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UA Same-Day Travel Change (SDC) Fees/Questions -Free STBY for all, SDC for all elites

Old Jan 5, 2018, 8:16 pm
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
Last edit by: leftysauce
This wiki was created to distill SDC (and related standby) down to a set of rules in the hopes of benefiting others.

The official "rules" can be found here. In practice, some of the rules almost always apply, and some are more flexible.

Present Eligiblity policy 2023

Same day changes


Premier members may be able to get another flight for free. If your original cabin isn’t available, you may have to pay a price difference.

All other travelers may be able to get another flight within 24 hours of the original flight. You may have to pay a price difference even if the same cabin is available.
Note there have been reports of SDC to one segment removing confirmed CPU upgrades on downline segments. If maintaining the confirmed upgrade is important then these changes should be handled with care.

Most Frequently Asked Question: When do I call/go online to make the change?
Follow this flowchart:
Question 1: Are you within 24 hours of your currently scheduled UA(*) operated flight that you're trying to change off of? If yes, continue to Question 2. If no, continue to answer 1.
Question 2: Are you within 24 hours of the first UA operated flight you're trying to change on to? If yes, continue to Answer 2. If no, continue to Answer 1.
Answer 1: No, you cannot call/go online yet to make an SDC.
Answer 2: Yes, then you can call/go online to make an SDC.

General Baseline Rules

These are the general rules that usually apply to SDC's; falling outside these rules usually requires payment of a full change fee and the fare difference:
  • Not available for Basic Economy (N class) tickets
  • The departure time of the first segment of the old itinerary and the departure time of the first segment of the new itinerary must both be within 24 hours of the moment that the change is made.
  • Only applies to UA/UX operated flights, domestic or international. Changing from a non-UA operated to UA operated may be possible.
  • Must be issued on UA ticket stock (ticket number begins with 016)
  • Award tickets are eligible, but an award change may be a better option (not restricted to 24 hours)
  • The ultimate origin and destination airports must remain the same.
  • Routing can be changed (addition, deletion, or change of connection points) but the routing rules of the original fare usually apply.
  • All remaining unflown segments in a single fared itinerary are considered together (i.e., if you're flying WWW-XXX-YYY-ZZZ, you can go to a kiosk at XXX and potentially fly XXX-AAA-ZZZ or XXX-ZZZ direct).
  • SDC can be done an unlimited number of times, and can, therefore, be used to extend a trip indefinitely (pending availability).
  • SDC costs $75 for non-Premiers Only premier members as of 1 Jan 2021
  • No fee for Premier (plus any applicable fare difference, see below). *G's may also get free SDC, although there is no mention of this in the official rules. Once in-route, fees for an earlier connecting flight may be waived per GG SDC Line 118.
  • Non-elites on the same PNR benefit from any waived fees for SDC.
  • No fare difference is charged so long as there is availability on all of the new segments in the originally ticketed fare class. Fare class availability in all classes often opens up after T-24 and almost always opens up at T-3 unless the plane is very full. The practice of fare leveling all fares for all flights at a specific time appears to no longer be in effect.
  • SDC on bulk tickets, including United Specials, is not permitted.
  • SDC is permitted on both domestic and international itineraries.

How to SDC

SDC can be accomplished in a few different places (in rough order of likelihood of being able to get the rules bent):
  • United mobile app
  • Kiosk
  • Phone
  • On united.com, right now only the "Search Other Flight Options" button during On-Line Check-In (OLCI) works. This has spotty availability, particularly if the change would involve paying an additional fare due to fare bucket non-availability.
  • Counter/Gate (although reports are that most airport agents are not familiar with the SDC policy and may not allow you to SDC to a valid itinerary--you can try to direct them to look up GG SDC, but they often won't understand that what you're trying to do is permitted by those rules)

Please note that the United.com “change flight” link before checking in within T-24 is broken. The website may not show all available options and will often attempt to collect the change fee rather than the SDC fee (if any).

NB: An SDC where the original itinerary (in one direction) has three or more segments cannot be done online.

Nuances and Loose Rules

Now for the hard part: figuring out where the flexibility is in the rules. This list is compiled from the responses to people saying, "Can I do X?" where X is something that is not clearly permitted by the rules. One's likelihood of success here depends a bit on the method used for the SDC.

