Award Ticket Change, Cancellation, and Hold Policies for 25+ Airlines!

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Folks in the miles & points hobby are usually diligent about planning their travels.  But sometimes life happens and you have to change or cancel your plans.

In that case, what are the fees for changing an award ticket?  And do any airlines allow you to hold an award reservation while you firm up your plans?

To help y’all out, I made a chart that shows the award ticket fees and policies for over 25 domestic and international airlines!

Let’s take a look!

Award Flight Change Fees

Using miles & points for Big Travel with Small Money is one of my favorite things, next to eating.  But if you need to change or cancel your award ticket, the fees can add up fast.

The good news is, certain airlines charge less (or nothing at all!) for award ticket changes.  So it helps to choose wisely when deciding which miles or points to use.

Here’s a chart showing award flight change fees for popular US airlines:

Airline	Date Change Fee	Destination Change Fee	Refund / Redeposit Fee	Close In Booking Fee	Exclusions	Hold Policy
Alaska Airlines	• 60+ days before departure: FREE • Less than 60 days before departure: $125	• 60+ days before departure: FREE • Less than 60 days before departure: $125	• 60+ days before departure: FREE • Less than 60 days before departure: $125	NONE	MVP Gold and Gold 75K members are exempt from award change and redeposit fees	No holds allowed
American Airlines	• FREE as long as the origin and destination remain the same	$150	$150 for the 1st passenger and $25 for each additional passenger on the same reservation	Less than 21 days before departure: $75	• Executive Platinum members are exempt from all award ticket fees • Gold and higher elites pay no close in booking fees	• Up to 5 days for flights 15 to 330 days before departure • Up to 1 day for flights 1 to 14 days before departure • Up to 2 hours before departure for flights within 1 day of departure
Delta	$150	$150	$150, must be done 72+ hours before departure	NONE	Platinum and Diamond elites are exempt from fees	No holds allowed
Frontier	•8+ days before departure: FREE •Less than 8 days before departure: $99	•8+ days before departure: FREE •Less than 8 days before departure: $99	$75	NONE	NONE	No holds allowed
Hawaiian Airlines	$50 OR $30 for inter-island flights	$50 OR $30 for inter-island flights	$150 OR $30 for inter-island flights	NONE	Platinum elites exempt from inter-island change fees	No holds allowed
JetBlue	• 60+ days before departure: $70 for Blue, $60 for Blue Plus, and $0 for Blue Flex Fares • Less than 60 days before departure: $70 to $120 depending on the cost of the ticket	• 60+ days before departure: $70 for Blue, $60 for Blue Plus, and $0 for Blue Flex Fares • Less than 60 days before departure: $70 to $120 depending on the cost of the ticket	• 60+ days before departure: $70 for Blue, $60 for Blue Plus, and $0 for Blue Flex Fares • Less than 60 days before departure: $70 to $120 depending on the cost of the ticket	NONE	Mosaic members exempt from all fees	No holds allowed
Southwest	NONE	NONE	NONE	NONE	N/A	No holds allowed
Spirit	$110	$110	$110	• 21 to 179 before departure: $15 • 7 to 20 days before departure: $75 • 6 or fewer days before departure: $100	NONE	No holds allowed
United Airlines	• 61+ days before departure: $75 general members, $50 Silver elites, $25 Gold elites • 60 days or less before departure: $125 general members, $100 Silver elites, $75 Gold elites, $50 Platinum elites	• 61+ days before departure: $75 general members, $50 Silver elites, $25 Gold elites • 60 days or less before departure: $125 general members, $100 Silver elites, $75 Gold elites, $50 Platinum elites	• 61+ days before departure: $75 general members, $50 Silver elites, $25 Gold elites • 60 days or less before departure: $125 general members, $100 Silver elites, $75 Gold elites, $50 Platinum elites	Less than 21 days before departure: $75 for general members, $50 for Silver elites, $25 for Gold elites	• 1K and Global Services members exempt from fees • Platinum elites exempt from fees for changes made 61+ days before departure	No holds allowed
Virgin America	$100	$100	$100	NONE	Elevate Gold members exempt from fees	No holds allowed

And here are the fees for popular international airlines:

