- British Airways is extending its travel waiver for Middle East routes from London Heathrow through late March 2026.
- Eligible passengers can rebook their flights to dates on or before March 29, 2026, without change fees.
- Full refunds are available for select travelers with scheduled departures up to and including March 8, 2026.
(LONDON HEATHROW) — British Airways extended its waiver for free date changes on select London Heathrow routes, letting eligible customers rebook Middle East trips to March 29, 2026 as cancellations and airspace issues continue to disrupt travel.
The airline’s updated policy, dated March 3, 2026 at 12:00, applies to outbound flights from London Heathrow to Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai, or Tel Aviv for customers booked through March 15, 2026.
British Airways also opened a refund option for some travelers, allowing affected customers to request a full refund via Manage My Booking if their travel is up to and including March 8, 2026.
The extension matters for passengers who face uncertainty on routes touched by shifting operating conditions, because it reduces exposure to change fees while keeping open a path to move travel dates within a defined window.
British Airways tied the waiver to “current cancellations and airspace issues in the Middle East,” and referenced Abu Dhabi, Amman, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai, and Tel Aviv, where operations remain suspended as of March 3 at 14:00.
Under the policy, customers with travel scheduled up to and including March 15, 2026 can change their flights to new travel dates on or before March 29, 2026, covering the same set of London Heathrow routes included in the waiver.
Eligibility hinges on the booking and travel timing rather than being an automatic entitlement for any itinerary, with the policy framed as a waiver that still requires customers to follow normal ticket reissue and repricing rules.
For travelers, the most immediate flexibility is the ability to shift departure dates without paying a change fee, as long as the revised trip fits within the airline’s rebooked-travel limit of March 29, 2026.
British Airways also allows changes to a different route until March 29 with no change fee, but warned that fare differences may apply, meaning the customer can still pay more if the replacement itinerary prices higher than the original.
Refund eligibility, meanwhile, is narrower than the rebooking window, with the airline limiting full refunds via Manage My Booking to customers whose travel falls up to and including March 8, 2026, subject to the waiver terms and the ticket’s conditions.
In practice, “fare differences may apply” commonly reflects the price of remaining seats and the cabin available on the new date, as well as changes in taxes and surcharges that can vary between itineraries.
When an itinerary is reissued after a change, travelers should expect updated ticketing details and an updated e-receipt reflecting the new fare and any recalculated taxes, while refunds typically return to the original payment method through the channel used to buy the ticket.
Customers who booked directly with British Airways can generally use Manage My Booking to make eligible changes and request refunds when the waiver applies, while those who purchased through a travel agent may need to work through that seller depending on the ticketing channel.
British Airways said a separate policy applies to London-Larnaca flights with identical change terms through March 15, and added that all other flights operate normally outside the affected waivers.
Even with the waiver in place, the airline urged travelers to check flight status before travel, as it continues to monitor regional conditions and said safety remains the priority.
British Airways directed customers needing assistance to use its Help Centre or dedicated lines where applicable, including Oman repatriation at +44 203 467 3854, and advised customers to verify their options through official channels as conditions evolve.
The temporary waiver sits apart from British Airways’ standard policies, including 24-hour free changes for direct bookings if departure is 7+ days away and flexible business class tickets, but it gives affected London Heathrow passengers a defined window for free date changes and limited refunds as Middle East disruptions persist.
