A to Z Help

A

Accessibility Services

  • Hearing
  • Medical devise and oxygen
  • Mobility aids/assistance
  • Non-visible disabilities
  • Severe allergies
  • Service/emotional support dogs
  • Special seating
  • Support persons
  • Vision

Consult Air Canada’s Accessibility services page for more information.

Aeroplan

Your customers earn Aeroplan points on every fare, on Aeroplan partner airlines, as well as Travel and Retail partners. Refer Consult Aeroplan for more information

Air Passenger Protection Regulations (APPR)

Passenger contact information is required on all PNRs in an SSR CTCE, CTCM or CTCR.

To ensure we serve customers in the official language of their choice, please add /EN or /FR in the SSR field of the Passenger Name Record.

Consult  Air Passenger Protection Regulations Briefing Document and FAQ for more information

ACTV

On June 6, 2023 Air Canada discontinued the issuance of Air Canada Travel Vouchers. Customers holding an ACTV can continue to use them as a form of payment until the value has been used.

Consult Air Canada Travel Voucher FAQs for details.

AC Wallet

Exclusive to Aeroplan members, AC Wallet can be used to safely store flight credits for eligible unused 014 tickets values and any associated charges (paid seats, AC Bistro, and Maple Leaf Lounge access).  AC Wallet balance can be used towards purchase of tickets and ancillaries, online, via the AC mobile app and the Contact Centres.

Consult AC Wallet – Frequently Asked Questions for Travel Agents

B

Baggage

Consult aircanada.com for everything related to baggage.

Bassinets

Request bassinets in advance through Contact Centres.

They are assigned on a first-come first-serve basis and are subject to availability and eligibility at time of the flight departure. As such, please do not confirm them in advance to your customers. To be eligible, the infant must:

  • Weigh under 12 kg or 25 lb
  • Not be able to sit upright.

Bereavement Travel

Air Canada’s bereavement travel policy offers an option for customers who need to travel because of the imminent death, or death of an immediate family member.

Our policy does not allow refunds for travel that has already happened. Consult our bereavement policy and call the Contact Centre to request a bereavement fare for your customer.

Booking Beyond Inventory

If you need to book an international flight which has not yet been loaded in our reservation system, please book the furthest available date. When the flight for the required date becomes available you may change your booking and contact us immediately for validation.

C

Check-in

Consult How to Check-In for information. With Air Canada codeshare flights, customers must check in with the operating carrier.

Cancel Check-in vs. Cancel a flight

Once customers have cancelled their online check-in, there is no functionality that allows them to cancel their flight. Upon cancellation of check-in, travellers are provided with this important message:

Your check in has been cancelled. Please see an airport agent to collect any checked bags.
If you would also like to cancel your flight, please call Air Canada, or contact your original booking source (travel agency or online travel agency) for assistance.

It is important to cancel the flight to avoid a no show.

D

Debit Memo Correspondence

Correspondence and dispute process is done via BSPlink and for US agencies, via ARC Memo Manager. Consult our debit memo policy for details

Duplicate tickets

Refer to Agent Reference/Refund Services Guide, and/or Agent Reference/Fares & Ticketing, CRS Booking and Ticketing Policy

Distribution Cost Recovery (DCR)

Consult our FAQs for details.

E

Extra Seating (EXST)

Customers may need to purchase extra seats for medical reasons or for personal comfort. The number of extra seats required is determined on a case-by-case basis.

For medical reasons, refer to Air Canada’s Accessibility Services for contact and more information.

For personal comfort, once your PNR is booked, please queue your PNR to the Rates desk for extra seating price and necessary adjustment to the PNR

eUpgrades

Aeroplan Elite Status members can earn eUpgrade credits and exchange them for upgrades to Business Class, Signature Class or Premium Economy Consult  About eUpgrades.

EMD

EMD-A are issued for the payment of paid seat selection on flights operated by
Air Canada, Air Canada Rouge and Air Canada Express.

EMD-S are issued for standalone payments of change fees and cancellation penalties. Due to some GDS limitations the use of the CP tax code field is also permitted.