For each item, the following codes apply:
Y = officially permitted and possible using any method
A = not permitted but perhaps possible using an agent (phone/counter), perhaps having to HUACA
A* = mixed reports of success with an agent (phone/counter),
N* = possible only if you find a very accommodating agent
N = little or no reported success.
  • Violating various non-routing fare rules (day/time, minimum stay, etc.): Y
  • Change destination to ultra-close airport (see the old S*FAR/STANDBY): A
  • Change destination to a co-terminal: N*
  • Change destination to an entirely different place: N
  • Change itinerary at the beginning to include illegal layovers (> 4 hours): N*
  • Change itinerary at the layover point (using kiosk, app, or agent) to create an otherwise illegal layover: Y
  • Change itinerary at the beginning to add a layover point not permitted by the routing rules: N*
  • Change itinerary at a layover point to add another layover not permitted (either in terms of number of segments or routing rules) by the routing rules: Y
  • Change to a flight exactly 24 hours before or after the original flight: N*
  • Change to a flight exactly 24 hours before the original flight, if the previous day's flight has been delayed: Y (based on one report)
  • Change to a flight exactly 24 hours after the original flight, if the original flight has been delayed: Y (at least in the app)
  • Combining separately-fared segments to do SDC (e.g. XXX-YYY+YYY-ZZZ -> XXX-ZZZ): A
  • Change UA-codeshare, non-UA-metal segment to UA metal: A*
  • Change from UA metal to UA-codeshare, non-UA-metal segment: N (see post 1813 for one exception)
  • Change from UA-codeshare, non-UA-metal segment to a different UA-codeshare, non-UA-metal segment: ??
  • Change on a non-UA ticketed segment: N* (with potentially dire consequences)
  • Change from an upgraded flight into Y on the new flight: Y
  • Change from a PointsPlus-upgraded flight into J/F on the new flight: A
  • Change from a CPU-upgraded flight and get confirmed into available PZ space on the new flight: N*
  • Change from an instrument-upgraded flight and get confirmed into available PZ space on the new flight: A*
  • Non-elite on different PNR benefiting from Elite's waived-fee SDC: A
  • Change at origin airport after tendering a checked bag: A - 60 minutes prior to both flights required
  • Change at layover airport when a bag has been checked: A - 60 minutes prior to both flights required
  • Change a bulk fare: A*
  • Stand-By to later flight, then SDC after original flight departs to flight within 24-hours of new Stand-By flight: Y

If you encounter issues with an agent (phone or counter/gate), you can ask the agent to reference GG SDC. Additionally, GG SDC line 61 specifically references that fare classes are supposed to level out 3.5 hours before departure, so you might be able to use that to your advantage if fare classes have not leveled out and you're trying to ask an agent to open up the correct inventory or force you onto the flight.

Note -- as of 11/27/2017: A datapoint indicates that UA may have updated its GG rule regarding leveling out to state the following:

Code:
EVERYDAY AWARD AND REVENUE BUCKETS ARE TO LEVEL OUT WITHIN 2H OF DEPARTURE

The practice of fare leveling all fares for all flights at a specific time appears no longer in effective -- it does happen in some case but appears to be more variable

Standby
For all fare classes other than Basic Economy (N class) you may standby if seats are not available in the purchased fare class. There is no longer a fee for Standby. In these cases, the same-day change fee will apply, but will not be charged unless you are assigned a seat on your alternate flight. Changes in routing are not allowed when standing by. Standby may be requested up to 24 hours of original departure on the day of departure at an airport kiosk or with a United representative at the airport or UA app. Once you are added to the flight standby list, you can check your real-time standby status at united.com/flightstatus or on your mobile device at mobile.united.com/info.

Instead of paying a same-day change discounted fee, can I stand by for my desired flight for free?
Yes No. The only time you may standby for free is when the fare does not have any penalties for making changes, or when standing by involuntarily due to a flight irregularity.

Can I pay the same-day change discount fee with cash?
Cash will only be accepted by a United airport representative when the change is available to be confirmed, not for standby travel.

