Etihad Airways flexible booking policy gives travellers more change options

April 7, 2026
4 min read

Etihad Airways now waives the first date change fee on eligible tickets.
Travellers still pay any fare difference when prices rise after booking.
The offer covers selected tickets issued from March 6, 2026, onward.
Rules, blackout dates, and other charges still matter before any booking.

Etihad Airways’ flexible booking policy gives travellers a simpler option when plans shift after booking. The new offer removes the first flight date change fee on eligible fares. This update helps passengers who want more travel flexibility during uncertain planning periods. You still need to watch the fare difference before confirming a new trip date.

Etihad Airways applies this offer to tickets issued on or after March 6, 2026. Travel under this rule stays valid through March 31, 2027, on selected fares. The waiver covers only the first flight date change on eligible discounted bookings. Refund fees, no-show charges, and other penalties still stay outside this offer.

Travellers should understand one important point before making any booking under this policy. A free change fee does not mean the new ticket price stays unchanged. When ticket prices rise, passengers must pay the fare difference during rebooking. This rule makes timing important for anyone planning future holidays or business trips.

Etihad Airways also says all changes must go through its own official channels. Passengers need to use etihad.com or call centres for any approved modification. This step matters because outside agents might follow different service steps or limits. Checking fare rules before payment gives you a clearer picture of each booking.

Etihad Airways includes taxes and fuel surcharges in promoted fares shown during booking. Final totals still change when airport taxes move before your payment finishes. From my standpoint, this makes careful review essential before you lock in any travel plan. Small details in airline ticket rules often shape the full cost more than headlines suggest.

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Etihad Airways’ flexible booking policy still comes with limits that travellers should review

Selected fares under this offer carry limited inventory and depend on seat availability. Some routes or travel dates might not support the waiver at booking. Weekend surcharges, peak period charges, and blackout dates might still raise total costs. Those limits mean a free change option still needs careful planning from travellers.

Valid visas and travel documents also remain the passenger’s own responsibility throughout travel. A changed ticket does not solve entry issues in any destination country. Travellers should match new dates with visa validity before making a flight date change. That step helps avoid extra stress close to departure or airport check-in.

This policy also fits a wider pattern across UAE airline updates this season. Airlines across the region have focused more on flexible support during schedule changes. That approach reflects a stronger demand for easier booking tools and clearer self-service. Passengers now expect faster rebooking options when plans change without warning.

An approach that helps you avoid surprise costs

Etihad Airways benefits from this move because travellers often compare flexibility before price. A cheaper fare looks less useful when the change costs feel too heavy later. Giving one free amendment improves confidence during the first booking decision for many. That confidence often matters for families, frequent flyers, and short-notice business travellers.

Still, this offer works best for passengers who read every rule before purchase. Travel flexibility sounds generous, though rules decide the real value in daily use. Anyone booking should review date limits, fare difference terms, and route restrictions first. That careful approach helps you avoid surprise costs and use the policy well.

For many passengers, the real benefit is peace of mind during uncertain scheduling periods. A first free change gives room to react when work or family plans shift. Yet smart travellers still compare total booking terms before choosing any discounted ticket. In practical terms, flexibility matters most when paired with clear costs and realistic planning.

Midterms Hub by Kalshi Brings Live Election Odds Into One Map Dashboard

The Midterms Hub by Kalshi gives you one place to watch how traders expect the 2026 elections to end. Kalshi is a prediction market platform. A prediction market lets people buy and sell contracts tied to a real event, so the price reads like live odds. The company opened the hub on Wednesday.

What the Midterms Hub by Kalshi shows

Open the page, and you see a map of the country. Each race carries a number, the current 2026 midterm election odds from Kalshi’s traders. The map covers individual Senate and House contests, plus several governor races. All 435 House seats are on the ballot this November, along with 35 of the 100 Senate seats. You can also check polling averages next to the market odds, which lets you compare two very different ways of reading a race. The hub adds the latest federal fundraising reports for candidates and a feed of curated news and analysis.

Most of the traffic is not from bettors. Kalshi said about three-quarters of its visitors come only to check current odds and never trade. That is the audience the hub targets, readers who want the data without placing money. The Midterms Hub by Kalshi gives them a single, plain view of every race.

Why prediction markets, not polls

Kalshi’s pitch leans on a simple idea. When people risk real money, they tend to say what they think will happen, not what they hope will happen. CEO Tarek Mansour argued in a statement that prediction markets resist spin and partisanship, showing what the crowd believes when real money is on the line. “That kind of clarity is rare right now, and that’s what people are getting with the Midterms Hub,” Mansour said.

Mansour studied at MIT and worked as a trader at Citadel and an analyst at Goldman Sachs. His argument is that market prices resist political bias better than surveys. Polls capture one moment, while market prices move all day as news breaks. That claim is contested, and polls and markets often disagree, so the hub shows both side by side.

A bigger political push

The Midterms Hub by Kalshi is the newest step in the company’s move into politics before November. In May, Kalshi rolled out the American Power Index, which it called an “S&P 500” for politics. The index tracks which party is up and which is down. Kalshi runs as a federally regulated exchange in the United States, where insider trading and market manipulation are illegal.

Money already in play

Interest in these platforms tends to climb during big elections. Many observers expect the 2026 midterm season to bring another jump in prediction market volume, much like the 2024 presidential race did. The money is already moving. More than $30 million has been traded on contracts tied to Senate and House control for 2026.

If you want to compare sources, you have options. Some readers track Kalshi vs Polymarket odds to see whether two markets land on the same number. When both agree, the read tends to feel firmer. For now, the Midterms Hub by Kalshi keeps that election forecasting in a single spot, alongside the polling, money, and news around each race.