Consult our FAQs.

F

Fare Options

Review Air Canada fares features for all markets at aircanada.com

Flight Pass

Prepaid package of electronic one-way flight credits used for travel within a selected geographical zone. Fixed or unlimited flight credits are managed online.

Time of ticketing commission applies on each Flight Pass purchased at aircanada.com/agents

If eligible for an extension, an email will automatically be sent to the Flight Pass owner, or the Flight Pass owner can log in to their Flight Pass and click the ‘Extend Validity’ button.

Extension(s), if eligible, must be done within the last three months prior to respective Flight Pass expiry date.

Consult the Flight Pass terms and conditions/validity period for more information.

Future Travel Credit

When your customers decide to cancel their booking, the unused value may be kept as a Future Travel Credit (FTC). This option applies to all tickets which allow changes. Flights must be cancelled prior to departure.

The fare rules and all penalties of the original ticket apply to the exchanged ticket.

If the value of the exchanged ticket is lower, the residual value is lost.

Consult the applicable fare rule and Air Canada credit options.

G

Goodwill Policy

They are issued when flights are not cancelled for situations such as temporary flight suspensions and conflict at destinations. Voluntary changes permitted within the parameters of the policy. Current policies are posted in Agent Reference/ Flash Goodwill Policy

Group Travel and Booking Tool

A group requires a minimum of 10 passengers in economy class and can only be booked via the AC group booking tool G-Cubed (G3), accessible for agencies registered at aircanada.com/agents.

Once booked and before ticketing, modifications must be done in G3, never in your GDS.

Consult Group Travel

Group Sports Equipment

Due to limited space, sports equipment is not accepted on the following small aircrafts; CRJ, CR9, Q400, E75.

I

Infant Tickets

Tickets must be issued for all markets for infants under the age of 2.

Enter the last name as shown on the passport. The maximum number of characters is 59.

When the infant is turning 2 years during travel, two one-way tickets must be issued for domestic and transborder bookings. For international bookings, queue the PNR to the rates department for the fare.

Consult  Travelling with Children and Queues to the Rates Desk for the list of queues.

Inventory Manipulation

Air Canada manages inventory on an origin and destination basis. Prohibited practices include but are not limited to hidden cities and booking out of sequence. Infractions are subject to $1,000 CA per ticket.

Consult the CRS Booking and Ticketing policy and the Debit Memo policy

M

Minimum Connection Times

Consult Air Canada-Minimum Connection Time for details

Meeting and Events

Register your event at Meeting and Events.

N

Name Correction

Permitted to correct misspelled names and to match legal documents, due to marital status or gender change. Name corrections are not required for middle names; refer to Agent Reference/Policies & Processes/Name Correction Policy

Names (Single and One Letter)

For ticketing, a last name must contain a minimum of 2 characters and the first name must have a minimum of 1 character.

Names in the name field cannot be duplicated or doubled (John/John Mr or JJ/JOHN Mr).

Follow the IATA recommended practice using LNU/JOHNMR (last name unknown) or SMITHMR/FNU (first name unknown). If other airlines are on the ticket, you must check with each airline to ensure the reservation will be accepted.

For information on specific country requirements please consult the IATA Travel Centre

No Show

Consult our policy No Show Policy

Middle Names for Advance Passenger Information (API)

It is not mandatory to include middle names on tickets.

However, during the check-in process, Advance Passenger Information may be required, and passenger names must be entered as they appear on their travel documents.

P

Pricing Assistance

Our Rates Department can provide pricing assistance for complex bookings that cannot be auto-priced in your GDS.

Urgent requests are defined as travel within 72 hours. All non urgent requests are prioritized by travel date and ticketing deadline.

All requests must be queued from your GDS.  Consult Queues to the Rates Desk

Pet in Cabin

Small cats and dogs are accepted in the cabin. Once you have completed your booking, please notify the Contact Centre within 24 hours of making your booking. Consult Special Assistance, Travelling with your Pets.

