An experienced points hacker, Erin is Alex’s partner-in-crime and contributes to Upgraded Points with in-depth guides and relationship management. Erin’s work has been cited in multiple major publicat...
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![Airline Cancellation and Change Fees for Award Flight Bookings [In-Depth]](https://upgradedpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Airline-Change-and-Cancellation-Fees.jpg?auto=webp&disable=upscale&width=1420&height=650&fit=crop)
47 comments
Jacob
April 07, 2019
I believe the Turkish Air information was replaced with Thai airways information copy pasted twice…. please verify.
Erin Miller
April 07, 2019
Hi Jacob – looks like you’re right. Thanks for the heads up! We’ll get to updating this ASAP! 🙂
Michele
April 18, 2020
Hi! For Virgin Atlantic would I be able to redeposit my reward miles for a flight that was booked prior to February 2020 due to COVID-19? I can not find any info on redepositing reward miles on their website, only info about rebooking. My flight is coming up soon but I do not want to rebook for travel, just redeposit points instead. Thank you so much!
Stephen Au
April 20, 2020
Hi Michele,
You should be able to get these miles re-deposited for no fee. However, if you aren’t, the cost to re-deposit these miles would be up to $50 per person.
You can offset that $50 per person by using the airline incidental credit from cards like the Amex Platinum.
Simon Suo
April 22, 2019
China Eastern Int’l flights
Refund: Not possible.
Date Change: Free
Destination: Not possible.
Exclusions: If it’s the airline’s problem, free refund.
Close-in booking fee: None.
Awards: Eastern Miles.
Alliance: Skyteam
Catherine Luther
April 23, 2019
Hi Simon,
Thanks for your comment on China Eastern. We’ve verified fee information and have added a section for China Eastern within the article.
Laura Payne
April 23, 2019
If I booked an award through United but on Thai Airways and EVA Air and I want to cancel and redeposit the miles, is it just the United fees I would have to pay? Or will I have to pay the fees with Thai and EVA also? I have an award booking flying out of Sri Lanka and I’m reconsidering going there. Thanks!
Stephen Au
April 24, 2019
Hey Laura,
You’ll only have to pay cancellation fees for United.
With any award booking, you’ll pay cancellation fees with the frequent flyer program you booked with and NOT the airlines you’re actually flying on.
Thanks for reading!
JB
October 21, 2019
Is ANA info correct? I think there is a 3000 miles fee for award cancellation.
Stephen Au
October 21, 2019
Hi JB,
Yes, it’s correct. If you want, please visit the link on ANA’s website here:
https://www.ana.co.jp/en/us/amc/reference/tukau/award/tk/refund.html
It says “Mileage for Refund Charge
3,000 miles per customer
Taxes and fees for unused awards will be refunded.”
Thanks for reading!
JB
October 22, 2019
So there IS a fee, right? (3000 miles) I don’t think the post reflects that… unless I’m blind.
Stephen Au
October 22, 2019
Hi JB,
You bring up a great point. We were mostly tackling this from a cash fee perspective, but we’ve now updated the post to reflect that. Thanks for the feedback!
Chrystal
November 23, 2019
I’m in a pickle right now. I booked a round trip ticket, first flight ever, with United. I need to change the destination airport from Newark to LaGuardia. No date changes, they can change any times but I really just need to fly to LaGuardia instead of Newark. I am a Mileage Plus member and disabled veteran. How can I do this without paying a gazillion $? I know it’s $200 but I can’t afford that. I’m going to celebrate my daughter graduating from NYU and celebrate New Years. What can I do ? Reservation was made back in September and it’s non-refundable. I didn’t know anything when I made reservation, I just went online and made one. Can anyone help?
