Mainland Airlines Frequently Complaints about Ticket Refund and Change Fees
One consumer bought an international flight ticket for about 15,000 yuan, requested a refund three days before departure, and only received 432 yuan back, a deduction of over 97%. After the incident was exposed, the travel platform compensated the individual for most of the ticket price but stated that the general ticket refund policy remained unchanged. The incident has sparked widespread controversy.
According to reports from mainland Chinese media, Mr. Lin purchased a ticket from China International Airlines to fly from Beijing to New York through the online travel platform Ctrip, claiming to have paid 15,217 yuan. On July 13, three days before the flight, he requested a ticket refund.
Mr. Lin stated that the operating page showed a fee of over 400 yuan, mistakenly thinking it was the ticket refund handling fee. After submission, he realized that only 432 yuan was refunded. The page indicated that “only partial taxes and fees are refundable,” while another ticket for the same flight that allowed refunds cost only about 400 yuan more.
Mr. Lin’s request to restore the ticket or change the date was unsuccessful. Ctrip claimed that the ticket refund policy is determined by China International Airlines; however, China International Airlines customer service stated that the tickets were issued by a third party, and specific fees should be inquired from the original ticketing platform.
On July 30, Ctrip stated that the total price of the China International Airlines ticket purchased by Mr. Lin from Beijing to New York was 15,159 yuan. After Mr. Lin requested a refund on July 13, the system refunded 432 yuan according to the airline’s rules. Ctrip mentioned that they had contacted China International Airlines to request the cancellation of the ticket refund or facilitate a change, but their efforts were unsuccessful.
On July 28, Ctrip compensated Mr. Lin with 14,727 yuan under the reason of Mr. Lin meeting the “Special Reason Refund Guarantee,” adding to the previous 432 yuan refund, totaling 15,159 yuan. Ctrip emphasized that this compensation was a specific case resolution and did not signify a change in the general ticket refund policy.
According to a report by “21st Century Business Herald” on July 31, the Airport Airlines Complaint Report for the first half of 2026, released by Black Cat Complaints (a consumer service platform under Sina), showed that out of approximately 27,000 complaints, nearly half were related to excessive fees for ticket refunds and changes.
Some consumers attempted to cancel a Spring Airlines ticket 100 days in advance but were still charged about 400 yuan. Another individual purchased five Guilin Airlines tickets but immediately realized the mistake, receiving only over 1,700 yuan back out of the 5,156 yuan ticket price.
Currently, there is no unified standard for ticket refund and change fees in the mainland aviation industry. Airlines mostly calculate fees based on cabin class, ticket price, and proximity to the departure time, with more restrictions typically observed on international tickets.
Associate Professor Zhu Wei of China University of Political Science and Law stated that terms not fully disclosed cannot be part of the contract; even with warnings, if they exclude essential consumer rights, they may be deemed invalid.
Professor Su Haopeng of the School of Law at the University of International Business and Economics mentioned that the refund fee is considered a penalty clause in legal terms, and the amount charged should be proportionate to the actual losses incurred by the airline due to passenger cancellations.
The incident has sparked discussions among netizens. Some argue that the rules for high-speed rail ticket refunds and changes are clear, whereas airlines often exhibit situations where “changing or canceling a ticket one month in advance results in significant deductions.” Others question why, if it was possible to receive nearly a full refund after the incident was exposed, “other consumers cannot also receive a full refund?”
Some netizens believe that canceling tickets close to the departure date may lead to vacant seats, and airlines setting different refund and change conditions based on ticket prices are not entirely unreasonable. However, the fee standards and notification methods should be clearer.