Fuel surcharges are the bane of many frequent flyers, junk fees adding hundreds or even a thousand dollars onto award tickets by many frequent flyer programs around the world.

Airlines like fuel surcharges because:

• Changing the fuel surcharge in a market can raise or lower every ticket price in that market, no need to re-file every single fare.
  
• They allow an airline to raise price even with many fixed-fare agreements.
  
• And, of course, because they can be charged to frequent flyers trying to redeem a captive points currency.

US frequent flyers — who don’t participate in mileage programs based outside the US — don’t have to deal with fuel surcharges very much.

• American adds them to awards on British Airways (and to a very modest extent on Iberia)
  
• Alaska adds them to awards on British Airways
  
• Delta adds them to awards on some partners – like China Southern and China Eastern – and to travel originating in Europe.

United doesn’t add them at all.

But for European programs, and those based in Asia Pacific, they can be huge — hundreds of dollars each way. The idea is that miles cover the fare only and the frequent flyer has to pay taxes and surcharges.

They generally make economy travel redemptions foolish, as you spend points and have to find availability, don’t earn miles, and still wind up paying much of the cost of a paid ticket.

There are some tricks to reducing fuel surcharges on award tickets.

Reader Petra shares the news that the Philippines has banned fuel surcharges for tickets originating there. And with the price of fuel falling we’re starting to see a few carriers eliminate fuel surcharges, but some airlines just have a sneaky way of renaming the fee since ‘fuel surcharge’ no longer has much credibility with the price of fuel dropping dramatically.

But if you know where to start and end your award trip you can avoid fuel surcharges entirely.

Just like you can book award tickets originating in Brazil with a savings because fuel surcharges are illegal there, you can book award tickets originating in the Philippines and save on fees as well.

Here are the fees for a British Airways award ticket in business class, Sao Paulo – London.

Similarly, here’s a Japan Airlines business class award itinerary I pulled up at BA.com, one way Manila – Los Angeles.

The taxes and fees on the award are just $54 total.

In contrast, flying the other way — Los Angeles to Manila — brings up taxes and fees of $227.

The Philippines rule apparently applies to tickets originating there and not merely flying to or through there.

Aeroplan, an American Express Membership Rewards transfer partner, is another airline that adds fuel surcharges onto many of its partner awards. (See How to Book Star Alliance Awards Using Aeroplan Without Fuel Surcharges).

Here’s a business class award itinerary on Asiana, Manila – Los Angeles.

Taxes and fees total $46.30.

There’s savings to be had returning from Asia with a ticket that originates in Manila (or the Philippines generally). Remember, the savings I’m showing here is just for a one-way ticket. A roundtrip originating in the Philippines has no fuel surcharges at all, so the savings is greater.

Some flyers will find value, then, in originating their return from Asia in the Philippines — especially if they’ll be traveling around the region, and can order their trip in any way they wish .. visiting the Philippines ‘last’ is going to be cheaper than going there first or in the middle!

---

You can join the 40,000+ people who see these deals and analysis every day — sign up to receive posts by email (just one e-mail per day) or subscribe to the RSS feed. It’s free. You can also follow me on Twitter for the latest deals. Don’t miss out!