When a token leaves the battlefield for any zone — including exile — it ceases to exist as a state-based action. CR 704.5d states that a token that has left the battlefield is put into the appropriate zone momentarily, but then "ceases to exist" immediately. So when a flicker effect exiles a token, the token disappears in exile before the second part of the effect (returning it) can do anything.
Flicker effects work by exiling a permanent and then returning it to the battlefield. The return instruction requires an object that actually exists in exile to bring back. Since the token has ceased to exist there, there is nothing to return, and the second part of the effect simply fails to find the token (CR 400.7, CR 704.5d).
This is different from a creature card, which persists in exile as a physical card and can be returned normally by the second part of a flicker effect.
Concrete example: You control a 1/1 Saproling token. Your opponent casts Cloudshift targeting it. Cloudshift exiles the token, but the token immediately ceases to exist in exile per CR 704.5d. When Cloudshift tries to return it to the battlefield, it finds no object to return, so nothing comes back. Your token is simply gone.
In summary, flickering a token always results in the token's permanent destruction — it never returns. This is an important distinction to remember when choosing targets for flicker spells (CR 704.5d, CR 110.5f).
Unofficial fan resource — not affiliated with or endorsed by Wizards of the Coast. Answers are AI-generated estimates grounded in the Comprehensive Rules and are not a substitute for an official judge. Verify anything match-critical.