The airline industry is changing, and frequent flier award tickets are no longer free. Here is a chart of fees you can expect to pay if you plan to cash in your air miles. Click on the tab for your airline.
$25 for U.S. and Canada flights, $35 for Mexico and Caribbean, $50 for Hawaii and international.
Service fee
(based on how you redeem award):
If you book online it's free, but if you book over the phone, it's $30/person for domestic and Canada, and $40/person for international
Quick ticketing fee:
If you use miles to purchase ticket within 14 days of travel, pay $50 for tickets booked online, or $75 if booked over phone
If you want a paper ticket:
$50
Fees for changing dates, times and reissuing tickets:
$150, or $250 for transatlantic/transpacific flights
Redeposit fee (if you don't use your award ticket and want the points credited back to your account):
$150, or $250 for transatlantic/transpacific flights
Preservation fee:
At 15-17 months of inactivity, you can pay $40 to remain active for another 18 months
Reactivation fee:
If you do not earn or redeem miles in a consecutive 18-month period, miles can expire. To reinstate forfeited miels: $50 fee if 1-4,999 miles, $100 fee if 5,000-19,999 miles, $200 if 20,000-49,999 miles, $300 if 50,000-99,999 miles, $400 if 100,000 or more miles.
Standby fee:
$25
Fuel surcharge:
n/a
Partner handling fee (if you fly any leg of the trip with a partner carrier):
n/a
Express delivery fee:
n/a
Expiration:
Will not expire unless you go 18 months without earning or redeeming any miles.
Annual fee:
Visa: $50. Visa Signature: $90. Visa Check Card: $30. Visa business: $75. Premier MasterCard: $79. MasterCard: $49. No-fee MasterCard: $0. MasterCard business: $79.
Buying airline miles: Is it worth the cost? – The offers can be tempting: buying airline miles to boost your mileage account. But how do you know you're getting a good deal and not just adding to the airlines' bottom line? ...
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