Recover Your Points & Elite Nights
A completed Marriott stay usually posts to a Marriott Bonvoy account within a few days of checkout. When it does not show up at all, or when it posts with fewer points or Elite Night Credits than the folio supports, Marriott has a dedicated Missing Stay Request process for fixing it.
The process is straightforward, but it has three firm requirements: you must wait 10 business days after the stay, you need a copy of the hotel bill, and you must file within one year of the stay date.
This article walks through each step, the eligibility rules that cause most denials, and what to do when the standard form does not apply.
Check First Whether the Stay Was Eligible
Most “missing” stays were never eligible in the first place. Before filing anything, confirm how the room was booked and paid for.
The following types of stays do not earn points, and because they do not earn points, they also do not earn Elite Night Credits:
- Third-party bookings: Reservations made through online travel agencies such as Expedia or Priceline.
- Group rates: Rooms booked under a group rate where you did not pay the hotel directly for the room.
- Wholesale and tour operator rates: Packages sold through tour operators or wholesalers, including series tours booked through a travel agent.
- Vouchers and third-party awards: Rooms redeemed with a voucher or an award issued by a company other than Marriott.
- StudioRes stays: These are Qualifying Stays for points but do not earn Elite Night Credit.
Two exceptions work in your favor. Point redemption stays and Cash + Points reservations do not earn points on the room, but they do count for Elite Night Credits. If an award night is missing from your elite night total, it is a valid claim.
Rates that do qualify include standard retail rates booked on Marriott.com or the app, advance purchase rates, corporate negotiated rates, and government rates.
Elite Night Credit is earned only for the room you personally pay for and stay in, not for additional rooms booked under your name. Marriott also does not credit stays at more than one property for the same dates, and accounts are individual only, so a second room booked for a family member cannot be claimed.
When to File and the Deadlines That Apply
Marriott asks members to wait 10 business days after checkout before submitting a Missing Stay Request. Submitting earlier will not speed anything up.
In practice, many members report that a stay that has not posted within a week tends not to post on its own. Therefore, the 10-business-day mark is a reasonable point to act rather than keep waiting.
The outer limit is one year. Requests for missing points, Qualifying Nights, Qualifying Stays, or other eligible charges must be received within one year of the stay date. After that, the stay cannot be claimed.
New members get a short look-back window. Stays and Qualifying Events completed during the 30 days before you enrolled in Marriott Bonvoy can be credited if you request it within one year and provide a copy of the paid receipt.
Activity before that 30-day window is not eligible, and charges at hotel outlets without an actual stay are excluded.
If you earn airline miles instead of points, the same 10-business-day rule applies before requesting missing miles. Note that your earning preference must have been set to miles before the stay; it cannot be changed retroactively for a completed stay.
Get Your Hotel Bill Before You Start
The Missing Stay Request form will not go through without a copy of the hotel bill. A credit card statement is not a substitute.
If you did not keep the folio at checkout, request a copy through Marriott’s online Contact Us form. You can sign in to have some fields pre-filled or continue as a guest. Once the bill arrives, you can file the request.
Keep a small set of records for each stay you intend to claim. This saves time if the request is denied or needs follow-up:
- Final folio: Showing the hotel name, your name, dates, itemized charges, and payment.
- Reservation confirmation: Including the confirmation number and the booking channel used.
- Account screenshots: Showing the missing activity and your current points or elite night balance, with the date captured.
- Promotion details: If a bonus is missing, keep the registration confirmation and the offer terms.
- Case numbers: Any reference number Marriott gives you, with the date of contact.
How to Submit the Missing Stay Request
The fastest route is the online form inside your account. The steps are:
- Sign in to your Marriott Bonvoy account on Marriott.com.
- Open Account Activity from the account menu.
- Scroll to the bottom of the activity page and click the link for a Missing Stay Request.
- Upload the hotel bill if you have a digital copy. Files are limited to 5MB and must be in .pdf, .jpg, .gif, or .tif format.
- Complete the required fields and submit.
Signing in first autofills your member details, but you will still need to enter the confirmation number, check-in date, checkout date, and hotel name. Make sure these match the folio exactly.
The same form also works when a stay posted but with incorrect credit. This is common with incidentals or when base points were calculated on the wrong amount.
In the comments field, state that the stay posted but the points on the room rate and eligible incidentals of a specific amount, excluding taxes and fees, were not credited. Be sure to ask for the missing base points and any applicable bonus.
Be aware that being able to charge a restaurant or spa to your room does not guarantee those charges earn points. Some outlets inside hotels are run by independent operators and are not eligible.
What Happens After You Submit
Marriott asks for up to 10 business days to process a Missing Stay Request and credit the account. Many members find that a correctly completed request is resolved much sooner, sometimes within a day or two, but the 10-day figure is the official window.
If 10 business days pass with no result, call Marriott Bonvoy member support. The number for the United States and Canada is 800-627-7468; Marriott lists local numbers for 17 other countries and regions on its website.
Calling from the phone number on file with your account lets the system recognize you and skips part of the verification process.
Chat is available from the Help page by selecting the question-mark bubble in the lower-right corner of the browser. The chat walks through a series of questions about your account or a past stay and offers to connect you to an agent if those steps do not resolve the issue.
Social media channels exist as well but are not a reliable route for getting a stay credited. Keep in mind that Marriott reserves the right to correct, adjust, or cancel points, nights, and status at its discretion, including when a benefit was issued in error or the member was not eligible. A credited stay can be reversed later if it should not have qualified.
Special Cases: Homes & Villas, Vacation Packages, and Credit Card Nights
Not every type of Marriott activity goes through the standard form. The table below shows the normal posting time for each and the correct place to follow up.
| Type of activity | Normal posting time | Where to follow up |
|---|---|---|
| Standard hotel stay | Usually within a few days; file after 10 business days | Missing Stay Request form in your account |
| Homes & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy | Within 72 hours of checkout if your member number was on the booking | Contact Homes & Villas directly, not the hotel form |
| Vacations by Marriott Bonvoy packages | 7 to 14 days after checkout, including any package bonus points | Email [email protected] |
| Elite Night Credits from Chase co-branded cards | Up to 8 weeks from the last day of the calendar month in which the qualifying activity occurred | Verify account linking, then call Chase |
A few notes on these cases. Vacations by Marriott Bonvoy reservations at all-inclusive resorts, Atlantis, and Design Hotels may not appear in the app’s upcoming trips section due to connectivity limitations; the hotel is still notified of the booking and no action is needed.
If a package was booked without a member number, email the Vacations team to have it added.
For Chase card nights that are still missing after eight weeks, the usual cause is that the card and the loyalty account are not linked. The primary cardholder’s first name, last name, and email must match on both accounts.
If the Bonvoy account is under a different name or email, the accounts cannot be linked. Update the Bonvoy profile first, then call Chase using the number on the back of the card.
Keep the Calendar in Mind
Missing credit is easiest to fix when you catch it early. Check your Account Activity after each stay rather than once a year, and file as soon as the 10-business-day wait has passed.
This matters most if you are close to an elite tier at year end: a stay that is sitting in the queue can make your shortfall look larger than it is.
Booking an unnecessary extra night to close the gap costs real money. Confirm what is actually missing, file the claim, and allow the processing window before deciding whether any additional stays are needed.
One related rule is worth knowing. Marriott Bonvoy accounts need Qualifying Activity at least once every 24 months, such as earning or redeeming points or completing a stay, or the accumulated points are forfeited.
Credited stays count as Qualifying Activity, which is one more reason to make sure every eligible stay actually posts.
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