How Do I Book a Bereavement Flight Fare Online?

By Flydreamz Nov, 21 2025

If you are not aware of the term bereavement in terms of flights then we are here to sort it out for you. It refers to the need for a passenger to purchase urgent and last-minute travel due to the death or imminent death of a close family member. To elevate the financial and emotional stress of these unplanned journeys, some airlines offer bereavement fares also known as compassion fares. These are special discounted or flexible tickets designed to provide relief compared to the generally high cost of standard last-minute tickets. Details are given below.

What is Bereavement Flight?

A bereavement flight is an airline ticket sold under a compassionate policy that offers the traveller one or both of the following benefits.
They can get discounted bereavement flight fares which will be a reduction in price compared to the standard, full-price fare available for end moment travels.
And they will also experience increased flexibility like cancelation of change fees, more favorable rules for the return portion of the ticket like longer maximum stay.
The major purpose is to provide relief for the travellers who cannot take advantage of advance purchase discounts and need to travel urgently due to a family tragedy.

How Do These Flights Work?

The bereavement flight fares are not usually found through the airline's standard online booking engine and they work based on the following process.
The passenger must call the airline's reservation or dedicated support line.
The passenger also provides details about the deceased or critically ill family member including the funeral home or hospital contact information.
If eligible, the airline agent searches for and offers the bereavement flight fares. This fare may be the lowest available fare, a fixed discount off the full fare or a fare that includes the fee waivers.
The passenger must also agree to provide required documentation like a death certificate or funeral home letter to the airline usually after the travel is completed. Failure to provide the proof can result in the traveller being charged the difference between airline bereavement fares and the full standard fare.

Who are Entitled People?

Eligibility for bereavement fare discount is extremely confined to the closed family of the deceased or severely ailing person. The definition of immediate family is different by airline but typically includes the core family like spouse, domestic partner, child, parent, sibling, grandparent and grandchild.
Many policies also include extended families like in-laws, step-relatives, aunts, uncles, nieces and nephews.
Some airlines require the passenger to be a member of their frequent fly program to qualify and enrolment is usually free and can be done during the call.

What Documents are Needed for Bereavement Flights?

The airline bereavement flights require documentation to prove the necessity of emergency travel while that specifications vary and you must be prepared to provide.
At the time of booking, give the full name and relationship to the traveller of a patient or deceased person.
Also provide the name and phone number of the funeral home, hospital or attending physician.
Also provide the travel details like preferred travel dates and city pairs.
And, after booking under the bereavement fares for flights, you need official proof of death to submit, like a copy of the death certificate, funeral director's statement or official registration of death.
You might also need the proof of relationship which is rarely requested but maybe needed if the last name is different for airline bereavement fares.
If you want to process the discount or verify the waiver, ticket or booking reference can also be needed.

What airlines offer bereavement fares?

The trend among major US airlines has been to phase out formal bereavement fares replacing them with more flexible low fare options. However, as of 2025, a few airline bereavement flights continued to maintain explicit bereavement policies like Delta airlines, Air Canada, Alaska airlines and WestJet. These are the airlines that offer bereavement fares.
Delta requires the loyalty program membership and it offers airline discount for funeral fares and waives service fees for changes and cancelations on eligible domestic and international flights. The major benefit focuses on discount and flexibility.
Air Canada offers reduced fares on most fare classes excluding basic economy in North America. It requires travel within 10 days of booking and allows return within 60 days. It also focuses on discounts and extended flexibilities.
Alaska airlines offer a stated 10% discount plane tickets for funerals off the lowest available fare for travel within 7 days of the death. It also requires the frequent flyer membership and it offers direct discounts.
WestJet requires reward membership and offers a compassionate fare also known as Econo fares and waives change fees. They uniquely offer post travel refunds if you paid a higher last-minute fare. They focus on flexibility and more on post travel refund.
Other major aircrafts like American airlines, United, Southwest, JetBlue, and Spirit do not offer such fares. They recommend passengers to look for the affordable present online tickets. Their usual pricing structures are flexible enough to provide the end moment cheap deals in case of emergencies. The main focus is just on providing a general flexibility.

How to Book Such a bereavement Flights?

The initial step is to gather the name of a dead person, your connection with him/her and the contact information for the hospital that are needed for airline bereavement policies.
Then, dial the direct booking line of the aircraft and tell briefly that you have to reserve a flight because of the death in your family and you are asking about the bereavement fare policy in short.
Crucially asked the agent for two prices: the bereavement fare prices or the lowest available public fare for your dates. Since the bereavement fare is often a discount off a higher, flexible fare class.
Ask the agent exactly what documentation is required and the deadline for submission.
Once you are sure that the bereavement fare is a better option, book the flight and make the payment immediately.

How Much Discounts Can be Expected from Bereavement Fares?

The expected discount is often modest and sometimes misleading. But airlines like Alaska offer a simple 10% off the published lowest fare.
The discount is often a percentage off full fare flexible tickets. Since full fare tickets are inherently very expensive, the discounted bereavement fare might still be more expensive than a regular non-refundable last minute economy ticket found online.
The greatest value is not always the lowest price but the flexibility. Bereavement fares often waive change fees which can be over $200. It also allows for a longer travel window, accommodating the unpredictable nature of funeral dates and family affairs. Hope you're clear now about what are bereavement fares are.

What if You Cannot Get the Bereavement Discounts?

If your preferred airline does not offer a bereavement discount or if the offered bereavement fare is more expensive than an online ticket then there can be some alternatives.
Use the flight search engines like Google flights to find the absolute lowest published fares for your emergency dates. Due to the dynamic pricing, the end moment non- refundable economy ticket may actually be cheaper than the official compassionate fare.
After booking the cheap ticket, call the airline and explain the situation. Even without a formal discount, many airlines will cancel your change fee for your return flight or provide a full flight credit if you need to cancel last minute airline tickets for funerals due to the circumstances.
Also use the frequent flyer miles or points to book the last-minute tickets. Award travel is often the most cost-effective way to book urgent flights and the value per mile is usually maximized on expensive and last-minute trips.
If you have travel insurance then you need to look carefully if it covers the emergency situations or can provide you any favour towards last minute flights due to death.