WestJet GDS schedule changes

Updated July 28, 2023

In this guide, you’ll find details on our GDS schedule change policy for changes that occurred greater than 72 hours before flight departure. To prevent unwanted agency debit memos, please follow the steps below when a WestJet schedule change occurs.

For details on our flight disruption/irregular operations (changes within 72 hours) process, click here.

This policy applies to:

• WestJet 838 tickets
• Other airlines’ schedule change on 838 tickets
• Reservations not yet ticketed

Guide contents

Schedule change overview

Schedule changes are WestJet-initiated changes made greater than 72 hours before departure. Airlines may be required to change their flight schedules for numerous reasons. Some reasons may include:

• Change in routing
• Change to flight numbers or flight times
• Flights are no longer operating
• Seasonal demand

When a schedule change occurs, your travel agency will receive notifications for each impacted PNR. The PNR will be updated and, in most cases, the ticket will be auto-revalidated by WestJet and no exchange is required.

In cases where an involuntary reissue is required, it must be done before flight check in. If the ticket and PNR do not match, your client will not be able to check in for their flight.

Handling a schedule change

When a schedule change/flight disruption occurs, WestJet will send an Advice of Schedule Change (ASC) message to the GDS to provide the schedule change details. If your client accepts the schedule change, your agency must reconcile the PNR by removing (cancelling) the old (UN) or changed (TK) segments in the PNR and accepting the new flight details.

IMPORTANT: If WestJet cancels a portion of your client’s journey (UN) and no replacement flight is offered (TK), all remaining upline and downline flights must be removed from the PNR. If they are not removed and a no-show occurs as a result, a refund will not be permitted and funds will be considered forfeit.

Notifications

In the event of a schedule change, you are responsible for notifying your client of all changes. 

IMPORTANT: If you do not cancel the flight segments prior to departure and your client does not travel, this will be considered a no-show and funds will be forfeit. This applies even in cases where your client did not accept the changes.

Passenger Rights

In the event of a schedule change, your client may be entitled to standards of treatment due to a disruption to their travel plans. For more information, select the respective links below.

Standards of treatment

Our commitment and your clients’ passenger rights

WestJet schedule change on other airline tickets

If the reprotection offered by WestJet is not acceptable for your client, you must contact the ticketing carrier for alternate flight options and/or to reaccommodate according to their policies.

Schedule change qualifications

*For tickets issued prior to January 1, 2022 change and refund are permitted if flight time was more than 90 minutes.

Tickets issued on/after January 1, 2022

IMPORTANT: If you are making changes to your client’s flights and one or more of the below qualifying changes has not occurred, the change will be considered voluntary and applicable fare rules must be followed.

If a schedule change has occurred by one or more of the airline carriers on the ticket, the below qualifications must be adhered to for any involuntary changes:

• Journey was schedule changed more than 180 minutes from the original departure/arrival, or;
• Change in routing where one or more stops was added, or;
• Change in routing where one or more cities has changed, or;
• Cabin downgrade, or;
• A misconnection occurs in the connection city, or;
• Journey where at least one flight segment(s) was cancelled by WestJet (UN, UC or NO) with no flight replacement (TK).

For terms and conditions on unaccepted schedule changes, click here.

For terms and conditions on refunding, click here.

Schedule change guidelines

Accepting a schedule change

1. If the schedule change is acceptable and the ETKT was auto-revalidated by WestJet, no further action will be required.
2. If the schedule change is acceptable but the ETKT has not been revalidated by WestJet, the ticket must be reissued.

NOTE: In the event your client has accepted a cabin downgrade schedule change, please submit here for the ticket to be reviewed for partial refund.

For steps to reissue your client’s ticket, click here.

Unaccepted schedule change (new flight required)

IMPORTANT: If a schedule change has occurred where the flight change does not follow one or more of our schedule change qualifying scenarios, any changes made will be considered voluntary and applicable fare rules must be followed. To check our qualifying scenarios, click here.

