Miscellaneous Charge Orders (MCOs)
ARC Travel Agency Issued MCO Information
Eligible
· Valid on AA/001 American Airlines, American Eagle, and American Airlines codeshare flights AA*/ (oneworld or other airlines).
o The itinerary must include at least one AA prime segment and may include Other Airline flights
· There is no Point of Origin (POO) or routing restriction to apply an MCO
· MCO’s are automated in the GDS when issued as a straight sale against a form of payment (FOP) - Credit Card/Cash/Check
o If the agency uses the MCO as a form of payment for a ticket that is non-refundable; the MCO will remain as non-refundable and cannot be refunded once exchanged
o If the agency uses the MCO as a form of payment for a ticket that is refundable; the refund is permitted to the original form of payment used to purchase the MCO
· MCO’s are eligible for the initial ticket purchase only, the ticket must be issued by the travel agency
· An MCO may be accepted in any currency and must be converted to the currency of the ticket being issued
· An MCO may only be exchanged by the issuing agency only
MCO Ineligible
· May not be used to pay for any service
· May not be used for ticketing via any American Airlines channel
· May not be applied to purchase baggage fees
· May not be applied toward the add/collect or penalty fee on a ticket exchange
MCO Validity
· An MCO is valid for one year from the date of issue
· For exchanges, the MCO assumes the 1-year validity of the ticket
o Example:
MCO was issued 26JUL2023
Agency applies MCO towards a new valid ticket prior to its expiration date
For refund the MCO value would be forfeited as it expired 26JUL24
Note: An MCO cannot be redeemed for a new throwaway ticket or MCO with the intention of extending its validity. A Debit Memo will be issued for violations.
Residual Value MCO Validity
· A Residual Value MCO is valid for one year from the date of issue.
· For exchanges, the residual MCO will acquire a new 1-year validity with each subsequent exchange that falls within its validity period.
o Example:
Residual MCO was issued 26AUG2023
Agency applies Residual MCO towards a new valid ticket prior to its expiration date
Agency exchanges the ticket again on 15MAY2024 with continued remaining value
Agency issues a subsequent residual MCO, validity effective 15MAY2024 and valid for exchange no later than 15MAY2025
· For refund, the residual MCO value would be forfeited as it expired 26AUG24
Note: An MCO cannot be redeemed for a new throwaway ticket or MCO with the intention of extending its validity
Note: Each time a residual value is generated, a new residual MCO is issued with a one-year validity period. A Debit Memo will be issued for violations.
Travel agencies may issue residual value MCOs on AA/001 for the following:
· Downgrades or Fare Reduction on wholly unused or partially used non-refundable tickets
o Any remaining value from the exchange, less the penalty, may be placed on a non-refundable residual MCO
o Residual MCO’s may be in the original customer’s name or in the name of a different customer
o Residual MCO must indicate NON-REF in the endorsement box and indicate the ticket number that the MCO was issued from
o The MCO field “Type of Service” or “Valid For” must contain “RESIDUAL” or “FUTURE”
· Abbreviations and misspellings are not accepted
· A non-refundable residual MCO may be applied to a refundable ticket; however, the non-refundable portion remains non-refundable
o If the ticket is eligible for a full refund (i.e. light cancellation) the request must be submitted to American Airlines
– The non-refundable portion will be refunded by voucher in the customer’s name that reflects on the non-refundable MCO
– The refundable portion will be refunded to the original form of paymen
· If a residual MCO is applied toward a ticket of higher value, the additional monies and change fees are collected separately using an alternate form of payment following the existing reissue guidelines
· If a residual MCO is applied toward a ticket of lesser value, a subsequent non-refundable residual MCO may be issued
o This subsequent non-refundable residual MCO is valid for one year from the date of the exchange
o This subsequent non-refundable residual MCO will be issued in the name of the original customer on the MCO or the new customer’s name that is on the ticket
A non-refundable residual MCO may be applied towards a new ticket for:
· Same customer named on the MCO
· A different customer’s name
· The same or different route, or even different country of origin
Note: If the exchange results in a residual value on the new ticket, the new non-refundable residual MCO may be issued in the original customer’s name of the MCO or the new customer’s name that is on the new ticket.
Eligibility
An MCO is valid for 1 year from the date of issuance.
Refundable tickets
If an initial MCO is exchanged for a refundable ticket, and the customer decides not to travel, a refund can be processed to the form of payment used to issue the MCO; however, the refund eligibility is determined by the MCO’s issue date, not the ticket issue date. Expired MCOs do not qualify for a refund.
· If the MCO is expired, the ticket can be used as a credit for a future flight within ticket validity (all ticket fare rules apply).
· A non-refundable residual MCO may be applied to a refundable ticket; however, the non-refundable portion remains non-refundable, and any monies collected for the difference of the fare will remain eligible for refund
o If the ticket is eligible for a full refund (i.e. flight cancellation), the request must be submitted to American Airlines Refunds
· The non-refundable portion will be refunded by voucher trip credit in the customer’s name that reflects on the original non-refundable residual MCO
· The refundable portion will be refunded to the original FOP
A maximum of two MCOs may be applied to the purchase of a ticket. MCOs are not valid for use with a ticket exchange.
· The 1st MCO is indicated as the Exchange document
· The 2nd MCO is indicated in ARC/IAR REN
o For assistance in completing your transaction, you may contact ARC Helpdesk at 1-703-816-8003
MCO’s do not require a physical ticket printer. MCO’s may be printed to maintain your records from your ARC/DRS.
Updated: November 2024