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Transportation e- and paper Voucher / vouchers / "MCO" FAQ and master thread

Old Jun 13, 2013, 6:55 am
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
Last edit by: Prospero
Transportation Voucher, "MCO" FAQ

Transportation eVouchers
Link to aa.com eVouchers Terms and Conditions page
Link to aa.com eVoucher page

General Information
Glossary: MCO - Miscellaneous Charges Order

AA issues e-vouchers to those in US 50 states, US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico as of 28 Nov 2019. Printed green vouchers are still used for those residing elsewhere at this time.

Transportation vouchers issued by American Airlines or American Eagle are valid for travel on American Airlines, American Eagle and American Airlines codeshare flights (AA*).

These vouchers are also valid for travel on oneworld itineraries (including oneworld affiliates that must be booked as a codeshare flight marketed by a oneworld carrier) where American Airlines or American Airlines codeshare flights (AA*) is the international carrier.

Note: For oneworld itineraries, international flights are defined as transatlantic, transpacific and flights to and from South America. Flights to and from Alaska, Canada, Mexico, Caribbean, or Central America are not included.

Travel agents may accept American Airlines vouchers (042/043) for full or partial payment for a ticket as an "exchange" document/ticket. If the voucher is less than the ticket the additional monies are collected. If the voucher exceeds the ticket cost an MCO will be issued for the difference as a residual indicating non-refundable and for American Airlines transportation only. Valid one year from date of issue ((you must encumber the voucher before one year has expired since issuance*). There is no change fee / ASC associated with using a voucher. Updated 18 Feb 2015.)

The original post, provided by member IceTrojan, has been placed here so members can edit and update as necessary. Information below has not necessarily been updated; be aware.

FAQ: AA Vouchers

Q. How do vouchers work on AA?

They are treated just like cash towards valid purchases.

Q. What can I use the vouchers on?
  • Airfare on American Airlines (inc. American Eagle), codeshares, and oneworld itineraries where AA is the international/"governing" carrier.
  • 500-mile domestic upgrade stickers (at the airport only).
  • Co-payments for upgrades or reduced mileage awards.
  • Excess baggage fees.
  • Special handling fees (e.g. checked pets), with a traveling passenger (i.e. not cargo).
  • Change fees, provided an additional collection of the fare is also being made.
There are special considerations if you are located in the following countries (may not be up to date):
  • In the UK, Belgium, Germany and France, vouchers are accepted for Net fares.
  • In Switzerland, vouchers are accepted on Q and L class Net fares only.
  • In Ireland, vouchers are accepted in Q, O and L class Net fares only.
Q. Can I use American Airlines travel vouchers to purchase a vacation package from AAVacations?

Yes, travel vouchers can be used toward the American Airlines and American Eagle flight portion of your trip, but may not be used to purchase any of the non-flight components of your trip such as hotels, rental cars, transfers, activities or insurance. Travel vouchers are not currently accepted online, but may be redeemed by calling AAVacations at 1-800-489-4810.

Q. Can I use the vouchers for ANYTHING else?

No.

Q. Really?

Yes, really.

Q. Are there restrictions on purchasing airfare?

Unlike other airlines that place restrictions on certain fares/dates/times/routes, AA vouchers are just like cash, so you can use them to buy all fares that are available for purchase.

Q. How long do I have to use the vouchers?

One (1) year from date of issuance.

Q. I can't use my voucher in time. How can I extend the expiration date?
AA automatically extended the expiration of some vouchers in 2021. If your expiration date was between January 1, 2021 and May 31, 2021, the new expiration is March 31, 2022.

If you still need to extend the expiration, spend at least part it on any of its valid uses listed above. For example, pay for a cheap throwaway ticket, a speculative ticket, or a 500-mile upgrade certificate. Any unused amount will be sent to you as a new voucher with a new 1-year expiration date.

Q. What if I lose a voucher?

Sorry, you're out of luck. Treat your vouchers like cash.

