Amadeus Lesson 8: How to add FOP, Commission &(FV)

A Complete Beginner’s Guide to Payment, Commission & Ticketing Arrangement in Amadeus GDS

By now you’ve built a complete PNR — flights, passenger names, contact details, frequent flyer cards, pricing, and passport information. In this eighth lesson, we’ll take you through one of the most critical final steps: adding a Form of Payment (FOP), Commission, and the FV element (Ticketing Arrangement) that tells the system how the ticket will be issued. Without these elements, an airline may reject the ticket — so mastering them is essential for any professional travel agent. Full video demonstration is included at the end.

What Is FOP, Commission, and FV?

These three elements work together to complete a booking:

• FOP (Form of Payment) – Specifies how the ticket will be paid for (cash, credit card, invoice, etc.)
• Commission – Records the travel agency’s commission on the sale
• FV (Ticketing Arrangement) – Defines when and where the ticket will be issued

Step 1: Add a Form of Payment (FOP)

The FP command adds a Form of Payment to the PNR. The general format is:

For a credit card payment, the format is different:

• FP – Form of Payment command
• CC – Credit Card type
• VI – Card vendor code (VI = Visa, CA = MasterCard, AX = American Express)
• 4111111111111111 – Card number
• /0127 – Expiry date (MMYY format)

Step 2: Add a Commission

The FM command adds a commission to the PNR. This records the agency’s earnings for the sale:

• FM – Commission command
• 5 – Commission percentage (5% in this example)

You can also add a fixed commission amount using a different format, or an exempt commission if the airline doesn’t allow one.

Step 3: Add the FV Element (Ticketing Arrangement)

The FV element is added to the PNR to indicate the ticketing arrangement. This is different from TKOK (which we covered in Lesson 3) — FV is used for specific ticketing instructions tied to the fare and airline. The general format is:

You can also use FV with specific airlines or agencies when the fare requires it:

• FV – Ticketing Arrangement command
• MS – Airline code (MS = EgyptAir in this example)
• 1234567890 – Airline’s ticket stock number or agency IATA number

Step 4: Save the PNR Again

After adding all three elements (FOP, Commission, FV), always save and retrieve the PNR using the ER command. This confirms the elements are stored and the PNR is ready for ticketing.

Common Mistakes Beginners Make

The most frequent errors with these commands include: using the wrong card vendor code (VI, CA, AX), entering an expired credit card, typing the commission as a fixed amount when a percentage was intended, and forgetting to include the FV element which may lead to ticketing rejections. Another common mistake is mixing up FP (Form of Payment) with FV (Ticketing Arrangement) — they serve completely different purposes. Finally, always double-check the expiry date format (MMYY) — a wrong month can cause the payment to be declined.

Video Lesson

Watch the practical, step-by-step walkthrough in the video below:

Conclusion

Adding a Form of Payment, Commission, and the FV element is the final piece that turns a priced PNR into a ticket-ready booking. Use FP for payment, FM for commission, and FV for the ticketing arrangement — then save with ER. Once these steps are complete, your PNR is fully ready for e-ticket issuance. In the next lesson, we’ll move on to issuing the actual ticket and printing the itinerary invoice.