes MGM Grand from Other Hotel Brands?

Integrated scale: MGM Grand Las Vegas combines thousands of rooms with a major casino, arena, theaters, extensive meeting facilities, pools, restaurants, and nightlife. The number of functions accommodated within one resort distinguishes it from conventional full-service hotels.

Entertainment as a core demand generator: Live productions, comedy, concerts, combat sports, and special events are not simply secondary amenities. They help generate stays, restaurant visits, and casino traffic. Guests may choose MGM Grand specifically because an event is taking place there.

Multiple service tiers in one property: MGM Grand does not require every guest to buy the same level of experience. Standard rooms, suites, residential-style Signature units, Skylofts, and the Mansion provide materially different combinations of space, privacy, and service.

A compact brand with a widely recognized flagship: MGM Grand has far fewer properties than many hotel chains, yet its Las Vegas resort gives the name substantial visibility. Recognition should not be confused with a broad geographic footprint. The brand is concentrated rather than globally distributed.

Connection to a larger resort ecosystem: MGM Rewards, MGM Resorts distribution, shared entertainment capabilities, and the Marriott Bonvoy relationship can make the brand more useful to repeat travelers than a stand-alone casino hotel. At the same time, MGM Grand retains a distinct, large-scale identity within the parent portfolio.

14. How Should MGM Grand Be Understood Today?

What remains central

MGM Grand continues to represent the large integrated-resort model pioneered by its original Las Vegas namesake. Gaming, hotel accommodation, entertainment, dining, and group facilities remain central. The brand is designed to capture several types of demand at once rather than specialize exclusively in luxury, conventions, gaming, or leisure.

What has changed

The MGM Grand concept has moved far beyond its original film-studio theme. The current flagship gradually removed overt movie attractions and redirected investment toward live entertainment, restaurants, nightlife, upgraded rooms, premium accommodation, and meetings. The parent company also evolved from MGM Grand, Inc. to MGM Mirage and then MGM Resorts International.

Ownership structures changed as well. MGM Resorts now operates important properties under leases from a specialized real-estate owner. Loyalty distribution has expanded through MGM Rewards and the MGM Collection with Marriott Bonvoy. These developments reflect a broader strategy that emphasizes resort operations, customer relationships, entertainment, and brand management over direct ownership of every building.

What the brand name signals today

As an analytical interpretation, the MGM Grand name signals scale, energy, gaming, and a wide range of on-site choices. It does not consistently signal a small, quiet, or uniformly luxury environment. Instead, it communicates a resort platform in which mainstream rooms, major events, mass-market entertainment, and premium private products can coexist.

Important limitations

MGM Grand should not be treated as synonymous with MGM Resorts International. The parent operates many properties under other names. Nor should the brand be described as a large global chain. Its present footprint is concentrated in the United States, and its reputation is driven disproportionately by MGM Grand Las Vegas. Differences between Las Vegas and Detroit also mean the exact guest experience cannot be inferred from the name alone.

15. Frequently Asked Questions

When was MGM Grand founded?

MGM Grand traces its founding to December 5, 1973, when the original MGM Grand Hotel and Casino opened in Las Vegas. The current MGM Grand Las Vegas is a different property that opened at another site on December 18, 1993.

Who founded MGM Grand?

Investor Kirk Kerkorian founded MGM Grand through the business organization that developed the original hotel. Kerkorian’s ownership of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer provided the name and helped shape the first resort’s movie-associated identity.

Who owns MGM Grand?

MGM Grand is part of MGM Resorts International. The operating company controls the hotel brand and runs its resorts. VICI Properties owns the real estate associated with MGM Grand Las Vegas and MGM Grand Detroit, which MGM Resorts operates under lease agreements.

Is MGM Grand a luxury hotel brand?

MGM Grand is more accurately classified as a large full-service casino and integrated-resort marque with premium and luxury components. It offers luxury suites and private accommodation, but its overall proposition also includes mainstream rooms, convention groups, gaming customers, and mass-market entertainment.

Where does MGM Grand operate?

The current MGM Grand footprint is concentrated in the United States. Its principal properties are MGM Grand Las Vegas in Nevada and MGM Grand Detroit in Michigan. Historical international properties that once used the name should not be counted as current locations.

What does MGM Grand provide?

MGM Grand properties combine hotel rooms and suites with casinos, restaurants, bars, entertainment, wellness facilities, and meeting space. MGM Grand Las Vegas also provides a major arena, theatrical productions, extensive pools, nightlife, and several distinct premium accommodation products.

Why do travelers choose MGM Grand?

Travelers may choose MGM Grand for its concentration of entertainment, gaming, dining, recreation, and convention facilities. Other decision factors include its Las Vegas Strip location, range of room tiers, event calendar, and participation in MGM Rewards and eligible Marriott Bonvoy programs.

Does MGM Grand participate in a loyalty program?

Yes. MGM Grand participates in MGM Rewards, the loyalty program of MGM Resorts International. Eligible properties and bookings can also participate in Marriott Bonvoy through the MGM Collection relationship. Earning, redemption, status recognition, and other benefits depend on current program rules.