Q. Can I use the vouchers to buy tickets for someone else?

While vouchers are non-transferable, you may buy a ticket in someone else's name, so long as you are the one presenting the voucher (either by phone or personally at a ticket counter/office). If someone else presents the voucher, the ticket MUST be issued in the name of that on the voucher.

Q. Is there a fee for using the vouchers?

It appears that ticketing at an airport ticket office is still subject to a charge of $30, unless you are EXP.

Note that if you are EXP, these "booking" fees are waived (and any Agent that tells you otherwise is wrong). (thanks SquareDanceGuy)

Note that if you have booked the ticket online and go to the airport to apply a voucher, there are no fees either, regardless of status. (thanks RogerD408)

Q. What happens to the taxes?

This depends on the type of voucher. The following voucher codes are exempt from some of the taxes: Basically, if you use these vouchers to pay for the whole cost of your fare, you will lower the overall costs as some of the taxes do not apply. (thanks uncle wiggly) If you make a partial payment with vouchers, then the associated taxes will likewise be reduced by the same proportional amount. (thanks marshall)

OU is the only voucher taxable, as it's issued against the unused portion of a ticket that has been exchanged (amongst other things). (thanks hillrider)

Q. What if the value of my vouchers exceed the value of my fare? Do I lose it? (thanks ffay005)

Unlike some* other airlines, you do NOT lose the residual value of your vouchers. If the residual value is more than $5, AA will mail you another voucher back as change, and this voucher is valid for one (1) year after its issuance. (thanks whynotfly) *golfmad added the word "some" based on post #440.

Q. How many vouchers can I use at one time?

According to one AAgent, nine (9) was the maximum number of vouchers accepted by the system.

Q. I bought AA tickets from a 3rd party (e.g., travel agent, internet travel site, Priceline/Hotwire). Can I use the vouchers retroactively?

No.
Q. How long does it take to process the vouchers?

After they receive the vouchers, AA will process them within 1-3 days, so it's really dependent on how long it takes the mail to arrive to Florida. AA reservations will accept the vouchers for a phone booking, if the reservation made is at least 12 days prior to departure. It's recommended that if you need to ticket within 2 weeks that you go directly to an Airport Ticket Office, which can process your voucher/s immediately.

Q. How do I apply vouchers to a reservation I have on hold on AA.com?
  1. Call Web Services at 1-800-222-2377 or 1-918-832-1384 (6:00 AM - 2:00 AM CT, 7 days a week). In the UK, call 08-45-601-0619 (8:30 AM - 5:00 PM UK time, Monday-Friday).
  2. Give them the PNR and tell them you would like to apply vouchers.
  3. They will give you instructions on how to send the vouchers in.
  4. Pay any balance with a credit card.
Q. What's the address where I send my vouchers to?
US: up-to-date in March 2021, UK: up-to-date in January 2022

American Airlines
M.D. 8A701
Fort Worth, TX 76155
USA

The return address for those in the UK and the rest of Europe, who have agreed to send their voucher(s) to AA in the UK, is:

American Airlines
100 Old Hall Street
The Plaza, 7th floor
Liverpool L3 9QJ
United Kingdom

On the envelope under the return address, write:
<Date of first flight, in DD Month format (e.g. 01 Jan)>

Attach a sticky note to the vouchers with the following details:
<First flight number, e.g. AA1234>
<Last name>
<Booking record locator, AKA booking reference>

(Notice: vouchers are not processed sequentially based on date of the voucher/s being received by AA, but rather on flight dates. Flights may show as "Ticket Pending" once the voucher has been applied, and at some time prior to flight (two weeks is usual) it will show "Ticketed" and you should be able to see your ticket number, beginning with "001", in your receipt from your itinerary at aa.com or in your e-Ticket. Also notice that you should photocopy your voucher/s prior to mailing them.)

Q. What if I entered a Business Extra number?

You will have to contact Business Extra to apply the vouchers. Their number is 1-800-433-1790, and they are available 5:00 AM - 12:00 PM, CT, 7 days a week.

