Big relief for flyers: DGCA tweaks ticket refund, cancellation rules

Air passengers tin present cancel oregon modify their tickets without paying further charges wrong 48 hours of booking, taxable to definite conditions, aft the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) revised refund norms.

Under the amended civilian aviation requirements (CAR) for ‘Refund of Airline Tickets to Passengers of Public Transport Undertakings’, airlines person besides been barred from levying immoderate other complaint for correction of a passenger’s name, if the mistake is flagged wrong 24 hours of booking and the summons was purchased straight done the airline’s website.

“In lawsuit of acquisition of a summons done question agent/portal, onus of refund shall prevarication with the airlines arsenic agents are their appointed representatives.

The airlines shall guarantee that the refund process is completed wrong 14 moving days,” the DGCA said. The revised CAR, issued connected February 24, besides introduces changes to norms governing summons cancellations successful lawsuit of aesculapian emergencies faced by passengers.The amendments travel amid rising rider complaints implicit delays successful refunds. The contented had besides travel into absorption during formation disruptions involving IndiGo successful December 2025, erstwhile the civilian aviation ministry directed the hose to implicit pending refunds wrong a stipulated timeline.The latest changes are aimed astatine making the refund process much passenger-friendly and ensuring accountability connected the portion of airlines.