IRCTC Ticket Cancellation Charges

Waiting Ticket Cancellation Charges

You already cancelled a railway ticket, right?

Confused about receiving a refund? If so, solve your problems immediately!

The Indian Railways always introduces innovative solutions to facilitate passenger travel.

According to the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation's (IRCTC) e-ticketing and catering division, the revised refund criteria have been in effect since 2015.

The revised refund rules were enacted to minimize the potential for misuse, facilitate paperless ticketing for passengers, and discourage promoters and ticket-touting agents. In 2019, two additional modifications to the refund rules were implemented.

Railway Ticket Cancellation Refund : Facts to be known

The cancellation fees for unreserved, RAC and waitlisted tickets are ₹ 30 for Unreserved (Second class) and ₹ 60 for Reserved (Second class) and Other classes.

Indian Railways and IRCTC facilitate the cancellation of train tickets without mishaps for passengers.

Depending on whether you booked your tickets online or at a counter, you can cancel them via the IRCTC website, its mobile app, or PRS counters at railway stations.

Those who booked their tickets through a third-party app or website can cancel their reservation through the app or website, as well as the IRCTC website.

Once the ticket has been cancelled, a refund will be issued, less any applicable cancellation fees.

The cancellation of train tickets is subject to the following regulations and policies:

IRCTC Ticket Cancellation Online

• Cancellation of e-Tickets purchased using the IRCTC platform (official website or mobile app) is only possible via the same platform. e-Tickets cannot be cancelled at PRS counters.
• Please note that e-Tickets can only be cancelled before the preparation of the travel chart. The first and second chart preparations are typically completed at least 4 hours and 30 minutes, respectively, before the train's departure. For a train due to depart at midday, the chart is often produced the night before.
• If you wish to cancel your e-Ticket after chart preparation, you must fill out the online Ticket Deposit Receipt (TDR) and check the process of your refund.
• Once the cancellation is confirmed, IRCTC will initiate the online refund process.
• In the event of a partial cancellation of an e-ticket, the passenger is issued a new Electronic Reservation Slip or e-reservation slip.

Cancellation of Tickets Purchased at the Counter

Indian Railways permits the cancellation of tickets purchased at PRS counters in three ways.

Counter Ticket Cancellation Online

You can cancel your PRS counter ticket by logging in to the IRCTC website and entering your ticket information, including the train number and PNR number.

Please note that, per IRCTC cancellation guidelines, this is only permitted if a valid mobile number was provided at the time of booking.

The cancellation confirmation and refund details will be sent to the registered mobile number.

Online cancellation is permitted for confirmed counter tickets up to four hours before to the train's departure. Cancellation of RAC/Waitlisted counter tickets is permitted up to 30 minutes before the scheduled departure time of the train.

• Offline Method: 

You may cancel your PRS counter tickets at any PRS counter of the Indian Railways by filling out the Cancellation Requisition Form.

• SMS Method: 

You may also cancel your PRS counter ticket by sending a text message to 139. To cancel your ticket using SMS, send the message "CANCEL (PNR Number) (Train Number)" to 139.

Example : CANCEL 2525343475 15028 (Send it to 139)

Cancellation of counter tickets is only permitted under normal conditions, not when a train is late or cancelled.

In addition, for each of the three aforementioned refund procedures, the original ticket must be surrendered at the station where the journey was to begin or at one of the nearby PRS satellite locations within the given time period.

RAC Ticket Cancellation Charges - Waiting Ticket Cancellation Charges

You will be required to pay a cancellation fee based on the timing of your confirmed ticket cancellation.

• Within 48 hours: 

In the event of cancellation of confirmed tickets 48 hours before the start of the journey, the following cancellation fees apply:

Cancellation Charges of Confirmed Railway Ticket

If you need to cancel your reservation for a confirmed ticket, you will be charged a cancellation fee.

• Within the first 48 hours: 

If you cancel your confirmed tickets less than 48 hours before your journey, you will be subject to the following flat cancellation fees:

48 hours to 24 hours - Confirm Ticket Cancellation Charges before 12 hours

If you cancel your confirmed ticket between 48 and 12 hours before your scheduled departure, you will be charged 25% of the full price of the ticket.

There is a minimum flat cancellation fee based on the class that applies to this policy, as shown in the table above.

12 hours and up to 4 hours:

If you cancel your confirmed ticket between 12 and 4 hours before your scheduled departure time, you will be charged a fee equal to 50 percent of the total price of the ticket.

The minimal flat cancellation fees indicated above are decided by the ticket type of the reservation.

