As per British Airways name change policy, passengers are not allowed to travel if the name appears on the flight ticket do not match exactly as it appears on the official travel document (passport, government-issued ID)

British Airways Name Change Policy

Under exceptional circumstances, British Airways allows name correction requests that involve considerable efforts and expenses such as British Airway name correction fee, re-issue fee, and fare difference, if any.  British Airways name change request includes correction up to three characters of the first, middle, or last name. Passengers need to call on our British Airways name change phone number or contact the nearest British Airways ticket office.

Under any circumstances, British Airways does not allow the entire first and/or middle name to be altered on the ticket. The PNR needs to be canceled and reissued again with the same fare basis code or to the higher fare basis code.   

Here are all the important highlights and points to consider before requesting the name correction, as per British Airways name change policy – 

  • British Airways change name on ticket requests are not permitted for the flight segments booked under Executive Club mileage points.
  • Swapping of passengers is not permitted. In such cases, a passenger needs to cancel their existing reservation, and process a refund. And, then book a new reservation under the different names.
  • All British Airways name correction requests involve a ticket exchange process where flights segments must be retained to the original class of services and the fare rules, subject to availability. If the original flight segments are not available in the same class, then a higher available class of service and fare rules needs to be retained. Fare differences may apply. 
  • After the British Airways name change requests are completed, passengers need to complete the seat selection process again as it is not possible to exchange the seats between the new and the existing PNR. 

British Airways Name Change Before The Ticket Is Issued

  • As per British Airways name change policy, only three letters can be corrected in the first, middle, or last name.
  • The title and the space correction are included in the British Airways name change requests.
  • The correction or addition of Date of Birth, Gender, adding Infant and Passenger Type Code (PTC) would not be processed as British Airways name change requests.
  • For the corrections in excess of 3 letters, feel free to reach us at British Airways name change contact number.
  • A legal document that validates the new name must be required to initiate the British Airways name change request.

British Airways Name Change After The Ticket Is Issued

  • Passengers can only request the name change under legal obligations such as divorce, marriage, or any new change in the first name or last name that occurred in the official travel document after the ticket is issued. 
  • As per British Airways name change policy, only three letters can be corrected in the first, middle, or last name. All name correction requests need to be supported by the legal document for validation as the name on the flight ticket should appear exactly identical with the government issued Photo ID. 
  • British Airways passengers after completing the name change requests need to reissue their tickets as the flights would be rebooked in the same or lower/higher available class. Passengers would be responsible for the British Airways name change fee along with any applicable fare difference. 

British Airways Name Correction Policy

In general, British Airways name correction request is only permitted on the flights operated by British Airways provided that the ticket number must start with 236.

In certain exceptional circumstances, changes up to three letters in a first name, middle name, or last name, and passport/marriage changes are requested for a  British Airways name change fee.

Change Name British Airways Request

As per British Airways name change policy, name correction of up to three characters is permitted on the British Airways flight segment. The count of 3 characters is combined total and shall not be understood as the 3 characters each for the first name and last name. British Airways name change fee of 250 USD would be assessed in addition to any applicable fare difference. 

British Airways Name Change Marriage Request

British Airways name correction request for change after marriage or divorce can be requested for travel on British Airways operated flights. A legal document that validates the new name must be required to initiate the British Airways name change request. British Airways name change fee of 250 USD would be assessed in addition to any applicable fare difference. 


British Airways Name Change Fee

British Airways name change fee of 150 USD would be charged in lieu of a name correction request within 24 hours of the date of purchase. A legal document is required to process the British Airways ticket name change correction request where passengers can legally correct or change their first name, title, middle name, last name, or any/all combination of them. In such cases, a new PNR should be created and the re-issuance of the flight ticket would take place in the same available or higher available class of service. Any applicable fare difference may apply. 

Beyond 24 hours, British Airways name change fee of 250 USD would be assessed, and only name correction requests up to three characters on the first, middle or last name would be considered. The count of 3 characters is combined total and shall not be understood as the 3 characters each for the first name, middle name, and last name.


How To Change Passenger Name On British Airways Flights?

