How to Get an American Airlines Refund

It's possible to get a refund on an American Airlines ticket — even on nonrefundable tickets, in some cases. Here's what to know about the airline's cancellation policy:

• If you cancel any tickets within 24 hours of booking and at least two days before departure, you will automatically get a full refund to your original form of payment without needing to take additional steps.

• Refundable tickets, which cost more, are generally eligible for refunds if they're unused or only partially used.

• Basic economy fares are only refundable if they are canceled within that 24-hour booking window.

A nonrefundable American Airlines fare, regardless of class, is eligible for a refund if:

• There has been a flight schedule change of three or more hours for a domestic flight; more than four hours for an international flight.

• The passenger or a traveling companion has died.

• Military orders affect the passenger’s ability to travel.

In general, the refund process requires that you cancel the reservation for the applicable passengers first. Refund requests must be submitted individually for each ticket with a record locator (a six-character booking code).

» Learn more: Guide to canceling an American Airlines flight

The refund process depends on when you booked your American Airlines trip and when the flight was canceled. Automatic refunds are given if you cancel the booking within 24 hours of purchasing a ticket and if that purchase happened 48 hours before the flight's departure. The carrier will refund the value of your ticket minus service charges for phone bookings and nonrefundable taxes.

Beyond this 24-hour window, you’ll need to be mindful of a few steps to get a refund from the airline through an online request.

1. Wait until your trip is canceled

American Airlines typically doesn’t offer refunds on nonrefundable tickets when you’ve voluntarily canceled your trip. This includes choosing to cancel your trip because you’re no longer comfortable traveling.

A significant involuntary change or delay, based on American Airlines’ conditions of carriage terms, is if your departure time is delayed for more than three hours on a domestic route or four hours on an international route. If you choose to cancel your flight and don’t accept American’s rebooking offer, you will automatically receive a refund to your original payment method in these cases.

If you cancel your flight for any other reason and believe you are entitled to a refund, you can start the request process.

» Learn more: American Airlines bag fees: How they work, how to avoid them

2. Initiate an American Airlines refund request

To get a refund for a canceled American Airlines flight, visit its online refunds form.

Enter your last name and your 13- to 14-digit ticket number. This should start with “001”. Then, click “Continue”.

3. Verify the information of the canceled booking

Read the reservation information carefully to ensure that the correct booking was pulled for the refund request. If everything looks correct, click on the blue "Continue" button.

» Learn more: The complete guide to American Airlines partners

4. Review your refund eligibility

The next step shows you whether your booking is eligible for a refund. You can also view other options by clicking on the blue "Options" link.

If you’re eligible for a refund, click on the blue "Continue" link to submit a formal refund request to American Airlines.

5. Verify and review the refund request

The next step asks you to review all of the details for the refund request, including the booking information and your contact information. It will also prompt you to select a "Reason for Refund" from a drop-down menu.

Choose the option that best describes your reason for requesting a refund. There’s also a comment box to the right of the drop-down if you need to include further clarification.

When you’re ready, click on the blue "Submit" button.

If your reason for a refund requires additional documentation (such as for a medical condition), you’ll be asked to upload supporting documentation.

» Learn more: The complete guide to redeeming American Airlines miles

6. Keep your refund request confirmation number

After completing the final review and uploading any necessary supporting documents, you’ll receive a confirmation number. Keep this handy, in case you need to follow up on a refund request or contact American Airlines about it.

You can expect a refund within seven business days if the booking was purchased using a credit card. If you haven’t received a refund and would like to check on the status of your request, you can look it up here.

If a flight schedule change is three hours or more (domestic) or four hours or more (international), the passenger or a traveling companion has died, or military orders impact the passenger’s ability to travel, the original value of your nonrefundable ticket can be issued to your original payment method. For other cancellations, you may still be able to receive a refund as a travel credit.

American issues three types of travel credits: Trip credits, flight credits and travel vouchers. All of these can be used for future flights.

• Trip credits: Trip credits are issued for canceled tickets, eligible delays, compensation, refunds and remaining value from exchanging tickets. Trip credits can be used on domestic or limited international paid flights. For AAdvantage members who included their member number when booking, trip credits can be used for 12 months from the date of issue. Non-AAdvantage members have six months to use their trip credits.

• Flight credits: Flight credits are provided for unused tickets. These credits are valid on paid flights. These must be used within one year from the date of issue and only one credit is allowed per passenger.

• Travel vouchers: American’s travel vouchers are paper vouchers and are valid on flights only. These must be used within one year from the date of issue, and up to eight credits are allowed per passenger.

To redeem your credits, visit the American Airlines travel credit hubpage.

If you booked the flight on the American Airlines website, you were given the option of booking a refundable ticket. Refundable ticket perks are generally offered as an add-on during booking, resulting in a higher price compared with nonrefundable tickets.

You can also confirm the type of ticket you purchased by:

• Viewing fine print on your original booking confirmation email.

• Calling American Airlines Reservations at 800-433-7300.

• Logging into your American Airlines account to see your booking details.

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If American Airlines won’t help you get a refund, travel insurance might. This optional standalone insurance can be purchased separately from your airfare.

You might not even need to pay out-of-pocket for trip insurance. Many credit cards offer travel insurance as a built-in benefit to customers who pay for a flight on that card.

Consider upgrading to add-on coverage called Cancel For Any Reason policy. Although it's more expensive, it expands the list of covered reasons for flight refunds.

» Learn more: Is Cancel For Any Reason travel insurance worth it?