Standby Nuances and Loose Rules

All nuances assume request is made within 24 hours of scheduled departure to a flight within 24 hours of the request.

For each item, the following codes apply:
Y = officially permitted and possible using any method
K = Perhaps not officially permitted, but kiosk will allow.
A = not permitted but perhaps possible using an agent (phone/counter), perhaps having to HUACA
A* = mixed reports of success with an agent (phone/counter),
N* = possible only if you find a very accommodating agent
N = little or no reported success.
  • To a flight the previous calendar day: A*/N*/K (app allows this)
  • To a flight after your ticketed flight, on the same calendar day: Y
  • To a flight the following calendar day: N*
  • Request Standby at an airport other than departure airport: Can now request Standby via app 24 hours in advance
  • Make request calendar day before scheduled flight to flight same day as scheduled departure: K

Mileage Credit after SDC
SDC is considered a voluntary change, so your credited PQM & PQS will be credited based on the route you actually fly. Your PQDs should not change and therefore for your RDMs will not change. Occasionally if you fly a fewer number of segments, your PQD will credit wrong, but a call to MPSC should correct that.

Previous threads:
UA Same-Day Travel Change (SDC) Fees/Questions (with Wiki) {Archive}
UA Same-Day Travel Change (SDC) Fees/Questions *now with WikiPost* {pre-2015 Archive}

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UA Same-Day Travel Change (SDC) Fees/Questions -Free STBY for all, SDC for all elites

Old Oct 9, 2023, 4:42 pm
  #451  
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Chicago
Posts: 1,158
Unable to do SDC from P fare to P fare

I’m booked in P on UA476 SFO-ORD tonight, and UA278 is showing P1. App shows it would cost me $433 to change. 1K line couldn’t find a price to change it and had to call rate desk. They told her it would cost $433 to book me into Z, even though P is available (she could see it), and that the reason there’s a charge is I was originally in economy and bought up to First two weeks ago.

So the SDC feature is effectively nonexistent.
AirbusFan2B is offline  
Old Oct 9, 2023, 4:55 pm
  #452  
 
Join Date: Dec 2019
Location: Chicago
Programs: AA Gold
Posts: 545
Originally Posted by AirbusFan2B
I’m booked in P on UA476 SFO-ORD tonight, and UA278 is showing P1. App shows it would cost me $433 to change. 1K line couldn’t find a price to change it and had to call rate desk. They told her it would cost $433 to book me into Z, even though P is available (she could see it), and that the reason there’s a charge is I was originally in economy and bought up to First two weeks ago.

So the SDC feature is effectively nonexistent.
Do you see the option in the check-in flow? App should generally have no issues displaying flights with buy-up'd fare class.

i've had P fares before and yes sometimes SDC page is randomly broken but if there is truly P left, you just have to be a little persistent and get a supervisor. Once you get rates involved, it's game over cuz they'll try to reprice/change it instead of exchanging it.

alternatively, just chat with travelhelp.united.com and see what they can do if you have a valid reason
leftysauce is online now  
Old Oct 9, 2023, 5:00 pm
  #453  
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UA278 SFO-ORD is presently P0

If your present P fare is dependent on a lower economy fare class having inventory, this same lower economy fare class on the new flight may also be required to make the change
AirbusFan2B likes this.
WineCountryUA is offline  
Old Oct 9, 2023, 5:04 pm
  #454  
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Chicago
Posts: 1,158
Originally Posted by WineCountryUA
UA278 SFO-ORD is presently P0
Know what’s really weird, WineCountryUA - she added the flight to my record and must have forgotten to delete it while she was trying to help me so I now have two flights. I believe I should call back and have them delete either the later one if they’ll agree or the earlier one.

Well, fascinating… When I called back to have the record cleaned up, the nice reservations agent asked if I wanted the earlier flight. I said yes but not for an additional fare as she had said on my previous call. He said, “that was not the correct reply. I can do it. It’s called Same Day Change. Would you like me to do it?” So now it’s done. What a difference a competent agent can make.

Based on what I learned here, I will HUACA if they say rate desk.