Cancellation Policies for Tickets Covering Several Legs of a Trip

• If you have a confirmed ticket for the first leg of your trip, the entire ticket will be considered confirmed for cancellation purposes. In this case, the cancellation policies for confirmed tickets will apply.
• If you have a waitlisted ticket for the first leg of your travel, even if the remaining legs are confirmed, the entire ticket will be treated as a waitlisted ticket for cancellation purposes. The cancellation policies for tickets on the waiting list will apply.

RAC Ticket Cancellation Charges

• Indian Railways permits travellers to cancel RAC tickets up to 30 minutes before the scheduled departure time. If cancellation is requested after this date, there is no refund.
• For each passenger, a $60 plus GST would be charged for RAC ticket cancellation.
• If you had a RAC ticket at the time of booking, but were granted a confirmed reservation at any point before the final chart preparation, it is deemed a confirmed ticket. In this case, the Indian Railways' cancellation policies for confirmed tickets will apply.
• If you have a Family e-Ticket or Party e-Ticket issued for many passengers, and some of these passengers have confirmed tickets while others have Waitlisted or RAC tickets, you may choose to cancel the entire ticket and receive a full refund for even the confirmed passengers. To accomplish this, however, you must cancel the ticket online or file a TDR online 30 minutes before the train's departure.
• If just the RAC or Waitlisted passengers have opted not to travel, it is impossible to cancel their tickets directly. Instead, you must receive a certificate from the ticket-checking staff stating that the passengers are not travelling and file an online TDR claim within 72 hours after arriving at the destination station. In addition, you must send the certificate obtained from the ticket-checking personnel to IRCTC.

Waiting Ticket Cancellation Charges

1. Waitlisted counter tickets may be cancelled up to 30 minutes before the scheduled departure time. Following that time, there will be no more chances for refunds.
2. Passengers may cancel waitlisted counter tickets at PRS counters or through the IRCTC website.
3. Waitlisted ticket cancellations are subject to a charge of 60 plus GST per passenger.
4. If a waitlisted ticket is confirmed before the final chart preparation, it will be deemed a confirmed ticket. In this instance, the Indian Railways' cancellation policies for confirmed tickets will apply.
5. According to IRCTC cancellation regulations, waitlisted e-Tickets (GNWL, PQWL, and RLWL) will be deleted from the reservation chart if they remain waitlisted after the charts have been prepared. IRCTC will handle the refund instantly after deducting the clerkage fee.

Tatkal Confirmed Ticket Cancellation Charges

• According to Indian Railways' cancellation policy, confirmed Tatkal tickets cannot be cancelled, and no refund is given if you want to cancel one.

Tatkal Waiting List Ticket Cancellation Rules

1. Tatkal tickets are also subject to partial cancellation.
2. For Tatkal tickets on the waitlist, cancellation fees will adhere to the existing Waitlist cancellation guidelines. Tatkal tickets allow for partial cancellation as well. Here you may learn more about Tatkal tickets.
3. The cancellation policies for partially confirmed family or group Tatkal tickets are the same as those for general quota tickets.

Premium Tatkal Confirmed Ticket Cancellation Charges

According to IRCTC's cancellation policies, confirmed Premium Tatkal reservations cannot be cancelled, and no refunds are issued in such cases.

Since the Premium Tatkal plan does not permit Waitlisted or RAC bookings, the above regulations do not apply.

Here you can read more about the Premium Tatkal scheme.

Policy Regarding Cancellations If the Train Is Cancelled

• e-Tickets: 

If a train is cancelled for any reason, including flood, accident, infringement, etc., the e-Tickets are automatically cancelled.

You are not required to cancel the ticket or file a TDR to receive a refund.

• Counter Tickets: 

If a train is cancelled, passengers with counter tickets must cancel their tickets at a PRS counter to receive a refund.

This can be done up to seventy-two days after the train's scheduled departure time.

Policy for Cancellation if the Train is Delayed More Than Three Hours

• If a train is more than three hours late, passengers may cancel their tickets. For passengers with e-Tickets to receive a full refund, a TDR must be filed before the train's departure. Note that the refund process may take longer than 60 days to complete after the TDR is filed.
• Passengers through receipt of PRS counter tickets must surrender their tickets at the PRS counter of the station where their journey is scheduled to start. These passengers will receive a complete refund at the counter.

Rules Regarding Partial Cancellation of Reservations

• The Indian Railways allow partial cancellation of reservations. For partial cancellation of e-Tickets, a passenger must log in to the IRCTC website, explore the booked ticket section, select the individual or individuals whose tickets must be cancelled, and click the cancel button.
• The passenger is given a new Electronic Reservation Slip or e-reservation slip once the cancellation has been processed.
• For partial cancellation at the PRS counter, a passenger needs to fill out a cancellation form specifying the details of those passengers whose tickets are to be cancelled.

