When it comes to booking award travel, flexibility is your best friend. Being open with your dates and travel preferences enables you to score the lowest award rates while maximizing the value of your points.

However, being flexible isn’t always an option. School holidays, strict vacation dates and other personal and professional limitations often dictate when we can and can’t travel, giving us little wiggle room when it comes time to book flights. Likewise, securing business- and first-class award fares on sought-after routes can be particularly difficult, making it crucial to book as soon as award space is released.

If your travel dates are non-negotiable, you’re best off booking your flight earlier than later. For domestic flights, booking up to a month in advance often scores you the best prices. For long-haul international flights, you’re better off booking anywhere from six to 12 months in advance, depending on when tickets are released.

Before you book any flights, you should make yourself aware of the consequences of changing or cancelling your award fare. Life happens, and the further you book in advance, the greater the chances are that an unforeseen event could prevent you from traveling. Knowing your rights and ticket terms and conditions in advance protects you against the unforeseeable.

So, let’s run through the award ticket cancellation policy of each major airline, for both domestic and international carriers.

Airline passenger checking in at airport counter with staff reviewing ticket and travel documents

Airline Award Ticket Change and Cancellation Rules Compared

Before diving into each airline’s individual award ticket cancellation policy, we’ve compiled an overview of change and cancellation fees for you to use as a quick reference.

Keep in mind that when cancelling or changing an award booking, the policy of the frequent-flyer rewards program that you booked through applies (rather than the policy of the airline operating your flight). For example, if you book an American Airlines flight using British Airways Avios, your ticket will be subject to the policy of British Airways

All U.S. airlines offer a 24-hour cool-off period after booking an award fare in which you can change or cancel your fare without incurring any penalty fees, as long as you book your ticket at least seven days before departure, due to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s regulations. Similarly, international carriers departing to or from the United States are also subject to this rule.

However, while some international carriers may extend this policy for flights to other destinations, the exact policies vary from one carrier to the next, so you’re better off checking with the prospective airline before making a speculative booking.

Additionally, when changing an award fare (such as the date and time of your flight), you’ll always need to pay the difference in the cost between the two fares, assuming your new flight costs more than your original flight, regardless of the airline.

Although the list is not exhaustive, we’ve covered major domestic and international airlines. If in doubt, you should always contact the airline to confirm the terms and conditions of your fare. The change and cancellation policies listed below are current as of 2025 but are subject to change.

Domestic Airline Program Change and Redeposit Policies

Here’s an overview of the change and redeposit fees for major domestic airlines.

Airline programChange feesRedeposit fees (for cancellations)
Alaska Mileage PlanNo fee to change flights.No fee to redeposit airline miles. Saver fares are ineligible for redeposits and can instead be refunded as a 50% travel credit for future use (between 24 hours after booking and up to 14 days before departure).
American AAdvantageNo fee to change flights. No fee to redeposit airline miles.
Delta SkyMilesNo fee to change flights departing from the U.S., Canada or Caribbean, if you hold a main cabin fare or higher. Basic economy fares can’t be changed.No fee to cancel flights departing from the U.S., Canada or Caribbean if you hold a main cabin fare or higher. Basic economy fares can be canceled for a fee in miles that varies based on the origin/route.
Hawaiian AirlinesNo fee to change flights. Main cabin basic fares can’t be changed.No fee to redeposit airline miles. Main cabin basic fares can’t be refunded.
JetBlue TrueBlueNo fee to change flights. Blue basic fares can’t be changed.No fee to redeposit airline miles. Blue basic fares can be canceled for a fee of $100 per person for routes in North America, Central America and the Caribbean, and for $200 per person on all other routes.
Southwest Rapid RewardsNo fee to change flights.No fee to redeposit airline miles.
United MileagePlusNo fee to change flights.No fee to redeposit airline miles. You can have your miles redeposited for a fee of $125 if you miss your flight and don’t cancel it.

