(INDIA) — India’s aviation regulator just gave you a bigger safety net after you click “buy”: starting March 26, 2026, the DGCA will require a 48-hour free cancellation window on many airline tickets booked directly with airlines, tightening long-criticized ticket refund rules and timelines.
The updated Civil Aviation Requirements, issued February 24, 2026, aim to curb passenger complaints about delayed refunds and surprise fees after booking mistakes. For travelers, the change is simple in concept: if you book a flight on an airline’s own website, you’ll have two days to cancel or modify without extra charges, as long as your trip isn’t imminent.
What the DGCA’s 48-hour free cancellation window covers
Under the new DGCA policy, passengers can cancel or modify bookings within 48 hours of purchase without paying additional airline charges. The rule applies only to tickets booked directly through airline websites.
That “direct-only” detail matters. If you booked through an online travel agency, a corporate portal, or a traditional agent, the new 48-hour protection is not framed the same way. Even so, the DGCA is placing refund responsibility squarely on airlines, regardless of channel.
Here’s the practical upside for you. If you’re price-shopping, locking in a fare, or coordinating leave approvals, the 48-hour window acts like a built-in grace period. It should also reduce the panic that follows a typo, a wrong date, or a duplicate booking.
The timing rules: 7 days domestic, 15 days international
The 48-hour flexibility is not unlimited. The departure date must be far enough away:
- Domestic flights: departure must be at least 7 days away.
- International flights: departure must be at least 15 days away.
If you change to a different flight during the 48-hour window, you can do it without an extra penalty fee. You still must pay any fare difference between the old and new itinerary. Once the 48-hour window closes, normal airline cancellation and change charges can apply.
| Rule | What it means for you |
|---|---|
| Free window | Cancel or modify within 48 hours of purchase |
| Eligible trips | Domestic: 7+ days out; International: 15+ days out |
| Where it applies | Tickets booked on the airline’s own website |
| Changing flights | No extra change fee, but you pay fare difference |
| After 48 hours | Standard airline fees can apply |
Name corrections: 24 hours, no fee (but direct bookings only)
The DGCA also took aim at one of the most frustrating “small mistakes, big fee” scenarios. Airlines cannot charge for correcting a passenger’s name if you report the error within 24 hours of booking.
There’s a catch, again. This protection applies only to tickets purchased directly from the airline’s website. If you booked through an agent or portal, the DGCA still makes the airline responsible for refunds. But the cleanest way to avoid hassle is to book direct when name accuracy is a concern. That includes family travel, last-minute passport renewals, and corporate bookings where profiles sometimes mismatch.
Refund timelines get clearer, with firm deadlines
Refund pain has been a recurring theme in India’s fast-growing air market. The DGCA’s revised ticket refund rules set sharper expectations based on payment type and booking channel.
- Booked via agents or portals: refunds must be completed within 14 working days.
- Paid by credit card: refunds must be processed within 7 days.
- Paid by cash at an airline office: the refund should be immediate at that same location.
A notable consumer win sits beneath those bullets. Airlines are fully responsible for refunds, even when you used an agent or portal. The regulator is treating those intermediaries as airline-appointed representatives.
Mandatory refunds of taxes and airport charges — even on “non-refundable” tickets
One of the most important parts of the updated rules is also the most overlooked. Airlines must refund statutory taxes and airport-related charges even when the base fare is non-refundable, and even in cases of cancellation or no-show.
The list includes common India airport fees such as UDF (User Development Fee), ADF (Airport Development Fee), and PSF (Passenger Service Fee). If you’ve ever skipped a flight and assumed you’d get nothing back, this is the portion that should still return to you.
Medical emergencies: new refund or credit options
The DGCA is also building in relief for passengers facing medical emergencies. The revised rules introduce refund or credit options when you can provide valid documentation. This should help families dealing with sudden hospitalizations or travel restrictions tied to health.
Airlines will likely operationalize this through their existing medical waiver workflows. Expect documentation checks and tight timelines.
Cancellation fee caps: penalties can’t exceed key fare components
For trips canceled outside the free window, the DGCA is placing a ceiling on airline cancellation charges. The cancellation fee is capped at the base fare plus fuel surcharge. It cannot exceed that amount.
That cap matters most on low-cost tickets with heavy fees. It should limit scenarios where fees effectively swallow the entire ticket value beyond what you paid for the core fare.
How this compares with other markets
A 24-hour free cancellation rule is common in the United States for tickets booked directly with airlines, as long as the flight is at least seven days away. India’s move is stricter in one way and more generous in another.
India is giving you 48 hours instead of 24. But it is also drawing a sharper line around “book direct,” while adding a 15-day buffer for international departures.
Miles and loyalty implications: what frequent flyers should watch
This is mostly a consumer rights story, but frequent flyers should still pay attention. A free cancellation window can change how you hold flights while waiting for:
- award seat availability to open,
- a points transfer to post,
- a companion’s visa or leave approval.
The biggest watch-out is that tickets canceled should not earn miles or segments, since the flight is not flown. If you are chasing status, repeated cancel-and-rebook behavior can also create fare and receipt confusion for corporate travel audits.
Also, if you book through an OTA to earn bank portal points, you may be trading away some of the new protections tied to direct airline websites.
📅 Key Date: The revised DGCA ticket refund rules take effect March 26, 2026, so book direct for new trips after that date if you want the 48-hour free cancellation window.
48-Hour Free Cancellation Window Remains as DGCA Updates Ticket Refund Rules
Starting March 2026, India will enforce a 48-hour free cancellation policy for direct airline bookings. These revised Civil Aviation Requirements also include a 24-hour window for free name corrections and strict refund processing deadlines of 7 to 14 days. Crucially, airlines must refund airport charges and taxes on all tickets, including non-refundable ones, providing a significant boost to consumer rights in the aviation sector.