Airline	Date Change Fee	Destination Change Fee	Refund / Redeposit Fee	Close In Booking Fee	Exclusions	Hold Policy
AeroMexico	$26	$26	$26	NONE	N/A	No holds allowed
Air Canada	$90 CAD (~$67)	$90 CAD (~$67)	$90 CAD (~$67)	NONE	N/A	No holds allowed
Air France / KLM	45 Euros (~$49) but no changes to promo awards	45 Euros (~$49) but no changes to promo awards	45 Euros (~$49) but no changes to promo awards	NONE	Free changes for Flex Awards	48 hour holds
Alitalia	NONE	55 Euros (~$60) or 5,000 miles	• 55 Euros (~$60) or 5,000 miles • Free for flights to or from the US if canceled within 24 hours of booking	NONE	N/A	14 days for awards on Alitalia, partner awards at booking agent's discretion
ANA	NONE	NONE	3,000 miles	NONE	N/A	No holds allowed
Avianca / TACA	$150	$150	$50	$25 ticketing fee for all award tickets	N/A	No holds allowed
British Airways	$55	$55	$55 or the taxes from your ticket, whichever is less	NONE	N/A	No holds allowed
Cathay Pacific	$25 or 1,000 miles	$100 or 10,000 miles	$120 or 12,000 miles	NONE	N/A	No holds allowed
El Al	$60	$50 to $125 depending on when the change is made and flight origin and destination	$60 to $150 depending on when the change is made and flight origin and destination	NONE	N/A	No holds allowed
Emirates	$25	$25	$75	NONE	N/A	No holds allowed
Etihad	1st change free, all other changes AED 100 (~$27)	Not allowed	2,000 miles	NONE	N/A	24 hour holds EXCEPT for partner awards
Iberia	• 25 Euros (if fees paid in Euros), otherwise $40 • $40 (if fees paid in USD)	• 25 Euros (if fees paid in Euros), otherwise $40 • $40 (if fees paid in USD)	• 25 Euros (if fees paid in Euros), otherwise $40 • $40 (if fees paid in USD)	NONE	N/A	No holds allowed
Japan Airlines (JAL)	NONE but changes must be made 4+ days before departure online or 1+ days before departure over the phone	Not allowed	3,100 miles or 3,100 Yen (~$29), must be made 15+ minutes before departure	NONE	N/A	No holds allowed
Korean Air	NONE	NONE	NONE unless done 1+ years after the ticket was issued, then 10,000 miles	NONE	N/A	• 5 days for partner awards • 1+ months for Korean Air flights or up to a few days before departure
Lufthansa	50 Euro (~$55)	Not allowed	50 Euro (~$55)	NONE	N/A	Up to 5 days for Lufthansa flights and partner airlines including Swiss, Austrain, Brussels, Croatia Airlines, Asiana, Ethiopain, and Jet Airways
Singapore Air	• FREE for Singapore Air flights • $20 for partner flights • $75 within 24 hours of departure	• $12 for Singapore Air flights online • $20 for Singapore Air flights by phone, $20 for partner flights • $75 within 24 hours of departure	$30, must be done at least 24 hours before departure	NONE	N/A	3 days, though there's no official policy
Virgin Atlantic	$50, must be done at least 24 hours before departure	$50, must be done at least 24 hours before deparutre	$50, must be done at least 24 hours before deparutre	NONE	N/A	24 hour holds allowed

Looking for More Details?

Check out our Award Booking Guides under the “Resources” tab on the main page, where you’ll find information about airline award booking rules, routes, partners, and how to get the most value for your miles.

We have special series dedicated to earning & using miles with popular airlines like American Airlines, British Airways, United Airlines, and more!

Also, consider reading these posts for even more tips & tricks:

• When Is the Best Time to Book Award Flights?
• Is It Better to Book Round-Trip or One-Way Award Flights?
• Don’t Pay Fuel Surcharges, Save Money When You Book Award Tickets
• Cancellation Policies of Major US Airlines & Online Travel Agencies

And these posts for airline-specific information:

• Updated: United Airlines Trick to Save $75 on Close-In Ticketing Fees Still Works
• The Cheap Way to Cancel British Airways Award Tickets!
• When Should You Book Southwest Award Tickets?
• Why Are Fees on 1-Way Delta Award Tickets From Europe Higher Than Round-Trip Tickets From the US?

Bottom Line

To make it easier for folks to track down award ticket change & cancellation policies and fees, I made a handy chart that shows the fees for 25+ US and international airlines, including popular airlines like Delta, United Airlines, Southwest, British Airways, and Emirates.

And for more details about airline award booking rules and how to get the most value for your miles, check out our Award Booking Guides under the “Resources” tab on the main page.  Along with posts about topics like how to save $75 on United Airlines’ close-in ticketing fee and the best time to book Southwest award tickets.

The more you know! 🙂