Delta and United Follow American in Dropping International Change Fees

Airline tickets over the keyboard of a laptop

After American Airlines cut change fees from their international tickets in November 2020, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines are both following suit. Delta is eliminating change fees for all tickets departing North America, while United will stop charging change fees on itineraries originating in the U.S.

The days of paying $200 change fees on tickets are gone for flyers of the legacy carriers. In subsequent announcements, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines announced they would end the practice of collecting change fees on international travel outbound from the United States.

Delta Policy Extends to All North American Tickets, While United Limited to U.S.

On Aug. 31, 2020, all three legacy carriers announced they would end change fees for most domestic tickets. United started the trend, which was quickly followed within hours by both American and Delta.

American was the first one to take things a step farther, when they announced the end of change fees on most international itineraries. This time, it took Delta and United three weeks to respond with policies of their own.

Delta was the first to make a public announcement about their new policy. While their current waiver extension will cover all tickets through Mar. 31, 2021, the Atlanta-based carrier will stop collecting change fees on most fares afterwards. Starting Apr. 1, 2020, the airline will not charge change fees for travel originating from North America to anywhere in the world. The policy will also extend to Delta tickets on joint venture and codeshare partners.

“No year has better demonstrated the value of flexibility than this one,” Delta chief executive Ed Bastian said in a press release. “Our approach has always been to put people first, which is why we’re extending our current change fee waiver and making lasting changes to our practices, so customers have the trust and confidence they need long after the pandemic ends.”

Although United did not make a public statement, a spokesperson for the carrier confirmed to FlyerTalk they would follow suit by ending change fees on most flights.

Recognizing that flexibility is more important to our customers than ever, United was the first legacy airline to announce it would permanently eliminate change fees – a policy that included Basic Economy and International tickets booked through the end of this year.  Today, we’re pleased to announce two important changes to this policy.  First, we’re extending this policy to include Basic Economy tickets purchased through March 31, 2021.  Second, this policy will also apply to all international tickets originating in the United States moving forward.

– United Airlines statement

Free Changes Won’t Apply to Every Ticket Sold

Although the policies are a direct response to the industry distress caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the policies are not going away entirely. At all three airlines, the new policies will not apply to basic economy tickets. Those booking the cheapest flights will still be subject to fees if they decide to change their itinerary after booking. In addition, while flyers will be obligated to pay any increase between two fares, a decrease in changed fares will result in a credit with the airline, instead of a refund.