As PayLater comes under credit rules in Southeast Asia, travellers should know how a change of plans affects their repayment schedule

Travel plans change. Flights move, dates shift and trips are sometimes cancelled altogether. For travelers who paid with PayLater, a change raises a question that is easy to overlook at checkout: what happens to the instalments?

The question matters more as PayLater becomes regulated credit. In Malaysia, buy-now-pay-later providers must now be licensed under the Consumer Credit Act 2025, which came into force on 1 March 2026 and covers conduct and disclosure. In Indonesia, OJK Board Member Regulation No. 2 of 2026 sets age and income checks for PayLater customers and caps the share of income repayments may take from 2027. In Thailand, the central bank is preparing its own licensing framework. Across the region, PayLater is being treated as a loan, and a loan’s schedule does not automatically follow a change in the trip it paid for.

That is why the timing of questions matters. Before booking, travelers can ask their PayLater provider how a refund or a reschedule is handled on an instalment plan: whether a refund is credited back to the plan, how long that takes, and whether instalments continue in the meantime. Keeping the booking confirmation and the PayLater plan details together makes any later conversation simpler.

Airpaz, the Asia Pacific online travel booking platform, offers flexible booking options such as Reschedule and Refund, alongside PayLater among its 100+ payment methods. Travelers who choose both are encouraged to check with their PayLater provider how a change is handled, so the repayment schedule matches the trip they actually take. Airpaz’s 24/7 live chat can help with the booking side of a change.

“Flexibility at booking is only half of the picture if the payment plan does not move with it,” said Wesley Wijaya, Chief of Partnership at Airpaz. “We encourage travelers to understand both sides, the booking and the instalments, before plans change, not after.”

The simplest habit is to ask one question before tapping PayLater: if this trip changes, what happens to my instalments? A clear answer at checkout saves a long conversation later.

About Airpaz — Airpaz is an online travel booking platform based in Asia Pacific, offering flights and hotels around the world. Alongside flights across 600,000+ routes and 450+ airlines and 1.2 million+ properties, it covers activities, ferries, buses, and trains — supported by 100+ payment methods, checkout in 61 currencies and 38 languages, flexible booking add-ons, embedded travel insurance, and 24/7 live-chat assistance. With 3 million+ app downloads, Airpaz helps travelers plan, book, and pay for entire trips in one place. Learn more at airpaz.com.