International Airline Program Change and Redeposit Policies

Here’s an overview of the change and cancellation fees for major international airlines.

Airline programChange feesRedeposit fees
Air Canada AeroplanNo fee to change economy flex, latitude, flexible premium economy, business and first-class fares. Standard fares incur a change fee of 100 Canadian dollars ($72) per ticket per way.No fee to cancel economy flex, latitude, flexible premium economy, business and first-class fares. Standard fares incur a cancellation fee of 150 Canadian dollars ($108) for online cancellations or 175 Canadian dollars ($126) for call center cancellations.
Air France-KLM Flying BlueFee of 70 euros ($80) to change flights.Fee of 70 euros ($80) to cancel flights and redeposit airline miles.
All Nippon Airways Mileage ClubNo fee to change flights (must be done 96 hours or earlier prior to departure for partner flights; at least 24 hours in advance for ANA-operated flights).Fee of 3,000 miles per person to cancel flights and redeposit airline miles.
Avianca LifeMilesFee between $30 and $100 to change a flight, depending on your fare class. Can be waived with a LifeMiles+ subscription.Fee between $30 and $210 to cancel a flight and redeposit miles, depending on your fare class. Can be waived with a LifeMiles+ subscription.
British Airways Executive ClubFee of $55 or forfeiture of the taxes and fee if less than $55 to change a flight. (Fee may vary based on region.)Fee of $55 or forfeiture of the taxes and fee if less than $55 to cancel a flight and redeposit miles. (Fee may vary based on region.)
Cathay Pacific Asia MilesFee of $50 or 7,500 Asia Miles to change a flight.Fee of $120 or 17,000 Asia Miles to cancel a flight and redeposit miles.
Emirates SkywardsFee of $25 to change a flight (Flex Plus award fares can be changed free of charge).Fee of $75 to cancel a flight (Flex Plus award fares can be canceled free of charge) and redeposit miles.
Etihad GuestFee of $30 to change a flight.If your flight is more than 21 days away, you’ll forfeit 25% of your miles when canceling it. For flights that are between eight and 21 days away, you’ll lose 50% of your miles if you cancel. For flights that are departing in seven days or less, you’ll lose 75% of your miles upon cancellation.
EVA Air Infinity MileageLandsFee of $50 to change a flight. Fee is waived for those with Silver, Gold or Diamond status.Fee of $50 to cancel a flight and redeposit your airline miles. Fee is waived for those with Silver, Gold or Diamond status.
Finnair PlusFee of 50 euros ($57) to change a flight.Fee of 50 euros ($57) to cancel a flight and redeposit your airline miles.
Iberia PlusFee of 25 euros ($28.50) to change a flight. Full-fare economy tickets can be changed for free.Fee of 25 euros ($28.50) to cancel a flight and redeposit your airline miles. Full-fare economy tickets can be canceled for free. Partner award bookings are non-refundable.
Qantas Frequent FlyerFee of 5,000 miles per person or the price of the flight if it’s less than 5,000 miles to change a flight.Fee of 6,000 miles per person or the price of the flight if it’s less than 6,000 miles to cancel a flight and redeposit miles.
Qatar Privilege ClubFee of $25 to change flight more than 24 hours before departure and fee of $100 to change flight between 24 and three hours prior to departure. Gold and Platinum members are exempt from these fees.Fee of $25 to cancel flight and redeposit miles more than 24 hours before departure and fee of $100 to cancel flight between 24 and three hours prior to departure. Gold and Platinum members are exempt from these fees.
Singapore KrisFlyerTo change the route, cabin class, award type or add a stopover on a Singapore Airlines-operated flight, a fee of $25 applies. To change the date of your flight, Saver fare holders will pay $25 while the service is free for Advantage fare holders.
To change the date, route, flight or carrier on partner airlines booked through Singapore KrisFlyer, Saver fare holders pay $50 (this service isn’t available for Advantage fare holders).		Saver fare holders are charged a cancellation fee of $75 while Advantage fare holders are charged $50.
Turkish Miles&SmilesFee of $70 to change international itineraries.Fee of $70 to cancel international itineraries and redeposit miles.
Virgin Atlantic Flying ClubFee of 70 British pounds ($92) to change U.K. departures or $100 for U.S. departures.Fee of 70 British pounds ($92) to cancel U.K. departures or $100 for U.S. departures and redeposit miles.
Frustrated traveler sitting at airport with luggage checking phone for flight updates

