Switching host agencies: a UK travel agent's move checklist

Moving between host agencies is more involved than handing in notice. You have bookings that have not travelled, clients who need telling something sensible, a brand that may or may not be yours, and a contract with a notice period attached. Done in the wrong order it costs you commission and confuses your clients. Done properly it is a fortnight of admin.

This is the sequence that works.

Before you tell anybody

Read your current agreement properly. Find the notice period, the non-solicitation clause, and whatever it says about commission on bookings that have not yet travelled. These three decide your timeline and how much the move costs you. Our guide to who owns your clients explains what the clauses mean.

Export what is legitimately yours, now. Access is usually switched off on your last day, sometimes sooner. Whatever you are entitled to keep under your agreement, take a copy while you still can. Stay inside what the contract permits, because taking data you are not entitled to turns a resignation into a legal problem.

List every booking not yet travelled. Reference, client, supplier, travel date, deposit and balance status, commission due and when. This list is the thing you will refer to constantly for the next six months.

Check where your brand lives. If your social accounts, domain or trading name were set up by the agency, establish who owns them before you announce anything.

Choosing where you are going

Do this before you resign, not after. You want to be comparing calmly rather than under time pressure with no income.

Run the full list in our YTC vs Travel Counsellors vs The Travel Franchise, and pay particular attention to whether the new company will support you through a transition, since some are considerably better at this than others.

Ask specifically: can I keep servicing bookings made elsewhere, and can you help me move clients across cleanly.

Giving notice

Give it in writing, in the form your contract requires, and keep a copy. Be civil about it. The travel industry in the UK is small, and you will meet these people again.

Ask, in the same message, for written confirmation of three things: your leaving date, how commission on outstanding bookings will be handled, and when access will be withdrawn. Getting this in writing at the point where everyone is still being polite saves arguments later.

Bookings already made

This is the part that costs people money.

Most bookings cannot simply be transferred to a new agency. The booking sits with the supplier under the original agency's licence and trading terms. In practice you usually have two options: leave them where they are and collect the commission per your agreement, or, occasionally, cancel and rebook, which is rarely worth it and can hurt the client.

Leave them. Service them properly through to travel. Your clients will not care which company's paperwork their booking sits under, but they will very much care if their holiday goes wrong and nobody is answering.

Keep servicing them even after you have gone. You are protecting the relationship, and the relationship is the asset.

Telling your clients

Keep it short and unmemorable. Clients do not need the politics, and airing it makes you look worse than whoever you are leaving.

Something like: your existing booking is unaffected and still protected, here is how to reach me from now on, and I will still be looking after you throughout. That is genuinely all it needs to say.

Do check your non-solicitation clause before sending anything. If it restricts you from approaching clients, that includes a friendly change-of-address email. Where you are restricted, you wait it out and rely on clients finding you, which is a good argument for having built the relationship rather than relying on the agency's list.

The first month in the new place

Get your compliance and supplier access set up before you chase sales. Nothing is more frustrating than winning an enquiry you cannot yet book.

Rebuild the quoting habits on the new system before you are under pressure. Every platform quotes slightly differently and you do not want to be learning it live with a client waiting.

Expect a dip. You are servicing old bookings for no new commission while building a fresh pipeline. Budget for two or three quiet months rather than being surprised by them.

What it costs, honestly

A move usually costs you some commission, a few months of momentum, and a fortnight of admin. That is the real price and it is worth naming before you start.

It is worth paying when the difference is structural: a materially better commission split, payment on confirmation rather than after travel, or getting out of a contract that restricts how you work. It is rarely worth paying to chase a slightly lower monthly fee.

Work out the annual difference on a realistic sales figure. Our guide to how commission splits change your take-home shows the arithmetic. If the gap does not clearly cover the disruption, stay where you are.

If you are considering moving to us

You keep 80% of the commission, membership is £85 a month with a one-off £99 joining fee, and there is no fixed term. You trade under your own brand, and clients you introduce remain yours if you ever leave us.

We will not ask you to break your existing agreement, and we would think less of anyone who did. Serve out your notice, look after your bookings, and come across cleanly. We will help you get set up while you do it.

Thinking about it? Start an application or book a call. Bring your current agreement and we will help you read it.

Frequently asked questions

Can I transfer existing bookings to a new host agency?

Usually not. The booking sits with the supplier under the original agency's licence and terms, so in most cases it stays there until travel. Cancelling and rebooking is occasionally possible but rarely in the client's interest.

Will I still get commission on bookings made before I left?

It depends on your agreement, which is why it is the first thing to check. Some companies pay commission through to travel, some forfeit it on departure. Get the answer in writing before you resign.

How much notice do I need to give a host agency?

It varies from thirty days on a rolling membership to considerably longer on a fixed-term agreement. Your contract will say, and the notice period is one of the more important things to check before you join anywhere.

Can I tell my clients I am moving?

Only if your non-solicitation clause permits it. Where you are restricted from approaching clients, that covers a change-of-contact email too. Check first.

How long does it take to get back to normal earnings?

Plan for two or three quieter months while you service old bookings and build a new pipeline. Agents with a strong repeat client base tend to recover faster, which is the argument for building relationships rather than relying on an agency's leads.