Can I use a LUV voucher and then cancel flight?

Hot Tip: If you cancel a flight that you paid for with a LUV Voucher, that balance will be refunded in the form of a Flight Credit.



If you book a flight with a Southwest LUV Voucher and then cancel that flight in 2026, the value of the voucher will not return to the original voucher code, nor will it be refunded as cash. Instead, the funds will be converted into a Transferable Flight Credit. This is a significant distinction because while LUV Vouchers eventually expire, Southwest's flight credits (as of a 2022 policy change that remains in 2026) do not expire. However, once the voucher is "used" to book a flight and then canceled, that value is now tied to the passenger's name as a flight credit. One major benefit of the "Transferable" version is that you can move the credit to another person’s Rapid Rewards account once. If you were hoping to "refresh" the expiration date of an old voucher by booking and canceling, this tactic is no longer necessary since the resulting flight credit will have no expiration date anyway.

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However, airlines may offer their customers a voucher instead of a refund in such cases. In some situations, a travel voucher may seem more attractive to air travellers than a refund (repayment), as they can use the voucher on future trips with the same airline or other partner airlines to save on ticket costs.

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You can usually cancel a flight online, and many carriers let you get a refund in some capacity. For the most part, if you book a nonrefundable fare — the most common fare type — you'll receive a credit or voucher for a future flight.

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You can change or cancel your flight up until 10 minutes before your scheduled departure time. For example, if you had a flight scheduled to depart at 8 a.m., you'd have until 7:50 a.m. to make changes or cancel the flight.

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Flight credits don't expire. Are Southwest LUV Vouchers® flight credits? No. A Southwest LUV Voucher is issued by Southwest® and can be applied toward a future flight.

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Re: LUV Voucher and points Unfortunately, no. However, if you're booking a round trip, consider instead booking 2 one-way's. That would allow you to use the voucher on one leg and points for the other.

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You can get a full flight ticket refund only if you booked a refundable ticket. However, airline ticket refund rules vary from airline to airline. Thus, it is better to refer to the airline's website or contact it directly for possible airfare reimbursement.

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If you know you can't make a scheduled flight, it's better to cancel your flight rather than be a no-show. If you cancel, you might receive a partial or whole credit for the fare purchased, to be applied to a future flight.

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Every major U.S. airline (except Southwest Airlines) typically charges penalty fees to change or cancel an economy fare flight. The fees, however, can vary from as low as $75 on a domestic flight to more than $400 on an international flight.

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