What happens to Southwest award points and taxes if I miss the cancellation cutoff?

The no-show outcome is not identical across all Southwest award fares. Basic and Choice can forfeit points and associated taxes when you miss the cancellation cutoff, while Choice Preferred and Choice Extra have different redeposit treatment. Identify the fare on the award receipt rather than assuming all points tickets behave alike.

What this answer depends on

  • Southwest Rapid Rewards award travel; fare-specific voluntary no-show treatment.
  • For Basic and Choice awards, failure to cancel at least ten minutes before scheduled departure forfeits the points and associated taxes and fees.
  • For Choice Preferred and Choice Extra award no-shows, points return to the purchaser’s Rapid Rewards account and the taxes and fees become Transferable Flight Credit.
  • For timely eligible award cancellation, points return to the original purchaser’s account; the cash tax component has its own refund or credit treatment.

Important exceptions

  • This page addresses voluntary failure to travel, not a flight canceled by Southwest. Do not extend the premium-fare no-show treatment to Basic or Choice, or assume that returned points prove the cash taxes were refunded to a card.

What to do next

  1. Find the exact award fare and the account that supplied the points. The passenger’s account may not be the purchasing account.

  2. If departure is still ahead, cancel through the appropriate channel before the stated cutoff rather than treating a planned no-show as a cancellation.

  3. After a missed flight, compare the outcome with the specific fare’s no-show rule. Check the purchaser’s points activity and the separate tax credit.

  4. Retain the original award receipt and any cancellation attempt record when asking Southwest to review a discrepancy.

  5. Award fare, purchaser Rapid Rewards account, flight time, points receipt, tax payment and cancellation record.

More booking questions

Do points always go to the person who was going to fly?

The published route is back to the original purchaser’s account.

Checked againstTransferable Flight Credit

Are all Southwest award no-shows treated the same?

No. The fare distinction is central to the outcome.

Checked againstTransferable Flight Credit

Sources and last checked