Guide · United Kingdom & Europe

NDC for European travel agencies

What NDC is, why Europe's airline groups pushed agencies towards it, what changes in booking, servicing and settlement, and how to add it beside your GDS without losing content or slowing your ticketing team.

Published 31 October 2026 · By the Innovate Solution distribution team · Not legal or commercial advice: airline terms change, so confirm them for your market.

Short answer: European agencies rarely choose NDC instead of the GDS. They add NDC for the airline groups that put their best content or lower distribution costs there, keep the GDS for breadth and servicing, and add low-cost carriers for short-haul Europe — all in one search, with the same markups and agent rules.

Background

Why NDC matters more in Europe

NDC is an IATA standard through which an airline builds its own offers — fares, branded fares, ancillaries and seats — and distributes them directly to sellers. In the GDS model, by contrast, fares are filed and assembled by the GDS.

Europe's large airline groups were among the first to attach a price to that difference:

1 September 2015Lufthansa Group (Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines) introduces a Distribution Cost Charge on tickets issued through a GDS (TravelMole).
1 April 2018Air France-KLM introduces a GDS surcharge; agency sales through an NDC connection are exempt (TravelPulse).
TodayCharges, exemptions and NDC-only content differ by airline, market and agency agreement, and change often. Treat each carrier separately and check its current trade terms.

The result for a European agency: the same flight can carry different content and a different total cost depending on whether it was booked through the GDS or NDC. A platform that shows both side by side lets your team see that difference before they book.

Operations

What changes for an agency when it adds NDC

Shopping

NDC returns offers the airline builds itself, often with bundles and ancillaries the GDS does not show. Your search must merge them with GDS and low-cost results, or agents end up comparing tabs.

Booking records

An NDC booking is an order held by the airline, not a PNR built in the GDS. Your mid-office has to store and display both.

Servicing

Changes, cancellations, refunds and ancillary add-ons depend on what each airline supports through its NDC API, which still varies. Map per carrier which actions run through the API and which need the airline's agent portal.

Settlement

Accredited agencies usually report and settle NDC sales through BSP, but the details depend on the airline and market. Confirm before go-live to avoid ADMs.

Pricing and markup

Your markups, service fees and sub-agent terms need to apply to NDC offers exactly as they do to GDS fares, or your margin changes depending on the channel.

Staff workflow

Ticketing teams who work in cryptic GDS commands keep them for GDS bookings; NDC servicing happens in the booking platform. Plan training for both.

Your options

Three ways to connect NDC

RouteBest whenTrade-off

Direct airline connectionYou sell high volumes on one or two carriers and want their full NDC capabilityBuilt, certified and maintained per airline

NDC aggregatorYou need many NDC airlines quickly through one connectionCoverage and servicing depth depend on the aggregator

Through your GDS's NDC offeringYou want NDC inside existing GDS workflowsContent and servicing depend on what the GDS supports for each airline

Many agencies combine routes per airline. What matters is that the results land in one search with one set of business rules.

Due diligence

Questions to ask any NDC provider

Which of the airlines I sell are available through NDC for my market and agency, and through which route?
Which servicing actions (changes, refunds, voids, seats, bags) are supported through the API for each of those airlines?
Are NDC, GDS and low-cost results shown in one search with my markups and sub-agent rules applied?
How are NDC sales reported for BSP settlement and reconciled in the back office?
Can I keep my existing GDS credentials and ticketing authority?
What does a failed or partial order look like, and who is alerted?
Where is booking data processed and hosted, and is a GDPR Data Processing Agreement available?

For the wider vendor review, use the travel technology vendor evaluation checklist.

How we do it

NDC with Innovate Solution

37 NDC carriers, reached through direct connections and Verteil, an IATA NDC Level 4 aggregator; Innovate Solution is a certified Verteil partner.
NDC offers shown beside Amadeus, Sabre and Travelport (TDN certified partner) content and 100+ low-cost carriers in one normalised search.
Your existing GDS credentials (PCC, Office ID or SID) reused, with an integrated cryptic GDS terminal beside the booking screens.
Your markups and each sub-agent's markup and credit terms applied to NDC offers, in the ReservationHub B2B portal and white-label storefronts or through the TripGic API.
Revenue, supplier cost and margin per booking tracked in TRI.

European full-service airlines in our supplier network

Whether a carrier is booked through NDC, the GDS or both depends on your market and agreements — ask us about the airlines you sell.

Airlines 12

British Airways
Air France
KLM
Lufthansa
SWISS
Austrian Airlines
Brussels Airlines
Eurowings Discover
Iberia
Finnair
SAS
LOT Polish Airlines

Request an NDC demo Send us your airline list

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

What is NDC in simple terms?

NDC (New Distribution Capability) is an IATA XML standard that lets an airline build its own offers — fares, branded bundles, ancillaries and seats — and send them straight to travel sellers, instead of filing everything through a GDS. The seller shops, books and services those offers through the airline's NDC API or through an NDC aggregator.

Why does NDC matter more for European agencies?

Several large European airline groups tied their distribution strategy to it. Lufthansa Group introduced a Distribution Cost Charge on tickets issued through a GDS from 1 September 2015, and Air France-KLM introduced a GDS surcharge from 1 April 2018 that does not apply to agency sales made through an NDC connection. Policies and amounts have changed since, so check each airline's current terms for your market.

Do I have to give up my GDS to use NDC?

No. Most agencies keep the GDS for its breadth, ticketing and servicing tools and add NDC for the carriers where it gives better content or avoids a surcharge, plus low-cost carriers for short-haul Europe. The practical requirement is a booking layer that shows all three side by side.

What changes for my ticketing and servicing staff?

NDC bookings are orders held by the airline rather than PNRs and e-tickets built in the GDS, so changes, refunds and ancillary sales follow each airline's NDC servicing capabilities, which still vary. Agencies should check, per carrier, which changes can be made through the API and which need the airline's own agent portal.

How are NDC bookings settled?

For IATA-accredited agencies, NDC sales from participating airlines are generally reported and settled through BSP like other tickets, but this depends on the airline and the market. Confirm settlement and reporting per carrier before go-live.

Direct NDC connection or an aggregator?

A direct connection to each airline gives the deepest control but has to be built, certified and maintained per carrier. An NDC aggregator gives many airlines through one connection. Innovate Solution uses both: direct connections and Verteil, an IATA NDC Level 4 aggregator of which it is a certified partner.

How many NDC airlines does Innovate Solution connect?

37 NDC carriers, shown beside Amadeus, Sabre and Travelport content and 100+ low-cost carriers in one normalised search, in the ReservationHub booking platform and the TripGic API. Which European airlines are available through NDC for you depends on your market and agreements — ask us about specific carriers.

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