Carissa Rawson is a freelance award travel and personal finance writer. You could only apply one credit to each booking if these credits stemmed from a canceled flight. These have the same limitations as future flight credits. Step-by-step guide to using your United travel funds. This means the itinerary you apply a future flight credit toward must begin travel before the expiration date. In this case, youll receive future flight credit valid for later travel. If you're holding a paper certificate that we previously issued to you, you can exchange it for an electronic certificate by following the steps below. No label was found using the key: Version_Enter, Open United's Instagram feed in a new tab, Open United's LinkedIn profile in a new tab. Here are our picks for the. Like other major U.S. airlines, United provides travel funds for its customers. If it has expired, youll need to contact United customer service to see if they can extend the credit or issue a new one. Future flight credits: These credits can be used for up to a year after the original issue date of the ticket. If you have unused United travel credit that you would like to convert to a travel certificate, there are a few things that you need to know. Credit ranges are a variation of FICO Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application. Notably, you cannot use travel certificates in conjunction with MileagePlus awards or tour packages. Hopefully we'll be able to travel again by then, and the airline will still be flying! 1) Call 1-800-UNITED-1 or visit a United Airlines ticket counter. United Electronic Travel Certificate vs Future Flight Credit, Re: United Electronic Travel Certificate vs Future Flight Credit, ++++ COVID-19 CORONAVIRUS INFORMATION ++++, Covid-19 Coronavirus Information for Air Travel, ++++ ESTA (USA) and eTA (Canada) requirements for visa-exempt foreign nationals ++++, ++++ TIPS - PLANNING YOUR FLIGHTS +++++++. Please note that airline policies can change without notice. If you have future flight credit with United Airlines, you may be wondering how to convert it into a travel certificate. I'm unsure of this fact but it also appeared the FFC was a "use it or lose it" situation. United has three primary options for its travel funds, including future flight credits, travel certificates for canceled flights and purchased TravelBank cash. By accepting a travel certificate, you release United, the operating carrier, and their respective employees, agents and representatives from any and all liability, claims or damages resulting or arising from the matters relating to your flight, compensation therefore or any related complaint. The agent will tell you they are sending an email with the electronic travel certificate. Apply and select your preferred metal Card design: classic Platinum Card, Platinum x Kehinde Wiley, or Platinum x Julie Mehretu. In short, they're basically like money that you just happen to have to spend on United. Read more. If you already took the FFC, the website says they are working on the ability to turn that into an ETC. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. They also can't be redeemed for someone else unless you purchased your ticket on or before Aug. 31, 2021. They can also be combined with other ETCs and can be redeemed for travel for someone other than the person whose original trip was changed. Would rather have a travel certificate so I can just rebookat my own convenience. Electronic travel certificate (Offers the most flexibility for domestic travel and international travel on United), - Validity: Can be applied to book a new ticket up to 12 months from today, for travel up to 24 months from today, - Travelers: Can rebook new tickets for any travelers, - Airline eligibility: United and United Express flights only, - Usage: Must book directly with United (not valid for use at third-party travel agencies), Future flight credit (Offers flexibility to book travel on partner airlines, but current ticket restrictions will apply), - Validity: Travel must commence within 12 months from original ticket issue date, - Travelers: Must book travel for same travelers on existing ticket, - Airline eligibility: Any flight operated or marketed by United, including codeshare and Star Alliance flights, - Usage: Can rebook flight directly with United, or can rebook through original third-party travel agency. Future flight credits can also be used to purchase some extras such as Basic Economy seat assignments and Economy Plus seating. Earn 5X Membership Rewards Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year. Best card for premium perks while traveling, Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, The Business Platinum Card from American Express, The best places to see cherry blossoms around the US this spring, Looking back: How my points and miles strategy has changed over the years, The best increased card offers to sign up for this March. Compare the cost in points or miles to cash, and see which option is best. You can earn credits by flying United, through credit card spending, or by participating in partner programs. Secondly, its important to note that the conversion process may take some time. Otherwise, they are not valid on flights operated by other airlines, including United marketed codeshare and Star Alliance flights. $200 Airline Fee