Regulations Relating to the Cancellation of Tickets after Chart Preparation and Ticket Deposit Receipt (TDR).

Indian Railways prohibits the cancellation of confirmed tickets after the preparation of the chart.

If you still cancel such tickets, you must submit a TDR, or Ticket Deposit Receipt, online and check the status of your money.

Note, however, that the TDR must be lodged no later than four hours before the train's scheduled departure.

For RAC tickets, the TDR needs to be lodged at least 30 minutes before the train starts its scheduled journey.

IRCTC Refund Rules : Some Facts to Know

1. The cancellation fees for unreserved, RAC and waitlisted tickets are ₹ 30 for unreserved (second class) and ₹ 60 for reserved (second class) and other classes.
2. On cancellation of confirmed reserved tickets 48 hours before the train’s scheduled departure, the cancellation charge for first AC/executive class is ₹ 240; second AC/first class is ₹ 200; third AC/ACC/3A economy is ₹ 180; second sleeper class is ₹ 120 and the second class is ₹ 60.
3. The cancellation charge for confirmed, reserved tickets cancelled between 48 and 12 hours before the scheduled departure time of the train is 25%, subject to the minimum cancellation fee specified in me above.
4. The cancellation fee for confirmed, reserved tickets cancelled between 12 and 4 hours before to departure time of the train is 50%, subject to the minimum cancellation charges stated in me above.
5. partially confirmed tickets are refundable up to half an hour before the scheduled departure time of the train.
6. Unused RAC/WL tickets are refundable up to 30 minutes before the scheduled departure time of the train, less a clerkage fee.
7. For e-ticket cancellation, an automatic refund is issued. Additionally, the TDR file is not required.
8. CNF/RAC tickets booked on premium special trains cannot be cancelled. The ticket, however, can be revoked only if the train is cancelled. In certain instances, the PRS system grants a refund.
9. If the train ticket is returned within a specified period of time, the refund will be issued at the PRS counter.
10. If the ticket was cancelled via the official IRCTC website or by calling 139, the refund can be collected at the reservation counter.
11. If the ticket was cancelled online, the reimbursement would be credited to the passenger's bank account within five days.
12. If the ticket was cancelled at the station counter, the refund will be issued at the station counter within seven days.
13. If a passenger desires a refund for unused tickets, he or she should contact station masters/managers at all major stations, as they have discretionary rights. This is possible if a refund is not permitted at the station due to the expiration of the provided time limit.
14. In instances such as flood, bandh agitation, etc., where the passenger is not able to reach the reservation counter within the allotted time, he/she may file a Ticket Deposit Receipt (TDR) within three days.
15. Following this, the person may submit a request for a ticket refund to CCM. In cases of TDR, the reimbursement is issued within ninety days.
16. Tickets that are misplaced or lost will not be refunded.
17. If the authenticity of a torn/mutilated ticket can be verified, a refund will be issued based on the information visible on the ticket's front.
18. If the misplaced/lost ticket is confirmed/RAC, a duplicate ticket will be produced for the same reservation. Even so, this will only be completed upon payment of fees.
19. The cancellation of tatkal tickets does not result in a refund. However, once the chart has been created, an online-booked ticket cannot be cancelled; nevertheless, in such circumstances, the online TDR filing can be used to track the refund status via IRCTC's tracking service.
20. If the e-ticket belongs to a family or group where some members have confirmed reservations and others are on the RAC or waiting list, the confirmed members will be entitled to a full refund of the fare, less any applicable fees.
21. However, this will happen if an online TDR is submitted or if all passengers' tickets are cancelled online within half an hour of the train's scheduled departure.
22. IRCTC implemented a new OTP-based refund mechanism for e-tickets booked by IRCTC-authorized agents last year.
23. Under this, if a passenger intends to cancel a ticket or cancel a fully wait-listed ticket, an OTP SMS containing the refund amount will be sent.
24. To receive the refund amount, the passenger must share the OTP with the agent who booked the ticket.
25. The previous year, a new rule was implemented allowing passengers to link PNRs while purchasing a second train ticket.
26. Under this policy, if a passenger misses the connecting train due to the late running of the first train, the fare for the portion that has already been travelled is kept and the balance amount is refunded.
27. The amount of the refund is the fare for the untraveled portion. If the ticket is returned for a refund within three hours of the actual arrival of the first train, no cancellation or clerkage fees will be charged. The refund is processed at the Junction (station).

FAQ : IRCTC Ticket Cancellation Charges