Originally Posted by leftysauce
Do you see the option in the check-in flow? App should generally have no issues displaying flights with buy-up'd fare class.

i've had P fares before and yes sometimes SDC page is randomly broken but if there is truly P left, you just have to be a little persistent and get a supervisor. Once you get rates involved, it's game over cuz they'll try to reprice/change it instead of exchanging it.

alternatively, just chat with travelhelp.united.com and see what they can do if you have a valid reason
Essentially a HUACA solved this. Thank you so much for all this valuable advice!
Nihon_Ni likes this.

Last edited by WineCountryUA; Oct 9, 2023 at 6:48 pm Reason: merged consecutive posts by same member
AirbusFan2B is offline  
Old Oct 10, 2023, 12:18 pm
  #455  
 
Join Date: Aug 2021
Programs: UA 1MM
Posts: 342
Does anyone know if you can standby for an earlier flight when traveling with a lap infant?
boat stuck is offline  
Old Oct 15, 2023, 6:25 am
  #456  
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Posts: 87
I have a flight leaving 5:55pm RAK-GVA-IAD. RAK-GVA operated by Swiss and then United.
Can I use same day change for an earlier flight RAK-FRA-IAD? RAK-FRA operated by Lufthansa and then United.
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Old Oct 15, 2023, 7:59 am
  #457  
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Originally Posted by carlosiah
I have a flight leaving 5:55pm RAK-GVA-IAD. RAK-GVA operated by Swiss and then United.
Can I use same day change for an earlier flight RAK-FRA-IAD? RAK-FRA operated by Lufthansa and then United.
No. Same-day confirmed change only applies to flights operated by UA.
SPN Lifer likes this.
jsloan is online now  
Old Oct 15, 2023, 11:15 am
  #458  
 
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 441
Hi All,

Looking for clarification that my understanding of the below is correct. It's rare I can book a YBM fare in policy through my corporate OTA so I haven't had much experience with this.

On Tuesday I am flying A-B-C. Would like to take the exact same flight/routing on Monday--exactly 24 hours earlier.

Originally booked a B class fare and hit the auto upgrade button and got confirmed F in PN.

The (Monday) flight I would like to take has J1 PN0 B3.

1) SDC to same fare class is not an option right? Because what I want to change to is exactly 24 hours prior to my current confirmed departure.

It looks like I can pay $189 to re-ticket to the Monday departure in B fare class.

2) Catch is there is no PN space so auto-upgrade would NOT be available, right? I would just be added to upgrade list (albeit at a higher priority) like normal, right?

3) Is this same reason why at time of booking I was able to confirm auto upgrade from B - C (probably, PN space was available at that time), but not for A - B? Took a few weeks for me to see the auto upgrade button appear for A - B.

I have only ever SDCed to a later flight, never an earlier flight.

4) Is there any trick to SDCing to a flight that is close to (or as close as you can get) to 24 hours BEFORE your current departure time? Thinking out loud here, but it'd seem like the earliest you could SDC to would be -22 hours ish as one would have to allow for time to get to airport, TSA, etc.

Am I missing anything?

Thanks!
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Old Oct 15, 2023, 11:21 am
  #459  
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You can't SDC to a flight that is 24 hours earlier. You can SDC to earlier flights, but only within 24 hours of your original flight, so in reality about 22 hours earlier is about what you can get away with. You can SDC from upgraded PN back down to B - that should not be a problem. If PN is available then SDC should confirm into PN.
cfischer is offline  
Old Oct 16, 2023, 12:42 pm
  #460  
 
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 441
Originally Posted by cfischer
You can't SDC to a flight that is 24 hours earlier. You can SDC to earlier flights, but only within 24 hours of your original flight, so in reality about 22 hours earlier is about what you can get away with. You can SDC from upgraded PN back down to B - that should not be a problem. If PN is available then SDC should confirm into PN.
Thanks! Got it all squared away. Appreciate the help.
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Old Oct 17, 2023, 6:00 am
  #461  
 