Q. What if I live outside the United States and I want to use vouchers?

As the vouchers are in US Dollars, it's probably most convenient to call the US reservations number for a new booking denoted in US Dollars, thus avoiding any currency conversion, except any associated with your credit card. You can call your local reservations number or visit a local Airport Ticket Office (ATO). Beware that there's not a large network of ATOs.

In all likelihood, you will be asked to mail your voucher(s) to AA, so if time is of the essence, you should consider going directly to an ATO, who can process it/them immediately.

Obsolete posts from 2014-2015 have been archived to: ARCHIVE: Transportation Voucher / vouchers / "MCO" FAQ and master thread.
Older obsolete posts from 2013 and before, can be read in: ARCHIVE: Transportation Voucher / vouchers / "MCO" FAQ and master thread (consol.).
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Transportation e- and paper Voucher / vouchers / "MCO" FAQ and master thread

Old Apr 19, 2016, 8:38 pm
  #61  
 
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: MI
Programs: NW/DL Plat->Gold->Silver, AA EXP 1MM
Posts: 855
Expiring credit from cancelled flight

Due to medical issues my wife had to cancel a flight bought last May. She has until the same date in May this year to purchase a new ticket with the credit and commence travel, but will not be able to meet that date. If she purchases a new ticket with the credit that costs less than the amount of credit, AA will issue her a paper voucher good for a year for the difference.

It occurs to me that she could buy an inexpensive one-way from A to B, not use it (possibly cancel it prior to flight) and get a voucher that preserves most of the credit for another year. Has anyone experience with this, i.e. will AA issue the voucher even if she does not board the flight from A to B?
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Old Apr 19, 2016, 10:04 pm
  #62  
 
Join Date: Mar 2010
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Posts: 1,061
I've done this before. It's a good strategy and the only one as far as I know.

The voucher is issued for the fare difference (minus change fee) when you ticket the inexpensive A-B, so whether you ultimately board or cancel the throwaway flight is irrelevant. I'm not sure if the voucher would also be transferable, which would be an added bonus.

Last edited by lrdpenn; Apr 19, 2016 at 10:31 pm
lrdpenn is offline  
Old Apr 20, 2016, 1:29 am
  #63  
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Originally Posted by NWAOldtimer
Due to medical issues my wife had to cancel a flight bought last May. She has until the same date in May this year to purchase a new ticket with the credit and commence travel, but will not be able to meet that date. If she purchases a new ticket with the credit that costs less than the amount of credit, AA will issue her a paper voucher good for a year for the difference.

It occurs to me that she could buy an inexpensive one-way from A to B, not use it (possibly cancel it prior to flight) and get a voucher that preserves most of the credit for another year. Has anyone experience with this, i.e. will AA issue the voucher even if she does not board the flight from A to B?
I'm going to shift this discussion to the existing voucher master thread, which is the repository of received wisdom on this topic.

~Moderator
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Old Apr 20, 2016, 6:42 am
  #64  
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Originally Posted by lrdpenn
I've done this before. It's a good strategy and the only one as far as I know.

The voucher is issued for the fare difference (minus change fee) when you ticket the inexpensive A-B, so whether you ultimately board or cancel the throwaway flight is irrelevant. I'm not sure if the voucher would also be transferable, which would be an added bonus.
That's correct, and yes, the voucher is transferable (unlike the original ticket value for the first change, which must be reissued in the same name). I forget exactly what has to be done for transferring the voucher -- it may be that the named holder has to be present if done at the airport. Someone else should be able to jump in on this.

I wonder if, now that AA is doing 24 hour refunds instead of holds, you could also request a 24 hour refund to a second voucher for the A-B you didn't intend to fly...
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Old Apr 20, 2016, 8:57 am
  #65  
 
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: MI
Programs: NW/DL Plat->Gold->Silver, AA EXP 1MM
Posts: 855
Originally Posted by lrdpenn
I've done this before. It's a good strategy and the only one as far as I know.