By Leila Al-Khatib
3 min read

Digital Payments

Buy Now Pay Later Data From Tabby and Tamara Enters UAE Credit Reports

Buy Now Pay Later records from Tabby and Tamara will enter UAE credit reports from July 2026, changing how lenders read the finances of people who split payments into instalments, WAM announced today. Etihad Credit Bureau, the federal body that oversees credit information in the country, said the accounts of both current and new customers will be covered, along with relevant historical transactions. The move brings a fast-growing corner of consumer finance under the same reporting rules that already apply to loans, cards, and mortgages.

Buy Now Pay Later plans once sat outside the formal record. A shopper could hold several active instalments without any of them showing on a UAE credit report. That gap made it harder for banks to gauge how much a borrower owed. Now the picture becomes fuller.

Who governs the data?

The question behind this shift is not only about spending. It is about who holds the record and who answers for it. Etihad Credit Bureau sits at that centre, and its decision places two of the region’s largest fintech names, Tabby and Tamara, inside a regulated framework rather than beside it.

The Central Bank of the UAE recognised instalment schemes as a form of short-term credit in 2023. Under those rules, providers must check a borrower’s credit report once a total credit limit passes 5,000 dirhams. Late fees on these plans are capped at 30 percent of the purchase under central bank rules, and the plans carry no interest. Adding instalment data to the file makes that check sharper. Lenders and authorised entities can weigh a person’s full set of commitments before they approve more.

Marwan Ahmad Lutfi, Director General of Etihad Credit Bureau, said the Bureau wants credit reports to reflect the way consumer finance now works, with a broad view of what a person owes. His framing puts governance first. Better data, he argued, supports steadier decisions across the system.

Does BNPL affect credit score?

A common question among shoppers, does BNPL affect credit score, now has a firmer answer. Missed instalments could lower a score, while steady repayment could help build one. The UAE credit score runs from 300 to 900, and the report behind it is what lenders read to explain the number.

Hosam Arab, CEO and Co-founder of Tabby, said responsible lending starts with a clear view of a person’s money, and that customers who pay on time can now let that record count toward their wider standing. Sagar Shah, General Manager for Tamara in the UAE, tied the step to trust, saying it widens the door for more people to take part in the financial system.

What it means for the BNPL UAE market

The buy now pay later UAE market has expanded quickly as shoppers reach for interest-free instalments on everyday purchases. Bringing that activity into the credit file rewards discipline and exposes strain earlier. For new-to-credit customers, a clean instalment history can open a path toward loans and cards that once stayed out of reach.

Etihad Credit Bureau framed the addition as part of a longer effort to work with banks, fintech firms, and other data providers. The aim, in its account, is a credit system that sees more and misses less.

By Mariam Al-Yazidi
3 min read

Mohamed Salah

Besiktas’ offer for Mohamed Salah could exceed €40 million over two years

Besiktas’ offer for Mohamed Salah now rests on a single decision, with the Istanbul club setting a 24-hour window for the Egyptian forward to reply. The proposal runs across two seasons and reflects a level of spending rarely seen in the Turkish Super Lig. According to a report carried by beIN Sports, the club put forward a guaranteed annual salary of €15 million, along with performance bonuses of around €4 million. The agreement is also said to include clauses covering image rights. These figures come from Turkish media, and neither side has confirmed them in public.

What do the numbers show?

If every incentive triggers, Salah’s yearly income could climb to between €19 million and €20 million. Across the full term, that would take the total Mohamed Salah Besiktas contract commitment past €40 million. Reports describe the guaranteed figure as a net €15 million, a request Salah’s side raised early in the talks. The Salah salary on the table would place him among the highest earners in the league by a wide margin. Besiktas appears ready to absorb that cost to bring in a forward of his standing.

The Mohamed Salah Liverpool departure earlier in the summer sent one of the game’s most productive forwards onto the open market. His nine-year spell at Anfield brought more than 250 goals and a full set of domestic and European honors. That record explains the interest that followed his exit. Salah’s free agent status removed any transfer fee from the picture, which widened the field of possible destinations and shaped the terms now under review.

Rival interest in the background

Before the Turkish talks advanced, Salah drew interest from the Saudi Pro League and from clubs in Major League Soccer, according to widely reported accounts. Those options let the 34-year-old weigh location, level of competition, and long-term plans against the Istanbul proposal. For now, reports place Besiktas as the most concrete of the suitors. Besiktas’ offer for Mohamed Salah reaches a deadline.

After the financial package landed, attention shifted to Salah and his agent, Ramy Abbas, as Besiktas waited for a final answer. Journalist Sercan Dikme reported the two sides had moved forward on several points before the club asked for a clear response within 24 hours. Club president Serdal Adali framed the proposal as the club’s final offer and said Besiktas weighed each requested change against its own interests. Besiktas’ offer for Mohamed Salah carries a firm timeline, and Adali told Turkish media the decision now sits with the player. That deadline points to Monday evening.

What the Besiktas transfer means

For a club measuring itself against Galatasaray and Fenerbahce, adding Salah would signal clear intent. The latest Besiktas transfer news suggests the gap between the two sides narrowed through repeated rounds of talks. Besiktas has worked to build a stronger front line, and a forward with Salah’s output would change the club’s attacking shape. Whether Besiktas’ offer for Mohamed Salah closes will depend on how the forward reads the choice in front of him. A response is expected soon.

By Adnan Al-Jaziri
3 min read

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Etihad Airways flexible booking policy gives travellers more change options

Etihad Airways flexible booking policy gives travellers more change options

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