Join Date: Dec 2015
Posts: 393
Standby by question! Heading up to Newark tomorrow in the morning and then coming back on the last flight out back to DCA. Right now, I'm booked on the earliest flight to Newark and the last flight back to DC. If my appointment end early and I get to the airport, I was thinking of doing the stand by flight that leaves at 545 PM instead of my flight at 830 PM. My ticket is United First (P). If I do stand by, is it looking for a first class seat, economy seat, or either? If I read it right, it seemed that Upgrade list is first before stand by, so I'm assuming the change of getting a First Class seat is close to zero (which is fine, wasn't sure how this worked, hence the question.)
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Old Oct 17, 2023, 6:19 am
  #462  
 
Join Date: Dec 2022
Programs: UA1K
Posts: 415
Are agents pretty flexible for allowing alternative SDC routings not generated by the app? I was flying DEN-EWR, but if I wanted DEN-IAD-EWR would they have done it for me? What about .. DEN-SLC-EWR?

I realize I probably could have called but didn’t want to awkwardly try to justify an irrational routing if challenged
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Old Oct 17, 2023, 6:31 am
  #463  
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Originally Posted by charlesonmission
Standby by question! Heading up to Newark tomorrow in the morning and then coming back on the last flight out back to DCA. Right now, I'm booked on the earliest flight to Newark and the last flight back to DC. If my appointment end early and I get to the airport, I was thinking of doing the stand by flight that leaves at 545 PM instead of my flight at 830 PM. My ticket is United First (P). If I do stand by, is it looking for a first class seat, economy seat, or either? If I read it right, it seemed that Upgrade list is first before stand by, so I'm assuming the change of getting a First Class seat is close to zero (which is fine, wasn't sure how this worked, hence the question.)
You'll want to do SDC if you want to keep the F seat. SDS will put you on the back of the list since you are not yet confirmed on the flight.

Originally Posted by unitedwildcat
Are agents pretty flexible for allowing alternative SDC routings not generated by the app? I was flying DEN-EWR, but if I wanted DEN-IAD-EWR would they have done it for me? What about .. DEN-SLC-EWR?

I realize I probably could have called but didn’t want to awkwardly try to justify an irrational routing if challenged
DEN-IAD-EWR seems easy to do; surprised the app wouldn't offer that. SDC via outstations like SLC will be more difficult; an agent can certainly do it.
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Old Oct 17, 2023, 6:48 am
  #464  
 
Join Date: Dec 2019
Location: Chicago
Programs: AA Gold
Posts: 545
Originally Posted by charlesonmission
Standby by question! Heading up to Newark tomorrow in the morning and then coming back on the last flight out back to DCA. Right now, I'm booked on the earliest flight to Newark and the last flight back to DC. If my appointment end early and I get to the airport, I was thinking of doing the stand by flight that leaves at 545 PM instead of my flight at 830 PM. My ticket is United First (P). If I do stand by, is it looking for a first class seat, economy seat, or either? If I read it right, it seemed that Upgrade list is first before stand by, so I'm assuming the change of getting a First Class seat is close to zero (which is fine, wasn't sure how this worked, hence the question.)
Originally Posted by cfischer
You'll want to do SDC if you want to keep the F seat. SDS will put you on the back of the list since you are not yet confirmed on the flight.
I've tried this before where my underlying fare basis is CXXXXXX (partner ticket) and I was only listed on the Upgrade List and not the Standby List. If you are CPU or PP upgraded, you will only be listed for Standby. So I believe the system looks at the underlying fare basis or original booking cabin to determine which list to list you for.

I have not tried this on a domestic FCM ticket or international J/O UA ticket so not sure how it will work. The easiest way to know for sure is to just try it at check-in - you can easily remove yourself from standby in the app after testing it.
leftysauce is online now  
Old Oct 20, 2023, 9:09 am
  #465  
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
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Originally Posted by cfischer
You'll want to do SDC if you want to keep the F seat. SDS will put you on the back of the list since you are not yet confirmed on the flight.

DEN-IAD-EWR seems easy to do; surprised the app wouldn't offer that. SDC via outstations like SLC will be more difficult; an agent can certainly do it.
I have a similar question. Does it come down to fare class? Or, will an agent just subjectively determine this is too weird a routing (if the connection doesn’t go through a hub)?

I purchased an award ticket in YN thinking I could SDC to an alternative routing as long as YN was available, but maybe an agent will object because the connection doesn’t go through a hub or because they believe award tickets always need to be repriced.
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