You can update the name online via the British Airways portal as well as over the phone. Online, you can only process British Airways name correction requests. Over the phone, not just British Airways name change requests can be actioned but also the name correction request on your flight booking. Let’s understand the step by step process of the following three methods – 

Change Name On Flight Ticket Online

Here’s how you can navigate British Airways name correction request  – 

  • Visit britishairways.com, and click on the Manage tab on the home page. 
  • Enter the six-digit booking reference along with the last name of the passenger. And, then click on  ‘Find my booking’ to retrieve your flight details. 
  • Click on the Name correction link on the top-right corner. 
  • As per British Airways name change policy, passengers can correct up to three characters on the first name, middle name, or last name, or any/all combination of all. A count of three characters shall not be understood as three characters each for first name, middle name, and last name. 
  • Once you make the correction, click on the ‘Confirm’ button to proceed.
  • You would be redirected to the checkout page. Pay the required British Airways name change price to complete the request. 
  • Your reservation will be sent for re-issuance, as you will receive the confirmation on your registered email address within 2-3 hours. If you already checked in, you need to do it again. 

Change Name On Flight Ticket Via Tools (For Travel Agents Only)

Here’s how all third-party travel agents can request British Airways name change/correction via tools – 

  • Log in to britishairways.com
  • Click on Partner Login, and enter your travel agency login credentials.
  • Go to My Bookings. Enter the Group ID to process British airways name change requests
  • Enter your User ID and password
  • Navigate to ‘Manage Booking’ to enter the new details
  • Click on View/Edit booking to enter the six-digit booking reference from the British Airways flight reservation.
  • Download the Format to re-enter the correct name of the passenger on the excel file
  • After downloading and adding the correct names, save the file, and click on ‘Choose File’ to upload. Before uploading, cross-check the details correctly without any mistakes. The name must be exactly as it appears on the official document (Passport, photo ID).
  • Save the details, and retrieve the PNR to see if the names are updated correctly or not. 

Change Name On Flight Ticket Over The Phone

Dial the British Airways name change phone number and wait for the agent to get connected. 

  • Provide the six-digit booking reference, and ask the agent to change or correct the name. 
  •  As per British Airways name change policy, passengers can correct up to three characters on the first name, middle name, or last name, or any/all combination of all. For all the British Airways name change requests, passengers need to provide the legal document that validates the new legal name via email. You can also process British Airways no last name over the phone without an agent. 
  • Once you submit all the details, the agent will let you know the British Airways name change fee. In the case of British Airways name change requests, passengers are liable to pay the re-issuance fee alongside any applicable fare difference. 
  • Your reservation will be sent for re-issuance, as you will receive the confirmation on your registered email address within 2-3 hours. If you already checked in, you need to do it again. 

British Airways Name Change Policy – Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Can you make British Airways change passenger name requests for the flight post marriage?

As per British Airways name change policy, after the ticket is issued name change requests are considered under legal considerations such as marriage or divorce. In that case, passengers need to provide a legal document for validation.

All name correction requests need to be supported by the legal document for validation as the name on the flight ticket should appear exactly identical with the government issued Photo ID.

A fee of 250 USD as British Airways name change fee along with the applicable fare difference would be assessed.

Do British Airways flights need a middle name?

No, as long as the middle name appears on the passenger’s passport or government-issued photo ID. British Airways do not permit passengers to travel if the name on the ticket does not match with the official identification documents.

How much is it to change the name on a British Airways flight?

British Airways name change fee of 150 USD would be charged in lieu of a name correction request within 24 hours of the date of purchase.

Beyond 24 hours, British Airways name change fee of 250 USD would be assessed, and only name correction requests up to three characters on the first, middle or last name would be considered. The count of 3 characters is combined total and shall not be understood as the 3 characters each for the first name, middle name, and last name.

Can I change the name on my booking and transfer it to another customer?

As per British Airways name change policy, swapping passengers is not permitted. In such cases, a passenger needs to cancel their existing reservation, and process a refund. And, then book a new reservation under the different names.

How can I make changes to the name on the British Airways ticket?

You can correct the name spelling by calling us on the British Airways name change contact number. Passengers would be asked to send copies of their document if our British Airways executive needs them to validate your British Airways name correction request. Over the phone, A fee of 250 USD as British Airways name change fee along with the applicable fare difference would be assessed.


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2 thoughts on “British Airways Name Change Policy
  1. Maxine on Reply

    British Airways are a disgrace. I will never use them again and will be telling all my associates tp go elsewhere. Sometimes name changes are inevitable and to use some arcaic system which doesnt allow this is appalling. They ruin holidays.

  2. John on Reply

    Agree – we tried to modify a part of the name (more than 3 characters) within 30 min of booking and were forced to pay $300 USD for that.

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