Christine Krzyszton
November 24, 2019
Hello Chrystal and thank you for your service. Have you tried calling United reservations? (1-800-864-8331) If there have been any major changes in the flight schedule, they may waive a change fee. It’s a remote possibility but you could explain to them your situation and ask if they could waive it. Alternately, you can look up the cost of transit from Newark to your destination on Rome2rio, it may not be that much. It may also be possible to go standby on a flight to LGA the same day as your Newark ticket. You can ask at the airport. Good luck.
leopoldo gonzalez
February 05, 2020
Where is the frontier waiver for the elite 20k members? I can’t find anything online that shows the 75 dollar redeposit fee is waived for elite 20k members.
Catherine Luther
February 11, 2020
Hi Leopoldo,
This article needed an update as this does not seem to valid anymore. Thanks for highlighting this, the article has been updated.
Edith
February 15, 2020
Hello, I wonder if we have an Aeromexico flight (classic fare) with 3 segments from Mexico to Europe (1 domestic in Mexico, 1 transatlantic, and 1 European) and want to change the date of the flight (and the time of the first segment), do we have to pay 1 fee for each segment (thus 3 fees i.e. 1 domestic + 2 international) or 1 fee for the journey (i.e. 1 international). Where did you find the tariff for the fee ?
Catherine Luther
February 16, 2020
Hi Edith,
Airlines usually charge change fees per segment. It looks the Aeromexico fees could do with an update. You can find the applicable fees here by selecting the routing from the dropdown and then selecting your fare type.
Richard
February 24, 2020
Does the date change fee on United apply to every change on the same ticket?
I need to delay my United partner flights to a later date due to the coronavirus. If I need to change it again later do I need to pay the change fees again?
Catherine Luther
February 25, 2020
Hi Richard,
Change fees usually do apply to each segment of a journey. You would be best to contact United who will be able to give you all of the information you require.
John
March 08, 2020
Qantas details are not correct. Change fee is 5000 points. Cancellation is 6000 points.
Jarrod West
March 08, 2020
Hi John,
Thanks for pointing that out. I’ve updated the post!
Nan
March 12, 2020
If I cancel my Virgin Atlantic award which charged me $327.83 in taxes and surcharges, will they refund that amount minus the $50 and redeposit the miles?
Christine Krzyszton
March 12, 2020
Hi Nan. Airlines are waiving fees and adding flexibility due to the current situation. You may be able to receive a refund without a redeposit fee if your itinerary qualifies. Here is Virgin Atlantic’s current temporary policy: https://flywith.virginatlantic.com/gb/en/news.html?intcmp=homepage_no_change_fee#nofee
Nan
March 14, 2020
Thank you Christine.
John
July 22, 2020
Hello everyone. I’ve just confirmed that, despite AA’s website, there will be a reinstatement fee for award travel that takes place next year, according to the normal fee schedule (so $150 for regular members, not $0 as the website states).
Thanks
MICHAEL H
October 11, 2020
This information isn’t much help
How do I cancel a LifeMiles ticket?
Customer service never answers and their is no way to do this online.
Jarrod West
October 13, 2020
Hi Michael,
Unfortunately, at this time, the only way to cancel a LifeMiles ticket is by calling their customer service team at 1-800-284-2622.
Ray
October 19, 2020
I am trying to cancel an Iberia Avios redemption on American Airlines due to the hotel not re-opening in light of COVID-19. They told me they cannot change or cancel (even for a fee) unless one of the flights in my segment is changed or canceled. Essentially, if nothing is changed by the airlines themself, they are telling me I will lose the Avios and the money paid in taxes. Does anyone have experience with this? Any other options?
Stephen Au
October 21, 2020
Hi Ray,
Thanks for reading. I’m sorry you’re experiencing this.
Unfortunately, the airlines aren’t liable for the closures of hotels that they otherwise do not interact with.
As a result, the airlines must levy a change/cancellation fee.
You can cancel your ticket and pay a cancellation fee to get your Avios credited back to your account, as well as any taxes and fees your paid.
