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How to cancel an IRCTC e-ticket: charges, TDR and deadlines
What it costs to cancel an e-ticket on IRCTC, how the charge changes as departure gets closer, and what to do once the chart is prepared.
Can you cancel an e-ticket online?
IRCTC says an e-ticket can be cancelled online until the chart is prepared; cancellations are not allowed at railway counters. A cancelled ticket's refund goes back to the account used for booking. How much you lose depends on how long before departure you cancel. Once the chart is prepared, a normal user cannot cancel online and must file a TDR (Ticket Deposit Receipt) online instead.
Charges for a confirmed ticket
IRCTC's cancellation page lists these charges per passenger.
| When you cancel | Charge |
|---|---|
| More than 48 hours before departure | A flat amount by class: AC First/Executive ₹240, AC 2 Tier/First Class ₹200, AC 3 Tier/AC Chair Car/AC 3 Economy ₹180, Sleeper ₹120, Second Class ₹60 |
| Within 48 hours and up to 12 hours before departure | 25% of the fare, subject to the flat minimum above |
| Less than 12 hours and up to 4 hours before departure (or until chart preparation, if earlier) | 50% of the fare, subject to minimum charges |
For trains starting up to 12 noon, IRCTC says the chart is usually prepared the previous night.
After the chart is prepared
- A normal user cannot cancel online after chart preparation and must file a TDR online.
- A confirmed ticket gets no refund if it is neither cancelled nor has a TDR filed online up to 4 hours before departure.
- An RAC e-ticket gets no refund if it is not cancelled, or the TDR is not filed online, up to 30 minutes before departure.
- Agents cannot cancel after chart preparation. They email etickets@irctc.co.in with the PNR, transaction ID and passenger details, and IRCTC files the TDR.
Party and family tickets
If some passengers on a ticket are confirmed and others are on RAC or the waitlist, the confirmed passengers still get a full refund minus clerkage. This needs all passengers to be cancelled, or TDRs filed online, up to 30 minutes before departure.
Tatkal tickets
IRCTC says there is no refund on a confirmed Tatkal e-ticket. Cancelling a contingent or waitlisted Tatkal ticket carries charges under Railway rules. Partial cancellation is allowed. See our Tatkal guide.
If the train is cancelled
If the train is marked CANCELLED in the reservation system because of breaches, floods or accidents, IRCTC allows a full refund when the ticket is cancelled within three days of the scheduled departure. Other cases are in our guide to cancelled, diverted and late trains.
Waitlisted tickets
The cancellation page gives no separate refund rule for ordinary waitlisted tickets. What happens to a ticket that is still waitlisted at charting is in our waitlist guide.
In short
- Cancel online before the chart; after it, file a TDR.
- The charge rises from a flat amount to 25% and then 50% as departure gets closer.
- A confirmed ticket gets nothing back if neither cancelled nor TDR-filed up to 4 hours before departure.
Sources
Check your ticket in the app
ClearBerth shows your PNR status with a berth diagram, tracks your train live and alerts you when your waitlist moves. Tickets are booked on IRCTC, not in ClearBerth.