Terms and conditions

1. The new flight(s) can depart up to 2 calendar days before or after the original flight time.
   • If there are no available or scheduled flights within 2 calendar days, the next available flight (earlier or later) may be selected for travel. 
2. Removal of old flights and rebooking of the new flight(s) must be done directly in your GDS. 
3. Please do not contact WestJet directly to rebook. This must be completed in your GDS.
4. Please do not direct your clients to contact WestJet to rebook. This must be processed in the GDS.
5. A reroute is permitted provided the origin and destination are the same or fall within our geographically close airport guidelines.
6. If the outbound/inbound date has been changed by WestJet, or you are moving the flight to the next calendar day or the next operating flight is not on the same calendar day as the original flight, you can move the outbound/inbound by the same amount of time.
   • Example: The original outbound flight(s) was scheduled to depart September 1 and the inbound flight(s) was scheduled to depart September 7. If, as a result of a schedule change, the outbound flight(s) was moved to September 2, you are permitted to move the inbound flight(s) to September 8.
7. You are permitted to change to a geographically close airport within 320 kilometres/200 miles. For example YVR/YXX, FLL/MIA. 
8. In cases where we have moved the flight but the original flight is still available, you can accept the new flights or reinstate the original flights in your GDS.
9. In the event your client’s WestJet codeshare flight, operated by one of our partners, is now showing as the partner prime flight:
   • Leave it as is, provided there is at least one other WS-marketed flight on your ticket, or;
   • Rebook back to a WS-marketed flight.
10. For requests outside of the above guidelines, please contact our Travel Support Team to discuss options. Select the “Contact us” tab at the bottom of this page for call back options, contact numbers and hours of operation.

For steps to rebook new flights and reissue your client’s tickets, click here.

Refunds

Refunds to original form of payment are permitted for your clients who incur a qualifying schedule change (TK/UN) outside 72 hours of their originally scheduled departure.

You and your client have the option of retaining a travel credit for a future flight or refunding to original form of payment. If your client prefers a refund to original form of payment, please follow the terms and conditions outlined below.

For details on travel credits, click here.

Non-refundable and refundable fares

Refunds for non-refundable and refundable fares due to qualifying schedule change scenario(s) can be processed in your GDS. Any applicable penalty fees are waived.

To check our qualifying scenarios, click here.

For steps to refund your client’s tickets, click here.

Schedule change ticket reissue and refund processes

Flight rebook process

Before rebooking any flight, please ensure you have reviewed our schedule change qualifications and schedule change guidelines.

1. Rebook in the original class of service in the same cabin.
   • For Basic (A, E), Econo (L, K, T, X, S, N, Q, H) and EconoFlex (M,B,Y), if the original class of service is not available, rebook at the next highest fare class up to and including Y class. 
   • For Premium (R, O) and PremiumFlex (W), if the original class of service is not available, rebook at the next highest fare class up to and including W class.
   • For Business (D, C) and BusinessFlex (J), if the original class of service is not available, rebook at the next highest fare class up to and including J class.
   • If a seat is not available in the same cabin, you will need to select a different flight.

Note: If you are reissuing as a result of another airline’s schedule change that is part of your 838 ticket, you may rebook to the same marketing/operating carrier and class of service, or change to a WS-marketed flight in the same cabin.

Ticket reissue process

Before reissuing any ticket, please ensure you have reviewed our schedule change qualifications and schedule change guidelines.

1. The ticket must be reissued as an even exchange.
2. Enter waiver code SKCHG or similar (e.g.: SKED CHNG, SKDCHG) into the ticket endorsement field.
3. Your client must be notified of the new flight information.
4. Terms and conditions must be followed or the refund will be subject to an Agency Debit Memo (ADM) for the full value of the ticket and an ADMIN fee of up to 50.00 local currency per ticket.

NOTE: In the event a qualifying schedule change occurs on an existing booking that has not yet been ticketed, issue the ticket against the original stored/saved fare. All other conditions must be followed.

Refund process

1. Remove/cancel all flights segments from your reservation.
2. Complete the refund in your GDS or IAR.
3. Enter waiver code Q21SKDRF22in the GDS/IAR refund waiver code field.
   • If your GDS does not have a refund waiver code field, enter it in the PNR OSI field before refunding the ticket.
4. At-source commission is to be recalled at the time of the refund.
5. Terms and conditions must be followed or the refund will be subject to an Agency Debit Memo (ADM) for the full value of the ticket and an ADMIN fee of up to 200.00 local currency per ticket.
6. Fare and taxes including YQ are eligible for refund with the below exception for non-refundable taxes. If the following taxes are refunded, an ADM will be issued.
   • Non-refundable taxes: L8 and DO for Punta Cana (PUJ), Puerto Plata (POP), Samana (AZS), La Romana (LRM).