Avoid Jetstar booking fee

Lmeowsers on 12/01/2016 - 15:22
Last edited 12/01/2016 - 15:23

Moved to Forum: Original Link

Hi, I've been lurking for months and finally found a deal to book. I'm originally from the US and there are laws requiring the complete and total price to be advertised for any plane fare. (ie no hidden fees), you are also allowed to cancel within 24 hours by law at no charge.

You can book a flight (in AUD) through Jetstar using the American website and still use your Australian card. I did it just now. There is no difference in fare. Just no booking fee for any payment method. And the cancellation benefit. Also they don't preselect any baggage/junk offers.

As for address, you could put whatever you wanted to — it doesn't really matter. The billing country just needs to be in the USA. This does not affect CC auth/Paypal. You can still use an Australian phone #.

YES YOU STILL PAY IN AUD.
screenshot
https://files.ozbargain.com.au/upload/177006/36469/jetstar.j…

Instructions:

1) Use skyscanner and in top right change currency and country to USD/USA.
2) Find your jetstar flight — you need to click book with: jetstar. Not with any of the other companies listed.
3) Profit.

Travel

Related Stores

Skyscanner Australia
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Comments

  • h3h3 on 12/01/2016 - 15:24

    belongs in forums

    • sween64 on 12/01/2016 - 15:24
      -1

      Agreed.

      • gimli on 13/01/2016 - 22:27

        Ya

  • meowsers on 12/01/2016 - 15:25
    +2

    Sorry if I put it in the wrong place.

    • ronnknee on 12/01/2016 - 15:27
      +11

      That's alright but this is a useful hack for those who want to pay with their credit card to earn points (and not pay fees). Thanks for the find!

      • Jackson on 12/01/2016 - 15:29
        +1

        How else can you pay for flight online with Jet star besides credit card?

        • ronnknee on 12/01/2016 - 15:30
          +4

          POLi?

        • Jackson on 12/01/2016 - 15:31
          -2

          @ronnknee:nesian?

        • ronnknee on 12/01/2016 - 15:35
          +1

          @Jackson: What? Not sure if you're trying to make a joke or not…

          Anyway, these are the payment methods for Jetstar.

        • Jackson on 12/01/2016 - 15:39

          @ronnknee:I took the opportunity as I hadn't heard of what you were talking about. Clearly since I was booking regularly a few years ago they are enough longer forcing everyone to have a credit card anymore

        • ronnknee on 12/01/2016 - 16:02

          @Jackson: It's been that way for at least 4 years.

        • retiredfeline on 12/01/2016 - 16:30
          +3

          @ronnknee: Also note that POLi works on Linux (may have been working a while as I hadn't tried it until recently, tested with Chrome), it seems they have ditched the Windows extension for Javascript client side code. This is good news for people who are using Android tablets, etc. to book.

        • Jackson on 12/01/2016 - 23:36

          @ronnknee: yeah it's been 5 for me

    • junk3569 on 12/01/2016 - 15:28
      +1

      That's what he says!!

  • eegos on 12/01/2016 - 15:26
    +1

    Nice one. Thx OP

  • [Deactivated] on 12/01/2016 - 15:27

    They would actually end up better off as they are avoiding GST

    • anglais on 12/01/2016 - 15:29

      Given the service itself would be supplied wholly/partially within Australia they should still have to pay GST.

    • ronnknee on 12/01/2016 - 15:33

      Not really. GST is passed onto the consumers. If anything, they are earning ~9% extra if the flights are priced exactly the same.

      • [Deactivated] on 12/01/2016 - 16:24
        -1

        OP

        There is no difference in fare.

        Loopy

        They would actually end up better off

        Your comment

        Not really. If anything, they are earning ~9% extra if the flights are priced exactly the same.

        Thanks Sherlock.

        • zappy32 on 13/01/2016 - 00:59

          Given the wholesale price from Jetstar would include GST it's only Skyscanner's small margin that is GST free which is probably how they can offer the same price and absorb the CC fee.

          I'm not too sure how flights work but it may even be the whole price includes GST with Skyscanner earning a commission on that price.

          Only physical goods exported out of Australia can be sold GST free, even business to business transactions include GST, it's just they can deduct the GST paid to a wholesaler from any GST they collect from the customer when paying the tax office. As a US merchant wouldn't collect GST, they can't claim any back either.

    • tomsco on 13/01/2016 - 18:40

      If traveling international, there shouldn't be any GST charged.

  • Chef-Johnson on 12/01/2016 - 15:28

    Brilliant. Thanks for the post

  • marka on 12/01/2016 - 15:30
    +1

    It's been noted on whirlpool that some banks are charging the international transaction fee if the transaction is processed by a merchant overseas. Changing the currency to AUD does not get around this.

