Void, Refund and Reissue: A Practical Guide for Agents

To void an air ticket, you cancel it on the same day it was issued, usually before midnight in the issuing system, and normally pay no airline penalty. After that, money comes back only through a refund, which follows the fare rule's penalties. Changing dates or routes is a reissue: you collect the fare difference, the change fee and any tax difference.

Key points

• Void only works on the day of issue. IATA's BSP manual says "until 24.00 hours", but some airlines and systems cut off earlier.
• When you void or refund, cancel the flight segments too. Live segments on a dead ticket can turn into a no-show charge.
• Refund amount = fare paid, minus any flown part, minus the penalty, plus refundable taxes. Commission on the refunded part goes back to the airline.
• A no-show usually cancels the rest of the ticket and can cost a no-show fee on top of the normal penalty.
• Reissue = fare difference + change fee + tax difference. Read the original ticket's change rule first.
• Refunds, exchanges and complex fares are among the most common causes of agency debit memos (ADMs), the charges airlines raise against agencies.

What is the difference between void, refund and reissue?

A void cancels a ticket on the day of issue. A refund returns unused value later, less penalties. A reissue swaps the ticket for a new one with new dates or routes. The table shows how they compare.

BSP (Billing and Settlement Plan) is IATA's system for settling agency sales with airlines. GDS means a Global Distribution System such as Sabre, Travelport (Galileo) or Amadeus.

How long do you have to void a ticket?

Usually until the end of the day the ticket was issued. The IATA BSP Manual for Agents (Edition 8, effective 1 September 2025) says tickets "can be voided by Agents in their TSP/GDS within the same day as they are issued (i.e. until 24.00 hours/12AM)."

In practice, check three things before you rely on the full day:

• The airline's own rule. Some airlines set their own void rules in their agency policy. Check it for the airlines you sell most.
• The system. Tickets issued on NDC (New Distribution Capability, the airline's own offer and order channel) or directly in an airline's system follow that airline's void rules, not the GDS's.
• Coupon status. Once a passenger has checked in or flown, the coupon is no longer open and the ticket cannot be voided.

How to void a ticket, step by step

1. Confirm the ticket was issued today and you are before your system's cut-off time.
2. Check that every coupon is still open (not checked in, flown or exchanged).
3. Void the ticket and any EMDs (Electronic Miscellaneous Documents) for seats, bags or meals issued with it. They are separate documents.
4. Cancel the flight segments or the whole PNR (Passenger Name Record). Lufthansa Group's booking and ticketing policy for agents (June 2026) says all active segments "must be cancelled in case of refund or whenever ticket is voided to avoid ADM for no-show."
5. Check that the ticket now shows VOID, and keep the record. The BSP manual asks agents to keep e-ticket records for at least two years.

How do air ticket refunds work?

A refund pays back the unused value of a ticket after the airline's charges. The fare rule decides how much, and only the agent who issued the ticket can process it.

There are two kinds:

• Voluntary refund: the passenger chooses not to travel. The fare rule's cancellation penalty applies, and some fares are non-refundable.
• Involuntary refund: the airline cancelled or changed the flight. The airline decides whether to treat it as involuntary and on what terms, so follow its instructions or waiver.

Rules the BSP manual sets for IATA agents:

• An agent may refund only tickets it issued itself, "subject to the respective Airline's permission."
• The refund must go back to the same form of payment as the original ticket.
• Commission claimed on the original sale is owed back to the airline on the refund, unless the airline specifies otherwise.
• If you are unsure of the amount, use the BSPlink Refund Application where the airline offers it, so the airline can check or amend it.

The basic calculation is:

Refund = fare paid − fare for any flown part − cancellation penalty + refundable taxes on the unused part

Taxes need care. The BSP manual tells agents to contact the airline about which taxes are refundable. Do not assume every tax comes back, or that none do.

What happens when a passenger is a no-show?

A no-show is a passenger who does not turn up for a booked flight without cancelling. The usual result is that the rest of the ticket is cancelled and the fare rule's no-show charge applies.

The reason is coupon sequence. IATA's paper Coupon Sequence and Use explains that if segments are not used in order, "the ticket as a whole will lose its validity in most circumstances."

What this means for you:

• If a passenger misses the outbound flight, the return is usually cancelled too.
• Many fare rules add a no-show fee, or allow less refund after departure than before. The fare rules show this.
• If the customer tells you they will not fly, cancel the segment before departure and then apply the refund or change rule. That is usually cheaper than a no-show, and it frees the seat.
• Lufthansa Group's policy also counts as a no-show a booking the agent forgot to cancel after a void or refund.

How are partly flown tickets refunded?

The airline recalculates the trip as if the passenger had bought only the part they flew. It charges that fare, takes the penalty, and refunds the rest, plus unused taxes.

The fare for the flown part is often a one-way fare, which can be more than half the return fare. That is why partly flown refunds are often smaller than agents expect. Many cheaper fares allow no refund at all once travel has started. Because these are easy to get wrong, the BSP manual suggests the BSPlink Refund Application when you have "any doubts as to how to calculate a specific Refund."

How is a reissue (date or route change) priced?

A reissue exchanges the old ticket for a new one. You collect three things:

1. Fare difference: new fare minus old fare, if the new fare is higher.
2. Change fee: from the original ticket's change rule.
3. Tax difference: new taxes minus taxes already paid.

If the new fare is lower, the rule decides whether the residual is refunded, held or forfeited. Some airlines allow a simple revalidation, a change of date or flight in the same booking class without a new ticket. Check the airline's rule.

In ATPCO filing (ATPCO is the industry's fare-filing company), change and refund rules sit in Category 16 (penalties), Category 31 (voluntary changes) and Category 33 (voluntary refunds). ATPCO says the most common reason for billing disputes between airlines and agencies is when these rules "are not applied consistently and correctly." The BSP manual agrees that the most frequent ADM errors involve "complicated fares, ticket exchanges and refunds." See our guide to ADMs and how to avoid them.

Worked examples

These figures are illustrative, in BDT. Real penalties, fares and taxes come from each fare rule and airline.

How does Ticket Lagbe handle void, refund and reissue requests?

On Ticket Lagbe you send refund, reissue and void requests from the portal, so you do not need to call or email for each one.

• Before you book: each fare has a fare rules and baggage window showing the refund and change rules. No-show charges are shown where the airline gives them. You can compare booking classes and fare families on View Fares.
• Refund and reissue: for GDS tickets, the portal gives an automatic refund or reissue charge quote where available, so you see the charges before you confirm.
• Void: same-day void is available where the airline allows it.
• Airline changes: flight change notices tell you when the airline has changed a booking, so you can act before the customer turns up at the airport.

Ticket Lagbe connects GDS, NDC and direct airline content. Read our guide to NDC vs GDS to see why the rules differ by channel. Our B2B portal checklist shows how to test a portal's after-sales before you move your business. Questions about a specific ticket? Contact our support team, available 24/7.

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