‘Wait a Year for Refunds’- Emirates

Sunday 29th of March 2020

‘Wait a Year for Refunds’- Emirates

Emirates, the world’s biggest carrier of intercontinental passengers, asks its customers who’s flights have been cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic to wait for an year for refunds.

Passengers who have a holding a ticket issued on or before 31st March were advised to request to be rebooked onto alternative flights "within the ticket validity without fee", although it notes an "applicable fare difference, if any, may apply" or request a travel voucher for the value of the ticket, with a validity of 12 months from the date of issue, to be used as credit against any future Emirates booking.

A spokesperson for Emirates says that “these vouchers can be used against future Emirates flights within 12 months. If vouchers are not utilized after 12 months, they can still be brought to us for refunds.” Since Emirates process refunds based on applicable fare rules and regulations of the market, it would take time and that’s why the airline ‘encourages customers to keep their tickets or opt for travel vouchers’.

On 22nd March, Emirates announced that they will be temporarily suspending all flights due to the drop in global demand amidst the coronavirus pandemic. However, Emirates reversed its decision of suspension as it "received requests from governments and customers to support the repatriation of travelers". So it will continue to operate passenger flights to 13 destinations, down from its usual 159.