The voucher is issued for the fare difference (minus change fee) when you ticket the inexpensive A-B, so whether you ultimately board or cancel the throwaway flight is irrelevant. I'm not sure if the voucher would also be transferable, which would be an added bonus.
Thanks, we will give it a try. As to transferring the paper voucher, the Terms and Conditions printed on it seem to preclude that.
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Old Apr 20, 2016, 10:33 am
  #66  
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Originally Posted by NWAOldtimer
Thanks, we will give it a try. As to transferring the paper voucher, the Terms and Conditions printed on it seem to preclude that.
It depends what you mean by transferable. You can't just give it to someone else and have them use it as a bearer document, but there exists a process for the holder to redeem it toward a ticket in another's name.
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Old Apr 20, 2016, 11:56 am
  #67  
 
Join Date: Oct 2007
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Posts: 2,491
Originally Posted by MrJBoy
Today I called EXP desk for something else. Since the agent was so nice I asked about the travel vouchers. She checked my reservation and she told me the system showed AA received the vouchers, so I guess I just wait...
I also noticed that SWUs were already pulled from our accounts (Upgrades confirmed when booking).
Umm, so this was an important detail you have not mentioned until now. Remember, when I mentioned that I had this happen once? Yeah, it involved SWUs also.

I am pretty sure that because you made a reservation, applied a voucher and SWUs, it will not ticket on its own based on my own experience. At T-24 before the first flight, you will need to call to get this ticketed I believe. I am not sure if this is just an issue that occurs sometimes or something you can count on that just hasn't been really documented by others in the past (voucher plus SWU might not be very common).

As I mentioned before, there is nada you can do until T-24. At T-24, you call and say that my voucher reservation is not ticketed, please force it as it will definitely not finish on its own and it is time to check-in. And they will put it in a special queue (still can take up to 1-2 hours I remember). You can ask all you want, but agents have been instructed to not force ticketing until T-24. I a not sure this combination is documented as never resulting in an automatic ticketing.

Rasheed
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Old Apr 21, 2016, 9:52 am
  #68  
 
Join Date: May 2005
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eVoucher value exceeds ticket cost

Apology if this has been asked and answered.

I have an eVoucher which exceeds the ticket I intend to purchase in value.

Q: Would I continue to use the same eVoucher ? or get another eVoucher/paper voucher with residual value?

Thanks!
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Old Apr 21, 2016, 3:35 pm
  #69  
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Originally Posted by @ORD
Apology if this has been asked and answered.

I have an eVoucher which exceeds the ticket I intend to purchase in value.

Q: Would I continue to use the same eVoucher ? or get another eVoucher/paper voucher with residual value?

Thanks!
A new voucher for the residual value will be issued.
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Old Apr 24, 2016, 2:51 pm
  #70  
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: YXY
Posts: 3,504
What is the correct address to send paper vouchers to if the funds on the voucher are in Canadian Dollars and are to be used towards a oneway flight from the US to Canada, where the ticket is priced in Canadian Dollars?

The Wiki tells me to check the AA website, but I can't find any voucher address there.

http://flyerguide.com/Vouchers_(AA) provides this information, but it is over five years old:

What's the address where I send my vouchers to?
From the US (Last updated, July 2015):
American Airlines
5031 Commerce Park Circle
Department 109
Pensacola, FL 32505

From Canada (Last updated, Oct 12, 2010):
American Airlines
6671 Caroline St.
Box 114
Milton, FL 32570-4781

And does the choice of address depend on where the voucher is MAILED from, where the flight DEPARTS from, what the passenger's BILLING address is, or what the CURRENCY of the voucher is?
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Old Apr 24, 2016, 4:35 pm
  #71  
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
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Originally Posted by rasheed
Umm, so this was an important detail you have not mentioned until now. Remember, when I mentioned that I had this happen once? Yeah, it involved SWUs also.

I am pretty sure that because you made a reservation, applied a voucher and SWUs, it will not ticket on its own based on my own experience. At T-24 before the first flight, you will need to call to get this ticketed I believe. I am not sure if this is just an issue that occurs sometimes or something you can count on that just hasn't been really documented by others in the past (voucher plus SWU might not be very common).