R

Receipts

Receipts can be requested via aircanada.com, Customer Support, Contact Information, Post Travel.

24-hour Refund Rule

Air Canada allows a refund within 24 hours of original 014 ticket issuance to all fares (published and net), including tickets with codeshare and interline flights.

Refunds beyond 24 hours after ticket issuance are not permitted. Exception for weekends and statutory holidays, AC permits a refund up to the next business day.

Please consult to the 24-hour Refund Policy at Agent Reference/Refunds/Refund Services Guide for processing information per booking channel.

Over-aged Refund Fee

Refunds requested greater than one year from the date of issue will be assessed an over-aged fee of $100 CA/US for refundable tickets, fees, taxes, or charges and $25 CA/US for EMD’s.

For POS international, fees will be converted from CAD to local currency using the daily exchange rate.

For more information, please review our Condition of Carriage Tariff section

S

Schedule Change

Consult our Schedule Change policy

Seating Selection

Advance Seat and Preferred Seat selection available for purchase in your GDS or via “My Bookings”. Consult our FAQ for EMD

Signature Suite Access (YYZ and YVR)

Designed exclusively for Air Canada Signature Class customers, travelling internationally
Consult Air Canada Signature Suite for eligibility.

Security Checkpoint Express Reservations

The following Canadian airports offer complimentary online reservations and virtual queuing so your customers can speed through security screening and get to their gate faster.

For details, refer to the following websites:

T

Tax Exemption

Consult Ticket Cross-Reference for tax exemption eligibility.

Through-Check on Separate Tickets

Per IATA recommendation, Air Canada will not through-check customers and/or baggage to the destination of the second ticket with the following exceptions:

  • Separate Air Canada (014) tickets 
  • Separate tickets with Pacific Costal (8P), PAL Airlines (PB) or Air North (4N)  
  • An exception approved by Regulatory or Legal and documented on customer's file 
  • Two tickets due to single coupon reissue during flight disruptions (including AC to OAL)

Consult IATA Recommendations  for more information

Ticket Validity

Effective 06 July 2022, the validity returns to 12 months from original date of issue.

Consult our Ticket Validity policy.

Transit Passengers

To better assist your customers, refer to Making connections easy  for airport information including security, customs and rechecking bags while connecting through our Canadian hubs.

U

Unaccompanied Minors

Unaccompanied Minor service is mandatory and applies for children aged 8 to 11.

It is offered on itineraries that includes only non-stop flights operated and marketed by Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge and Air Canada Express flight operated by Jazz.

It is not offered when the PNR includes connecting or codeshare flights, on Group bookings, and when travelling with a pet in cabin (PETC).

The service fee is $100 CA/US per child, per sector. Please contact Air Canada Contact Centre to pay for the fee. The agent will ensure the PNR reflects necessary information for UMNR travel.

Consult Special Assistance, Children Travelling Alone for more information

W

Wheelchair Acceptance

To better assist your clients, review Mobility aids/assistance at Wheelchair Acceptance.

Please the correct wheelchair code in your SSR request:

  • WCBD: Dry Cell Battery (requires authorization of Accessible Desk)
  • WCBW: Wet Cell Battery (requires authorization of Accessible Desk)
  • WCHC: Carry-On Passenger
  • WCHR: Request
  • WCHS: Short Distances/Stairs
  • WCLB: Lithium Battery (requires authorization of Accessible Desk)
  • WCMP: Manually Powered
  • WCOB: Onboard

Y

YQ Surcharge

International Carrier Surcharge is non-refundable on non-refundable fares, for unused and partially used tickets. Exception: tickets originating AU, HK, KR and TW.

YR Surcharge

The Distribution Cost Recovery surcharge is non-refundable on non-refundable fares, for unused tickets. Exception: tickets originating AU, HK, KR and TW.

Refer to Agent Reference/Fares & Ticketing/DCR Frequently Asked Questions

Update includes Accessibility Services link, Infant Ticketing, Bassinets, removal of the Name Change Policy and PAL added to Through-Check exceptions.

Revised September 12, 2024.
Information subject to change without prior notice.