Domestic Award Ticket Cancellation Policies

Let’s now look at the award redemption cancellation policy and change fees for each major domestic airline in depth.

Alaska Mileage Plan

Alaska Mileage Plan allows you to change or cancel your award fares without any penalty charges, making it a great program for locking in award fares well in advance.

However, you’ll need to cancel your fare before your flight departs to be eligible for a refund, otherwise your points will be forfeited. If you booked a partner award flight through Alaska, the $12.50 partner award booking fee is non-refundable.

Keep in mind that Saver fares can’t be changed, but you can cancel them for a full refund within 24 hours of booking or cancel them after 24 hours of booking and 14 days or more before departure for a 50% travel credit for future use.

American AAdvantage

American Airlines AAdvantage is another great program for securing award fares early because it doesn’t charge penalty fees if you need to cancel or change your award fare.

Your miles will be refunded to your AAdvantage account at no cost, and any taxes and fees will be refunded to your credit card when you cancel your flight.

Delta SkyMiles

Although the Delta SkyMiles award ticket cancellation policy is more complex than other frequent-flyer programs, you can still change and refund your flight without incurring fees (depending on the ticket you hold).

For domestic and international itineraries originating in the United States, Canada or Caribbean, you can get a full refund if you wish to cancel your flight, as long as you hold a main cabin or higher class of award fare. You can also change your flight without incurring penalty fees.

The exception to this rule is basic economy fares, which are non-refundable and non-changeable. You can cancel basic economy fares only within 24 hours of booking to be eligible for a full refund. Otherwise, a cancellation fee will apply and you’ll receive the difference in the original price you paid for the fare minus the cancellation fee as a credit for future travel (which must be used within one year).

For basic economy award fares, a cancellation fee between 9,900 miles for domestic travel (within the U.S. and Canada) and 19,900 miles for international travel will apply. This fee may also be higher for travel originating outside of the U.S. and Canada, depending on the exact route.

Likewise, any canceled award fare with travel that originates outside of the U.S. or Canada is subject to a redeposit fee of $150.

Hawaiian Airlines

Hawaiian Airlines allows you to cancel or change your award flight free of charge.

As long as you cancel your award ticket before departure, you’ll receive a full refund of your miles. If you want to change the date or route of your award flight, you can do so as long as there’s availability in the same fare class.

The only exception is main cabin basic fares that are non-changeable and non-refundable.

Keep in mind that if you booked an itinerary involving both award tickets and revenue fares, the most restrictive fare rule will apply when canceling or changing your flight. This is important when it comes to flights between Japan and the United States.

The following cancellation fees apply for cash fares between the U.S. and Japan:

Flights from Japan to the United States: 30,000 Japanese yen ($212) for adults and 22,500 yen ($160) for children to cancel before departure.
Flights from North America to Japan: $200 to cancel before departure.
Flights from Hawaii to Japan: $250 to cancel before departure.

JetBlue TrueBlue

JetBlue TrueBlue allows you to cancel or change your flight without charging you extra fees.

That’s unless you change or cancel over the phone, which will incur a $25 fee—so save the money by changing or canceling your booking online instead.

Keep in mind that Blue Basic fares booked with points can’t be changed. You can cancel Blue Basic fares for a fee of $100 per person for routes in North America, Central America and the Caribbean, and for $200 per person on all other routes.