As I mentioned before, there is nada you can do until T-24. At T-24, you call and say that my voucher reservation is not ticketed, please force it as it will definitely not finish on its own and it is time to check-in. And they will put it in a special queue (still can take up to 1-2 hours I remember). You can ask all you want, but agents have been instructed to not force ticketing until T-24. I a not sure this combination is documented as never resulting in an automatic ticketing.

Rasheed
Today 4/25 I noticed mine was ticketed and also I received confirmation email.
SWUs were pulled a while ago during "Pending".
My ticket value is higher than the travel voucher and I confirmed that AA finally charged the difference on my credit card.
However, my travel companion's is still "Pending".
Booking dates, departure date, mailing travel vouchers are all the same. Only the difference is his ticket value is lower than his travel vouchers, so no credit card information attached to his reservation.
His SWUs were already pulled a while ago, so he hopes to get ticketed soon...
By the way our very first flight will depart on 6/2, so I didn't wait that long which is good
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Old Apr 25, 2016, 9:46 pm
  #72  
 
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Location: Columbia, SC
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VDB but no voucher if can get there earlier?

(Mods, please fix title if too ambiguous, I'm running on too little sleep. Or merge into an existing thread if there is one.)

I was flying CAE-CLT-PHL last week. When I arrived at the gate at CAE, GA announced they were oversold and was offering a $300 voucher for volunteering one's seat. I wasn't in a big hurry, so I offered mine up, and suggested they put me on a later direct CAE-PHL flight. The GA took my BP and said she'd let me know if she ended up needing me.

A few min later, she came to where I was sitting and said they could use me, but because the direct flight would get me to PHL earlier than my original itinerary, I would not be entitled to the voucher. So I of course declined, as I'd not only get nothing in return, but would be giving up 500 EQMs, 1 EQS, and my F upgrade on CLT-PHL, since CAE-PHL is on a CR2.

Is this really the policy? I've never heard this before. If so, it's pretty crappy from AA since giving up a seat on an oversold flight keeps them from IDB-ing someone and having to pay actual cash money.
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Old Apr 25, 2016, 9:52 pm
  #73  
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IIRC if you don't arrive late, DOT regulations say that you're not owed any IDB compensation. So the airline could do an IDB and the only "cost" to them would be reporting the IDB and having their statistics look very slightly less good.

OTOH, since in this case there would be a change of carrier from mainline to a regional affiliate, the OP would be entitled to a full refund or rebooking on another carrier/routing that's acceptable to both the airline and the passenger.
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Old Apr 25, 2016, 10:04 pm
  #74  
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Originally Posted by akcae
(Mods, please fix title if too ambiguous, I'm running on too little sleep. Or merge into an existing thread if there is one.)

I was flying CAE-CLT-PHL last week. When I arrived at the gate at CAE, GA announced they were oversold and was offering a $300 voucher for volunteering one's seat. I wasn't in a big hurry, so I offered mine up, and suggested they put me on a later direct CAE-PHL flight. The GA took my BP and said she'd let me know if she ended up needing me.

A few min later, she came to where I was sitting and said they could use me, but because the direct flight would get me to PHL earlier than my original itinerary, I would not be entitled to the voucher. So I of course declined, as I'd not only get nothing in return, but would be giving up 500 EQMs, 1 EQS, and my F upgrade on CLT-PHL, since CAE-PHL is on a CR2.

Is this really the policy? I've never heard this before. If so, it's pretty crappy from AA since giving up a seat on an oversold flight keeps them from IDB-ing someone and having to pay actual cash money.
Very lame I'm glad you said no...I would have done the same...especially if they wanted me to give up 500 EQMs and confirmed F.
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Old Apr 25, 2016, 11:01 pm
  #75  
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FlyerTalk: Where people scream about being rerouted with a connection but also turn down direct flights that get them to their destination earlier.

Ha ha.
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