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How Long Does the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass Take to Post After Your First Purchase?

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Good morning everyone, I have some exciting news.  My girlfriend just got her Southwest Airlines Companion Pass and I am her companion!  I’ve had the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass in the past, but never a travel companion.  I used to joke that getting the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass was easy, but finding a companion was the hard part.  Anyway, since we live in California, she was eligible to sign up for a Chase Southwest Airlines Plus Credit Card, make a single purchase, and get the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass.  The way the promotion read sounded like after you made your first purchase, your Southwest Airlines account would immediately reflect the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass.  Unfortunately, that was not the case.  I checked her Southwest Airlines account every day, so I know exactly how long it took for the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass to post to her account.  In this post, I will share the timeline of events and show you how to set up your Southwest Airlines Companion Pass.

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She signed up for the Chase Southwest Airlines Plus Credit Card in early November and was instantly approved.  I told her that she was under 5/24 and now she knows what that means.  She likes to remind me that she is 1/24, so we have big Chase plans in our future.  Anyway, she made her first purchase on November 15, so I assumed the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass would post shortly after that.  Unfortunately, that was not the case.  No problem, we didn’t need the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass until late December, so we had plenty of time to wait.

Her first Chase Southwest Airlines Plus Credit Card statement closed on December 3, so I assumed the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass would post shortly after that.  Unfortunately, that was not the case either.  Come on Southwest Airlines, give us our Southwest Airlines Companion Pass!

a screenshot of a credit card

On December 4, her Southwest Airlines account showed the points she earned from her Chase Southwest Airlines Plus Credit Card.  That was reassuring, at least Southwest Airlines knew which account to post the Southwest Airlines points to, so they should know which account to post the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass to as well.

a screenshot of a credit card

Fast forward to December 13 and her Southwest Airlines Companion Pass finally posted to her account.  That was almost a full month from the date she made her first purchase and about 10 days after her Chase Southwest Airlines Plus Credit Card statement closed.  Better late than never, I guess.  To assign your companion, click the Enter Companion Info link.  Is it me, or is it somewhat suspicious that the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass expires on December 30, 2018 and not December 31, 2018? #southwestconspiracy

a screenshot of a website

The Southwest Airlines Companion Pass info form was very easy to fill out.  I double checked that all the info was correct and clicked the Submit button.

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Congratulations (to me), I am now the official Southwest Airlines Companion to my girlfriend.

a screenshot of a website

The following day on December 14, Laura received an email from Southwest Airlines regarding her Southwest Airlines Companion Pass.  Better late than never on the email.

a screenshot of a credit card

My next task was to cancel all the Southwest Airlines flights that I booked for myself, so that I could be added as a companion to my girlfriend’s flights.  I have another blog post in the works on how to cancel multi-passenger reservations and see when your Southwest Airlines travel credit will expire before cancelling your Southwest Airlines ticket.  Stay tuned for those blog posts.

If you have any questions, please leave a comment below.  Have a great day everyone!


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9 thoughts on “How Long Does the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass Take to Post After Your First Purchase?

  1. Kiki

    I made first purchase 11/29; companion pass posted 12/13. As we are flying 12/15, this was perfect. Each of our SWA reservations was separate and on points, so easy to cancel one.

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