Credit: Get up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year in baggage fees and more at one select qualifying airline. However, they have too many passengers on the plane in some cases and need volunteers to take a later flight. Connecting Flights at London Heathrow Airport, TUI Airways (formerly Thomson) Dreamliner - Movies and Seating Information, Best Layover Cities to conti onward to Florence, International connection with separate tickets at LAX. So my thought now is to take the Electronic Travel Credit instead (which will be over $5000), then rebook the identical tickets in August for $2700 ish. In some cases, United may be willing to offer you travel credits for future travel. One exception is for travel certificates that were set to expire or were issued before Dec. 31, 2022. If the refund does not post within one billing cycle, please contact your credit card company for information. I don't fly United very often. *Does not include free travel authorization certificates. I cancelled it on 3/10 under whatever travel waiver was going on at the time. With that being said, if you have a FFC and do not use it all, the remainder turns into an ETC. This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. (Enrollment required for select benefits.). When you volunteer for a bump: Airlines overbook their seats to maximize efficiency. What can United travel funds be used for? You will be asked to enter the last name of the certificate recipient. Then, you can sign in to your MileagePlus account or enter your confirmation number and last name at the bottom of the My trips page to make additional purchases. At checkout, choose travel credit as your payment option. Outside of the current welcome bonus, youre only earning higher rewards on specific airfare and hotel purchases, so its not a great card for other spending categories. Heres what to do if you need to cancel your trip, Hotel and airline elite status extensions stretching into 2023, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Whether it was a vacation youd been dreaming about for months or a visit to hug your family members, we know how frustrating that moment of cancellation is. Redeem your certificate On the united.com home page, enter the origin, destination and travel dates. Future flight credits are not transferable and can only be used for the person the future flight credit was issued to. When you change your flight to a less expensive fare: and the new fare is cheaper than the previous one, the remaining funds will become a travel credit. But can you combine United future flight credits? Do you think there is a risk of United removing the ETC option over the next 8 weeks? This was booked with Wells Fargo rewards points, though, so I have to call WF for everything including rebooking which is a hassle. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. So lets look at how to apply travel funds on United, where you can find them and the different types of travel funds. United Airlines issues travel certificates if you voluntarily give up your seat on a flight or as a gesture of goodwill. Our partners compensate us. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Copyright 2021 United Airlines, Inc.All rights reserved. When you reach the Payment information page, select "United payment types." You will see an option to redeem a travel certificate. When you change your flight to a less expensive fare: If you need to alter your flight and the new fare is cheaper than the previous one, the remaining funds will become a travel credit. The extension will be processed by United by the end of January 2022 and will be good for another year, until January 2023. Card Rating is based on the opinion of TPGs editors and is not influenced by the card issuer. For years, certificate holders have been able to apply just one ETC per passenger, though recently it has been possible to call United's reservations team to have ETCs combined you could have three $100 certificates rolled into one to book a single $300 flight, for example, rather than redeeming them for one flight each. TravelBank cash can only be applied towards a flight. Get $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts or The Hotel Collection bookings, which requires a minimum two-night stay, through American Express Travel when you pay with your Platinum Card. If youre looking to use your United travel funds, You want a travel credit card that prioritizes whats important to you. and our Opinions expressed here are the authors alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. If youve received a future flight credit due to changing to a cheaper fare, you can combine multiple credits at once. Flights right now are generally much less than what we originally paid so while planning a replacement flight I added extras (like choosing my seat and prepaying for checked luggage) to bring the cost to what I originally paid in order to get the full value of the FFC. When the change to allow family members to book, the agent was able to convert to ETC! After weve verified your paper certificate, well email you instructions on how to redeem your new electronic certificate. This information may be different than what you see when you visit a financial institution, service provider or specific products site. United TravelBank makes it easy to manage your travel budget from your MileagePlus account. All refunds are credited to the original form of payment used. EDIT: you cant convert it to a certificate, but you can use it to book for someone else - youll have to know the flights and persons you want to book for when you try to do that though. United travel credits We have two types of travel credits, and both can easily be used to shop for flights and amenities on our website or app. What do I do with expiring airline credits? The Science of Sound. