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Refunding Your Ticket

If your Northwest Airlines travel plans change you can cancel your reservation, check E-Ticket refund value (if applicable) and request a refund on nwa.com.

> Electronic Refund for an E-Ticket
> SkyMiles Award Travel E-Ticket Refunds
> Paper Ticket Refunds
> SkyMiles Award Travel Paper Ticket Refunds
> Refund Status
> Alliance Ticket Refunds
> Information about a Lost Ticket Refund

Electronic Refund for an E-Ticket
To request a refund for your Northwest Airlines E-Ticket on nwa.com, go to Manage My Reservations, enter the reservation or E-Ticket information you want to refund. At the Reservation Details page, select "Cancel reservation and request refund" from the drop-down menu:

  • If your reservation has no refund value, you will have the option to cancel all flights in your reservation. If you choose to cancel your reservation, an e-mail confirming reservation cancellation will be sent to you
  • If your E-Ticket has a refund value, the refund calculation will be displayed. Enter required contact information and confirm the refund request
  • Your reservation and E-Ticket will not be changed until after you confirm the transaction

Please note the following guidelines for refunding E-Tickets: 

  • Only Northwest Airlines E-Tickets beginning with 012 may be refunded on nwa.com
  • The ticket must be issued using a fully refundable or partially refundable fare
  • All flights on your E-Ticket must be marketed by Northwest Airlines or KLM Royal Dutch Airlines
  • At least one flight segment on your E-Ticket must be available for a refund, containing a status of `open for use'
  • Cancel/Refund for up to 9 passengers in a reservation can be processed online
  • E-Tickets containing past date travel can be processed on nwa.com
  • nwa.com refunds and reservation cancellation is available for E-Ticket itineraries anywhere in the world.
  • All requests are subject to final audit and approval by Northwest Airlines Passenger Refunds
  • Any refund due will be made in accordance with applicable tariffs, and will be refunded back to the original form of payment on the ticket
  • Due to the nature of credit card billing cycles, it is possible that a customer may receive a credit, but the credit may not appear on the customer's credit card billing statement until the following month
  • If original purchase was made in cash or by check, please allow 2-3 weeks for a refund check to be mailed

SkyMiles Award Travel E-Ticket Refunds
To request a refund for your SkyMiles award E-Ticket, go to Manage My Reservations, enter the reservation or E-Ticket information you want to refund. From the Reservation Details page, select "Cancel reservation and request refund" from the drop-down menu:

Please note the following guidelines for refunding SkyMiles award E-Tickets: 

  • Only Northwest Airlines tickets beginning with 012 may be refunded
  • Flights in your reservation may be operated by any alliance carrier
  • Your reservation and E-Ticket will not be changed until you confirm the transaction
  • Only wholly unused award E-Ticket may be refunded
  • Miles will be redeposited upon successful refund/redeposit transaction
  • E-Tickets containing past date travel can be refunded on nwa.com
  • All refund requests are subject to final audit and approval by Northwest Airlines Passenger Refunds
  • Any refund due will be made in accordance with applicable tariffs, and will be refunded back to the original form of payment of the E-Ticket
  • Due to the nature of credit card billing cycles, it is possible that a customer may receive a credit, but the credit may not appear on the customer's credit card billing statement until the following month
  • If original purchase was made in cash or by check, please allow 2-3 weeks for a refund check to be mailed
  • If your Award reservation was made within the past 24 hours, you may use nwa.com or contact the SkyMiles Service Center at 1-800-44PERKS (1-800-447-3757) to refund your E-Ticket and redeposit miles without any charge. A reduced fee is charged for all online award reservation refund/redeposit transactions. Click on the above link to initiate the refund request. For additional information, click here

Paper Ticket Refunds
Learn how to request a refund for a previously purchased Northwest Airlines paper ticket.

SkyMiles Award Travel Paper Ticket Refunds
Learn how to request a refund for a previously purchased SkyMiles Award Travel paper ticket.

Refund Status
Check the status of a previously submitted refund request.

Alliance Ticket Refunds
Review the necessary steps to request a refund for tickets on our alliance partners.

Information about a Lost Ticket Refund
Find out what to do if you have lost your ticket.