Southwest Rapid Rewards

Southwest Rapid Rewards has one of the simplest cancellation policies for award tickets—not to mention, it’s generous, too.

You can change or cancel your flight up to 10 minutes before departure, regardless of your fare type.

You’ll receive a full refund for cancellations and will be required to pay only the fare difference when changing your ticket.

United MileagePlus

United MileagePlus operates a generous and easy-to-understand award ticket cancellation policy.

You can change or cancel any award fare free of charge, regardless of the type of ticket you hold.

Your United MileagePlus airline miles will be redeposited in your account for cancellations, and in the event of a change, you’ll be required to pay the difference in price only.

If you don’t cancel your flight and miss it, you can have your miles redeposited in your account for a fee of $125.

Passenger standing at baggage claim carousel waiting for luggage at airport

International Award Ticket Cancellation Policies

Here’s a detailed rundown of the award cancellation policy and change fees of each major international carrier.

Air Canada Aeroplan

Despite Air Canada Aeroplan offering some of the most valuable Star Alliance award fares, its award ticket cancellation policy isn’t the friendliest.

For economy flex and latitude, as well as flexible premium economy, business and first-class fares, there’s no fee to change your award ticket.

However, for standard fares across all classes, you’ll be charged 100 Canadian dollars ($70) per ticket per direction to change your fare. That can be expensive if you’ve booked round-trip fares with Air Canada, particularly as you’ll need to pay these change fees in addition to any difference in price between the new and original fares.

When it comes to canceling your flight, economy latitude and flexible premium economy, business and first-class fares can be canceled free of charge. However, if you booked a standard fare in any class, you’ll be charged CA$150 ($105) to cancel your flight online and CA$175 ($122) to cancel through a call center (CA$125 ($88) for economy flex fares).

Keep in mind that all changes and cancellations must be made two hours prior to departure, otherwise you’ll forfeit your miles.

Air France-KLM Flying Blue

The Flying Blue award ticket cancellation policy and the Flying Blue award ticket change fee are exactly the same. Air France-KLM Flying Blue charges a flat rate of 70 euros ($80) to change or redeposit your award fare. This also applies to Promo Rewards.

Keep in mind you’ll need to pay the fare difference in addition to the change fee. To be eligible for a change or redeposit, you’ll need to do it prior to your flight’s check-in deadline.

While the Flying Blue award cancellation fee isn’t cheap, its policy is simple to navigate.

All Nippon Airways Mileage Club

ANA Mileage Club offers some of the most lucrative Star Alliance award rates and a fairly generous change and cancellation policy.

For ANA International Flight Awards, you can change your ticket for free before your original flight departs and up to 24 hours prior to when your new flight departs. For partner award flights booked through ANA, you can change your flight for free up to 96 hours prior to departure of the original flight, otherwise you’ll need to contact ANA.

Keep in mind that you can’t change the airline, passenger, sector, route or service class when changing your ANA award flight booking, and your new flight can’t be more than 355 days later.

If you want to cancel your ANA award flight, you’ll be charged 3,000 miles per person, and your taxes and fees will be refunded to you in addition to your miles. You’ll need to cancel your flight before it departs, otherwise you’ll forfeit your miles.

Avianca LifeMiles

Avianca LifeMiles is another excellent frequent-flyer program for booking Star Alliance award fares. However, it comes with a complex and rather expensive award ticket cancellation policy.

All Avianca fare types booked using miles can be canceled and refunded, but you’ll pay the following cancellation fees, depending on your fare:

Fare typeCancellation fee (in USD)
Basic$100
Light$75
Classic$50
Flex$30
Business$100

Likewise, you can make changes to Avianca award fares, but you’ll be charged the following change fees in addition to any fare differences, depending on your route:

RegionChange fee
Flights within Colombia120,000 Colombian pesos ($28)
Flights within Ecuador$30
International flights within South America$185
International flights in America and flights to Europe$210
Flights from the United Kingdom150 British pounds sterling ($198)
Flights from Europe180 euros ($204)

These high change and cancellation fees mean that you generally want to avoid booking Avianca flights when you’re not certain if you’ll be able to fly on the original dates.