    • meowsers on 12/01/2016 - 15:33

      Yeah I've read about that too. However in this case I've used my Aus Amex and ANZ Debit and it shows up as AUD without any other fees.

      • marka on 12/01/2016 - 15:34

        ING is one that charges the fee

        • meowsers on 12/01/2016 - 15:34

          Forgot to mention you can always PayPal! That's 100% guaranteed not to add a fee.

        • marka on 12/01/2016 - 15:39

          @retiltxet:

          It appears that Paypal has been known to process the transaction in the country of origin. See http://whrl.pl/Revd4j

        • meowsers on 12/01/2016 - 15:46
          +1

          @marka: Sorry, I meant if you had funds in Paypal.

        • dazweeja on 12/01/2016 - 16:10

          @marka: Are you saying that ING charges an international transaction fee when bookings are made through the Jetstar US website or just generally when the transaction is processed by a merchant overseas? Because ANZ generally charges it too but doesn't in this particular case, which makes it interesting.

        • marka on 12/01/2016 - 16:39

          @dazweeja:

          I'm assuming that the billing side is conducted in the US. This would mean it is very likely ING would charge.

          Perhaps someone could confirm.

        • MelBourne on 13/01/2016 - 20:56

          @retiltxet: Then you might as well use POLi

    • Azn310 on 13/01/2016 - 21:52

      I suppose 28 degree cards wont charge fees?

      • fruit on 14/01/2016 - 08:52

        Yep

    • ronnknee on 14/01/2016 - 08:58

      28 Degrees and Coles MC with annual fee are your friends.

  • adam149 on 12/01/2016 - 15:31

    changed my life

  • sonicentropy on 12/01/2016 - 15:49

    Nice find…..

  • lgacb08 on 12/01/2016 - 16:33

    very nice trick indeed, last time I used cc to buy voucher to get point and avoid fee and ended up with an unused voucher because voucher took a while to arrive, before the sale ended. Took me a while to use that voucher.

  • peterpeterpumpkin on 12/01/2016 - 17:40

    Impressive!

    Are you sure the billing address has to be American?

    I suppose a quicker way is to use the normal Australian website to search domestic flights (US only allows flights from Honolulu) and then after the form has been suibmitted simply click on the address bar and add ?culture=en-US to the http://booknow.jetstar.com/Select.aspx URL (i.e. enter "http://booknow.jetstar.com/Select.aspx?culture=en-US").

    I wonder if they'll patch this soon to use geolocation overrides.

    (Aside: I wonder if they presented this as evidence of complacency at the drip-pricing tribunal? And also, I thought the US does allow tricky fees, such as the Airbnb cleaning fees etc?)

    • meowsers on 12/01/2016 - 17:48

      Yeah I called (the accent helps avoid suspicion :P) , and it needs to be from the US, plus having a US billing address automatically gives you a 24 hour cancellation period which is nice.

      As for airBNB it only applies to airlines. Here's an article if you're curious. Haven't tried with Tiger etc but they all have to comply, even if they only sell the flight in the US. Doesn't even have to be within the US. https://www.transportation.gov/affairs/2012/dot0812.html

      • RockyRaccoon on 12/01/2016 - 18:44

        Not sure why, but I had my friends book their flight to Australia with Jetstar via Zuji and the rate they were quoted was the same as the jetstar US website, but Zuji was in AUD

        whereas the Jetstar site when they set the price to AUD it went up to the equivelent rate as it converted the fare to AUD.

        eg Jetstar US site says $US280, so it converted that to $A400 where as Zuji it was $A280.

        Issue was that to get the Zuji price it had to be booked from here. No Problem as I did that for them. They arrived fine on the ticket.

      • peterpeterpumpkin on 12/01/2016 - 20:54

        Ah OK. I just learnt some US regulations trivia I can show off. I wonder what happens if you use an Australian address though? And if you use a US address (and present with a foreign passport if requested ) I suppose you could exploit Jetstar's cancellation perks when departing your Australian address.

        Although I use Poli anyway to avoid fees I love the simplified booking system. I think it said seats were always prearranged?

  • lilingdatou on 12/01/2016 - 19:53

    Thanks, booked 2 ticks without any fee.

  • Edsanwong on 12/01/2016 - 21:43

    How much usually the fee?

    • Azn310 on 13/01/2016 - 21:50

      Yeah OP, which booking fee is this?
      I did a search and there are 2 type:
      - CC booking fee $8.50
      - airport booking fee $32

      The 24 hour cooling period is sure nice

  • coinlaundry on 13/01/2016 - 13:25
    +1

    Thanks OP! Avoided the greedy fee.

  • SnakeDoctor on 13/01/2016 - 15:04
    +1

    Nice work OP

  • Lancerx on 13/01/2016 - 19:00

    dam..just booked few jetstar ticket. So glad someone found out how to beat the fee..what a super rip off! Thanks OP!