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Tickets issued between and Ma. TravelBank cash. However, its worth noting that not all United flight credits can be converted into travel certificates. Whatever value remains can be used to book later flights, as long as they are used within the timeframe allowed. I was under the impression I already had a certificate, apparently this is not the case. Were not shills. For example, can you spread either them across multiple (ta && ta.queueForLoad ? Just be sure to have the persons name and contact information when youre ready to book the flight. We no longer issue or accept paper certificates. 3) The agent will tell you how much United credit is available to you. Please try again later. After you successfully enter an ETC, including the year issued, 10-digit PIN code and the recipients last name, youll see the amount deducted from your flight total. Contacting the airline directly should be your first move if you have a voucher that is about to expire. The annual airline fee statement credit can be complicated to take advantage of compared to the broader travel credits offered by competing premium cards. Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. Sometimes it's worth a large investment to reap the benefits of a great credit card. Now I'm considering. Accruing electronic travel certificates. Pre-qualified offers are not binding. If anyone on our team wouldnt recommend it to a friend or a family member, we wouldnt recommend it on The Points Guy either. If you voluntarily cancel or change an eligible flight to a cheaper alternative, United will issue you a future flight credit. $155 Walmart+ Credit: Cover the cost of a $12.95 monthly Walmart+ membership with a statement credit after you pay for Walmart+ each month with your Platinum Card. All financial products, shopping products and services are presented without warranty. Is there any reason I would want the Future Flight Credit? These are valid for up to 24 months after they were issued. If the face amount of a travel certificate exceeds the cost of the ticket for which it is surrendered, any residual amount will be applied to the same PIN for use toward another ticket until either the original issued amount is depleted, or the expiration date has been reached, whichever comes first. The information for the United TravelBank Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. Get more smart money moves straight to your inbox. how to use United airlines 8889 7 credit from cancelled flightWhen you sign into your account, go to My Trips. United credit can be used for flights, hotels, baggage fees and more. Note: If your voucher/credit is not on this list, please do not message us asking if we can accept it. It also seems we can apply it to multiple flights. Your request will take up 72 hours to process once we receive it. Verify that each $25 TravelBank Cash is credited according to your IHG Rewards Premier credit card benefit into your United MileagePlus account. However, there is a limit of $5,000 per day on TravelBank purchases and theyre all nonrefundable. Please view our advertising policy page for more information. Plus Ups are excluded. So I can book a cheap flight now and then hold on to the rest for a trip I have planned next year (flight schedules not out for those dates yet). The policy is valid for all current travel credits and new ones issued on or after April 1st. Future flight credit holders can use their credit to book a flight with one of United's partner airlines, while travel certificate holders are limited to United flights only. ta.queueForLoad : function(f, g){document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', f);})(function(){ta.trackEventOnPage('postLinkInline', 'impression', 'postLinks-106234387', '');}, 'log_autolink_impression');flights or do you have to use them up on a single reservation? You can also use these credits for other purchases such as Basic economy seat selection, Economy Plus seating and preferred seat selections. Swear. Searching for either of your United travel funds is simple. These can be used for travel on United and partner flights, but they must be used by the person who has the original ticket. We recommend stating agent please until you are connected.2. You want a travel credit card that prioritizes whats important to you. If its a return flight, your departing flight must occur by the expiry date. Was wondering if anyone has heard if it's possible to convert a United Airlines flight credit to travel certificate when booked on OTA. Apply these funds when. You can also call United at 800-UNITED-1 (800-864-8331). Earn 5X Membership Rewards Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel. 1) Canceled ticket credit / future flight credit (FFC) -- this is where the flight is canceled but the ticket is left open.