However, if you happen to have a monthly LifeMiles+ subscription, all change and cancellation fees are waived.

British Airways Executive Club

British Airways Executive Club charges different fees for award ticket cancellations and itinerary changes depending on where your point of departure is.

For flights departing from the U.S., a cancellation or change fee of $55 applies. If you cancel or change your flight over the phone, an additional service center fee of $25 applies. You need to change or cancel your flight no later than 24 hours before departure.

However, the good news is that if the taxes and fees on your flight are less than $55, you can choose to forfeit the tax refund instead of paying the cancellation or change fee. That means for U.S.-based itineraries, such as those operated by Oneworld partner American Airlines, changes and cancellations will cost you just $5.60 per person per way.

If you’re an Executive Club Gold member, all cancellation and change fees are waived.

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles has a simple policy when it comes to cancellations. You’ll pay $50 or 7,500 Asia Miles to change a flight and either $120 or 17,000 Asia Miles to cancel a flight.

You’re much better off paying these change and cancellation fees in cash, as you can redeem the required number of miles for a far higher equivalent cash value.

Cathay Pacific will also refund you for unused tickets up to two years after the date of issuance.

Emirates Skywards

Emirates Skywards allows you to change and cancel your award fares, subject to a fee.

To change an award flight, you’ll need to pay a change fee of $25, unless you booked a Flex Plus award fare, in which case it’s free to make changes. Likewise, you’ll pay $75 to cancel a flight and have your miles redeposited into your account, unless it’s a Flex Plus award.

Etihad Guest

Etihad Guest has one of the strictest award ticket cancellation and changes policies of all airlines.

Depending on how close your date of departure is, you’ll lose a varying number of miles when canceling your award fare.

If your flight is more than 21 days away, you’ll forfeit 25% of your miles when canceling it. For flights that are between eight and 21 days away, you’ll lose 50% of your miles if you cancel. And for flights departing within seven days, you’ll lose 75% of your miles upon cancellation. Cancellations made within 24 hours of departure are non-refundable, meaning you’ll lose 100% of your miles.

If you want to change your flight with Etihad, you’ll be charged a fee of $30.

Overall, you should avoid making speculative bookings with Etihad, unless you’re certain that you’ll be able to travel.

EVA Air Infinity MileageLands

EVA Air Infinity MileageLands charges a flat fee of $50 to change or cancel an award fare. You need to cancel or change your flight before it departs, and you’ll need to pay any fare difference in the event of a change.

If you’re a Silver, Gold or Diamond status holder, these fees are waived.

If you don’t show up for your flight, you can still have your miles redeposited in your account, albeit for a no-show fee.

For international long-haul routes, you’ll be charged $150, and for international short-haul routes (excluding Hong Kong and Macau), you’ll be charged $100 to have your miles redeposited. For international short-haul routes to Hong Kong and Macau, you’ll be charged $40.

Finnair Plus

Finnair Plus offers solid Avios redemption rates on a number of routes across Europe. If you want to change or cancel your Finnair award fare, you can do so for a flat fee of 50 euros ($57).

Any fare difference will be liable to be paid, and you can make changes or cancellations up to 24 hours before departure.

If you’ve already flown the outbound leg of your journey, you can still cancel or change your return flight for 50 euros ($57) up to one day before your original return flight departs.

Iberia Plus

You can change or cancel a flight with Iberia Plus up to 24 hours before departure for a fee of 25 euros ($28)—some data points suggest that Iberia charges U.S.-based customers $40 to change or cancel a flight. This applies to Blue, premium economy and business class fares. For full-fare economy tickets, you can change or cancel your flight for free up to 24 hours before departure.

However, keep in mind that you can change or cancel flights operated by Iberia, Iberia Express, British Airways and Nostrum only. All other partner Oneworld alliance flights and Vueling flights are non-refundable and non-changeable.