  • inherentchoice on 14/01/2016 - 09:50

    Wow cool trick. Now I wonder if it works for other airlines too.

  • bmett on 14/01/2016 - 10:30

    great trick. I'm still puzzled how Jetstar gets away with charging something like $7-$8 per flight PER PERSON credit card fees.

    • spaij on 25/01/2016 - 18:47

      Yes, didn't the RBA regulate that CC fees must in some way resemble the cost of processing?

  • saddybedangdang on 15/01/2016 - 11:10

    I recently booked two return flights to Adelaide with JetStar. We had the option to pay with POLi payments. It got rid of all fees and we only paid for the flight $176 each. Not a single fee. I was trying to understand the catch but seemed to be none. Thanks for this tip!

    • daydream on 25/01/2016 - 01:55

      With POLi there is no fee and this is stated on the Jetstar website:

      http://www.jetstar.com/au/en/planning-and-booking/fares/fees…

      "Jetstar charges a Booking and Service Fee for some bookings completed online. For bookings made in Australian Dollars (AUD), Jetstar waives this Booking and Service Fee for all bookings paid for using Jetstar MasterCard, Jetstar Platinum MasterCard, Jetstar Vouchers, POLi and Direct Deposit (Direct Deposit is available up to 14 days prior to departure only)."

  • ZeroSix on 21/01/2016 - 09:20
    +2

    Cheers OP just booked flights for 6 people and saved $51

  • twiz911 on 25/01/2016 - 02:21
    +2

    I can confirm you do avoid booking fees using this method.

    However, you cannot cancel the flight - I phoned up and tried to cancel with Jetstar they said no way.

    • meowsers on 26/01/2016 - 16:26

      If you have a US billing address listed, be insistent. Often times reps do not know the policy.

  • hashtagbargain on 25/01/2016 - 16:59

    Thanks for this OP.

  • cutiebbangel on 26/01/2016 - 13:30

    trying to book (went through skyscanner- clicked continue etc)- but I'm still getting charged the extras? anyone can guide me through this?

    Im trying to book from singapore to siem reap.

  • illumination on 20/02/2016 - 07:09

    Thanks OP! That's awesome.
    However, noticed this specific wording:

    If you purchase your booking in the United States, you may cancel your booking and have your ticket refunded without charge within 24 hours of booking (when the booking is purchased one week or more prior to scheduled departure of the first flight in the itinerary).

    i.e. the 24 hour refund thing only applies if the flight is more than one week away. So doesn't apply for me!

  • Hoju on 20/03/2016 - 08:07
    +1

    THANK YOU! Thank you thank you. This is the best post - there are so many other articles around the net suggesting ways of avoiding it but they essentially involve buying gift vouchers with your CC then paying. A) this is annoying and B) it doesn't fix my problem, which was that I wanted to purchase with my CC to activate the free travel insurance for the trip that came with my citibank platinum.

    YES! Just saved $100 for four of us on return flights to Hawaii. $100 in fees! Legend, thanks man.

    For what it's worth though I was able to put in all my details as Australian, and it went through fine, no US billing address. Itineraries are confirmed and emailed out.

  • flymetothemoon on 26/04/2016 - 08:42

    Thank you!! Like Hoju above, I was able to book using my Australian details :)

  • Samsungnote10 on 28/04/2016 - 23:43

    Ok im a bit confused
    So if you are booking aus to any country you check the price on jetstar.com.au

    Find flight.then go to jetstar.com and avoid the cc fees but still pay in aud?

    I saw a reference to skyscanner but i found that skyscanner always used to be 25 dollars more than go direct even though they state no fees

    • Hoju on 29/04/2016 - 06:53

      You use sky scanner as a gateway to the Jetstar site so it looks like you're from US.

      Find your dates on Aus Jetstar site.
      Go to sky scanner, change to UsD in top right corner, and search for the flights on those dates.
      Jetstar will appear as one of the booking options
      Go direct through there.

      • Samsungnote10 on 29/04/2016 - 08:53

        Thank you
        But if you choose usd you will get charged a currency conversion fee on your credit card right?

        • Hoju on 29/04/2016 - 09:12

          Mope charge is aud

  • Samsungnote10 on 29/04/2016 - 14:13

    Ok great!!!thabks

  • glassyan on 23/05/2016 - 22:33
    +1

    Patched now, you can no longer use the Jetstar US site to book flights that does not start from USA :(

    Tried both the skyscanner method and the ?culture=en-US method, both method now redirects to the main US page with no ability to book Australian flights on the US site.

    • BinnyC on 24/06/2016 - 19:32

      I have tried it as well and seems you can't. Does anyone know if there is a way around?

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