In recent months, the Lufthansa Group has made several changes to its fare structure. For instance, since March, Light fares have been introduced for Business and Premium Economy Class for the first time. These offer (at the usual price) less checked baggage and no longer include complimentary seat selection, even for status customers. Furthermore, Flex fares have been raised on numerous routes since March. The namesake flexibility is gone, as cancellation fees of up to €1,500 now apply.
Those booking tickets with miles had been spared from both changes until now. However, that has now come to an end. Since May 27, 2026, the new fare structure also applies to award flights, at least when booked through Miles & More and operated by a Lufthansa Group airline (Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian, etc.).
Table of Contents
Business & Premium Eco Light Now Also for Award Tickets
- halving the checked baggage allowance
- removal of complimentary seat selection in Business Class
- removal of seat selection for status customers in Premium Eco / Business Class
- higher change/cancellation fees
Read more about this in the following article:
Effective immediately, these new Light fares can also be booked with miles—at least on all routes where the Light fare is also offered for cash. For example, from Sweden to India:
When the new Light fares were first introduced in March, they were accompanied by a hidden price increase for paid tickets. This is because the entry-level prices remained unchanged but became the Light fare. Anyone wanting the usual benefits must choose the next-highest fare, paying correspondingly more—at least on all routes where the Light fare is offered.
Award flights were not directly touched during the changes in March, but they became more expensive nonetheless. This is because award ticket pricing is oriented around paid fares. Since the Business Basic fare became more expensive, the award flights linked to it also increased in price by several thousand miles.
In short: the introduction of Light fares for award flights has no further negative consequences now, as the associated price increase has already been in effect since March. Those who can get by with less baggage & without seat selection can actually save a few miles compared to the prices in April.
Up to €1,500 Cancellation Fee Even on Flex Fares
The new fare structure for award flights has another negative consequence. As you can see in the screenshot above, Miles & More charges a hefty SEK 10,830 (~€999) fee in the Flex fare if you want to cancel the ticket. This is despite the fact that the Flex fare costs a surcharge of more than 20,000 miles compared to the cheapest ticket. Until May 26, the Flex fare (at the same price) was still fully refundable.
This change has been in effect for paid tickets since the beginning of April, albeit only on selected routes to Asia and Africa. Now, it is also making its way into award flights:
Initially, I defended this change in light of the Middle East crisis. At the time, Middle Eastern airlines were operating a severely limited schedule, and many passengers had likely booked a backup ticket, for example with Lufthansa. Since then, most Middle Eastern airlines are offering an extensive schedule again, and travel warnings have been lifted. It is about time for Lufthansa to start offering flexible fares again.
These changes only apply to award flights operated by the Lufthansa Group. Flights with other Star Alliance partners can still be cancelled for a €50 fee. However, these often cost more miles, and availability is scarce anyway.
Curiously, in some cases, the Standard fare is offered for the Lufthansa Group alongside Base, Flex, and others. This fare can still be cancelled for a €50 fee. Normally, since the introduction of dynamic pricing, this fare has been reserved for Star Alliance partners.
Another Increase in Fuel Surcharges on Some Routes
This final point is not directly related to the new fare structure. However, looking at a few examples to Asia, we noticed that Lufthansa has apparently adjusted its fuel surcharges once again.
Example: A Business Class award flight from Oslo (via Munich) to Beijing cost 28,109 miles + €430 in taxes and fees in early May. Now, it requires a hefty €485 in additional charges for the same amount of miles. A few euros can be explained by exchange rate fluctuations, but the included fuel surcharge appears to have increased from €350 to €400 each way.
The same applies to flights to Shanghai, including departures from Germany. Other routes, such as to Delhi, Cape Town, and North America, showed no changes based on our random checks. However, at least since the last increase in March, transatlantic flights have become unattractive anyway, as the surcharges there are much higher than to Asia.
Thanks to YHBU for the heads-up