Therefore, you’re best off avoiding speculative partner award bookings through Iberia, unless you’re certain that you’ll make the original dates.

Qantas Frequent Flyer

Qantas Frequent Flyer is a great program for securing first-class fares to Australia, and its straightforward award ticket cancellation and change policies make speculative award bookings relatively safe.

Qantas charges 5,000 points per passenger to change a flight and 6,000 points per passenger to cancel a flight and refund your miles.

If you make your change or cancellation through a contact center, you’ll be charged 7,700 points per passenger for international bookings.

If you redeemed fewer miles than the cancellation fee, then you’ll forfeit your miles instead of paying the higher cancellation fee.

Qatar Privilege Club

Qatar Privilege Club has some great redemption opportunities, a solid business- and first-class product, combined with an easy-to-understand change and cancellation policy.

For changes and cancellations made more than 24 hours before departure, you’ll pay a flat fee of $25. For changes and cancellations made within three and 24 hours before departure, you’ll pay a fee of $100.

If you cancel your flight less than three hours before departure, you’ll lose your Avios and have only the taxes and fees refunded to your account.

If you hold Gold or Platinum elite status with Qatar Airways, these change and cancellation fees are waived.

Singapore KrisFlyer

Singapore Airlines offers a luxury premium cabin with routes across Asia. How much you’ll pay to change or cancel a flight through Singapore KrisFlyer depends on whether you booked an Advantage or Saver fare.

To change the route, cabin class, award type or add a stopover on a Singapore Airlines-operated flight, it’ll cost you $25, regardless of whether you have an Advantage or Saver award fare. However, to change the date of your flight, Saver fare holders will pay $25 while the service is free for Advantage fare holders.

To change the date, route, flight or carrier on partner airlines booked through Singapore KrisFlyer, Saver fare holders will pay $50. This service isn’t available for Advantage fare holders.

If you want to cancel your flight, Saver fare holders will pay $75 while Advantage fare holders will pay $50.

As long as you cancel your flight before departure, you’ll have your miles redeposited in your account. It’s important to cancel your flight if you can’t fly, as Singapore Airlines applies steep no-show fees between $100 and $300, depending on the class of service.

Turkish Miles&Smiles

Turkish Miles&Smiles offers lucrative redemption opportunities on its own flights as well as Star Alliance partners, such as United Airlines.

To cancel or change a flight booked through Turkish Miles&Smiles, you’ll pay a flat fee of $70 for international itineraries. To change or cancel domestic flights, you’ll pay 150 Turkish Lira ($4).

You’ll need to cancel your flight before departure, otherwise a no-show fee of $150 will apply.

Some data points suggest that it’s cheaper to cancel and change flights through a call center than online.

Virgin Atlantic Flying Club

Virgin Atlantic Flying Club has some of the best award rates for SkyTeam alliance flights.

If you need to cancel or change your flight, you’ll pay 70 British pounds ($92) for U.K. departures or $100 for U.S. departures. If you’re departing from somewhere else, you’ll pay the equivalent of $100 in the currency of the country of departure.

You’ll need to cancel your flight 24 hours or more before departure, otherwise you’ll forfeit your miles and carrier imposed surcharges. Taxes and fees will be refunded, minus cancellation fees.

Travel insurance form with passport and airplane model on desk

Final Thoughts

Speculative award bookings can be key to securing award space when fares sell quickly. Popular routes can be sold in a matter of minutes, so it’s essential to have peace of mind when making speculative bookings. This way, you know that you can change or cancel your fare without facing penalties.

Likewise, even if you made a booking well ahead of time that wasn’t speculative, only to have it disrupted by the unexpected, knowing the costs of cancellations and changes can give you peace of mind.

You can use this article as a quick reference guide for change and cancellation policies, but always be sure to check directly with the airline for the latest updates in policy.