In a significant development, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) revised the ticket refund norms and the passengers don’t need to pay extra charges for changes within 48 hours of bookings. Coming out with the amended norms that are more passenger-friendly, the DGCA said that airlines should not impose any additional charge for correction in the name of the same person when the error is pointed out by the passenger within 24 hours of making the booking, when the ticket is booked directly through the airline's website.
Refund process should be completed within 14 working days
"In case of purchase of ticket through travel agent/portal, onus of refund shall lie with the airlines as agents are their appointed representatives. The airlines shall ensure that the refund process is completed within 14 working days," the DGCA said.
Apart from this, there are changes with respect to norms for ticket cancellations due to a medical emergency faced by the passenger. The amendments to the Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR) for 'Refund of Airline Tickets to Passengers of Public Transport Undertakings' comes against the backdrop of the rising passenger complaints about not receiving refunds on time.
The ticket refund issue got highlighted during the IndiGo flight disruptions in December 2025 and at that time, the civil aviation ministry had directed the airline to complete the refunds within a specified timeline. The revised CAR was issued on February 24.
Airlines asked to provide 'Look-in option' for period of 48 hours 
Now, the airlines have been asked to provide 'Look-in option' for a period of 48 hours to passengers after booking tickets. "During this period a passenger can cancel or amend the ticket without any additional charges, except for the normal prevailing fare for the revised flight for which the ticket is sought to be amended.
"This facility shall not be available for a flight whose departure is less than 7 days for domestic flight and 15 days for international flight from booking date when ticket is booked directly through airline website," the regulator said.
Beyond 48 hours of initial booking time, this option would not be available and the passenger would have to pay the relevant cancellation fees for amendment. In a significant move, the watchdog said that airlines should not levy any additional charge for correction in name of the same person when the error is pointed out by the passenger within 24 hours of making the booking, when ticket is booked directly through airline website.