Ray
October 22, 2020
Stephen – From what Iberia tells me, that is not true when booking an award ticket on AA metal. There are no refunds and no changes – Even for a fee. Their FAQ shows this, “For partner products and services purchased with Avios, refunds must be processed directly with the partner in question and will depend on their returns policy.” It’s as clear as mud. Even during COVID, trying multiple different agents over the phone, and contacting them via email, they all say the same thing – There is nothing they can do unless American airlines delays, changes, or cancels one of the flights in my segment. Naturally calling AA, they directed me back to Iberia. Since I imagine a good amount of readers use Iberia Avios on AA metal, seems this should be something that is highlighted. I am pretty desperate to try and retain my money and Avios so if anyone has found any sort of success in my situation, please share.
Ray G
October 21, 2020
Iberia will not refund an award ticket on AA metal. Has anyone had any luck with getting them to refund points and/or taxes in the past? Please help!
PlanMoreTrips
June 10, 2021
FYI you might be able to save $200 for LifeMimes cancellation if you use the following trick. I tried to set a pin online but their site is horrible and it wasn’t working. I called LifeMIles and selected the option for website support and explained to them that the website wasn’t allowing me to set a pin so I couldn’t cancel my ticket. They said they are “updating the site” (even though this has been happening for the last week). I gave the agent the record locator, and she said she could cancel it without my pin, she just had to check with the supervisor. She canceled it and I didn’t have to pay any extra fees. Didn’t even provide my credit card. Miles will be returned in 2 weeks and credit card refund will take 5 months. I suggest anyone trying to cancel, first try their web support and explain the above situation. It might save you $200.
Sammi
October 18, 2021
I believe there are no cancellation fees for partner award tickets cancellation in Alaska Airlines.
ODB
March 15, 2022
Does this mean for Air France I can change to another award flight (same route, different date) without paying the miles difference? Or simply that the change fees are waived?
Jarrod West
March 15, 2022
Hi ODB,
Only the change fees would be waived, you would still have to pay any price difference.
Mike
February 04, 2023
For British Airways, “$25 ticketing fee for all award flights booked (online and phone) regardless of the date”? There is no fee for online booking per https://www.britishairways.com/en-us/executive-club/spending-avios/booking-and-service-fees
BTW, what is your source for its close-in booking fee?
Jarrod West
February 16, 2023
Hi Mike,
Thanks for pointing that out, I’ve just corrected the post.
Luis
March 17, 2023
Hello,
Please note the information for Turkish Airlines is incorrect. The change and cancellation fee for International award tickets is $70, not $7.
Jarrod West
March 17, 2023
Hi Luis,
I’m not seeing that figure stated on the Turkish Airlines website, would you mind sharing where you found that?
Sharon
March 29, 2023
Hi! I’ve been running into an issue with booking United tickets via Turkish. I am very stressed as the passenger name on the generated United Airlines confirmation page is formatted as Lastname/FirstnameTitle, eg Smith/JohnMr. Clearly the Mr would not be an actual part of the name, but for whatever reason the Turkish agents say that it cannot be removed because the title is required. Do your reservations look like this? Does it give you any trouble when flying? Thank you!
Chris Hassan
March 30, 2023
Hi Sharon,
This is relatively common and has happened to me multiple times. I have never had an issue.
Chris
Maifriend
May 01, 2023
I booked in 01/2023 and cancelled in 02/2023 Air France award flights from LAS to AMS and wasn’t charged any fees. The miles were re-deposited into my account as well as the fees and taxes.
Michelle
June 21, 2023
Hi, I think it would be helpful to list if the airline has a 24 hour cooling off period where no cancellation fee would apply.
Jarrod West
June 22, 2023
Hi Michelle,
Per the DOT, all airlines must offer a 24 hour period in which you can cancel your ticket with no penalty so long as it is at least 7 days or more from departure.
Mike
July 02, 2023
Hi, in the above you have, for United, “$125 redeposit fee for no shows, regardless of elite status”.What is the source of this info?
Christine Krzyszton
July 02, 2023
Hi Mike. It is listed on the United website. Effective January 1, 2023, there is $125 redeposit fee for no shows. There is no fee for redepositing miles when canceling a flight. https://www.united.com/ual/en/us/fly/mileageplus/awards/travel/ticketing.html
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