Miles&More backtracks: free Flex award ticket cancellations return, but not for everyone

Miles&More corrects course on flexible award ticket cancellation penalties. After the changes introduced in recent weeks by the Lufthansa Group, Germany's loyalty program has confirmed a new revision of the conditions applied to the Award Flights.

The good news is that, from the June 3, 2026, for Flex award tickets in Economy, Premium Economy and Business Class free cancellation returns.

The bad news is that the news does not apply everywhere, and it does not apply to First Class, where the penalty remains, even if it is significantly reduced.

Probably the many criticisms that came to the program as a result of the announcement prompted Miles&More to make this abrupt change, in any case, no matter what the cause, it is important that a change was made.

What changes from TODAY (June 3)

Miles&More reported that, for the Flex-Tarife of flexible award tickets, conditions without cancellation fees are restored for three travel classes: Economy, Premium Economy and Business Class.

Until now, however, the penalties had become decidedly heavy: 400 euros for Economy, 700 euros for Premium Economy and even 1,000 for Business Class. As of June 3, these fees return to zero.

Different discussion for First Class: here the penalty does not disappear, but is reduced from 1,500 euros to 800 euros. Still an important figure, but definitely less crazy than the previous one.

As is often the case with Miles&More, the important part is written in the notes. This change, in fact, does not apply to all award tickets, but only to the Award Flights with flexible mileage values operated by Lufthansa Group companies.

The companies involved are:

• Lufthansa
• SWISS
• Austrian Airlines
• Discover Airlines

Most importantly, the novelty only affects tickets issued on routes between Europe and some specific areas:

• Europe to/from Asia-Pacific
• Europe to/from South Africa
• Europe to/from Mauritius and Seychelles

All other markets, at least for the time being, remain excluded from this change.

The new penalty table

Class	Previous Criminal	Criminal from June 3, 2026
Economy Class Flex	400 €	0 €
Premium Economy Class Flex	700 €	0 €
Business Class Flex	1.000 €	0 €
First Class Flex	1.500 €	800 €

Because it is good news

Free cancellation on Flex award tickets was one of the most attractive features for those who use miles strategically. Especially in the world of frequent flyers, being able to lock in an award seat and then calmly decide whether or not to confirm it is a huge advantage.

With penalties of 400, 700 or 1,000 euros, however, the very concept of "Flex" had become much less interesting. A flexible award ticket that costs more than a cash ticket to cancel loses much of its meaning, especially if we are talking about itineraries where award availability changes often and where dates can be revised several times.

The return to free cancellation on Economy, Premium Economy, and Business is therefore an important correction, because it restores value to a ticket type that, after the new rules were introduced, had become significantly less attractive.

First Class remains a case apart

First Class, however, continues to be a story in itself. The penalty drops from 1,500 to 800 euro, but it is not eliminated. It is clear that Lufthansa Group wants to keep a brake on speculative cancellations in the most exclusive cabin, where premium seats are few, precious and often highly coveted.

Sure, 800 euros remains a lot. But compared to the previous 1,500 euros we are looking at an almost 50% cut, which makes the situation a little less penalizing for those who want to book an award in First Class with more flexibility.

What it means for those who accumulate Miles&More in Italy.

Since Miles&More has become the program of choice. even for many Italian travelers, any changes to award ticket rules weigh much more heavily than in the past.

The point is simple: If you accumulate miles with cards, flights, partners, promotions and daily activities, you need to know not only how much an award ticket costs, but also how much it costs to change or cancel it. In this sense, the step back by Miles&More is positive, because it reduces one of the main risks associated with booking award tickets on intercontinental routes.

However, it remains a limited change. It is not an across-the-board cancellation of penalties in all markets and on all routes. It applies only to certain routes and only to certain Lufthansa Group flexible Award Flights.

In conclusion

Miles&More partially retraces its steps and makes again more interesting Flex award tickets on certain intercontinental routes. As of today, canceling a Flex award in Economy, Premium Economy or Business Class on certain Lufthansa Group routes goes back to costing zero euros.

The First Class penalty remains, but it drops from 1,500 to 800 euros. This is not little, but it is still a marked improvement.

The real question now is. Whether this opening will remain limited to the indicated markets or whether Miles&More will decide to extend it to other routes as well. For now, however, those looking for award seats to Asia-Pacific, South Africa, Mauritius or the Seychelles can look back at Flex tickets with a little more interest.

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