Air Transat flight delay and cancellation compensation

Your rights on an Air Transat flight

Air Transat is a Canadian leisure airline flying between Toronto and Montreal and a long list of European holiday cities — Paris, Lisbon, Porto, Rome, Athens, Dublin, Glasgow and more. It is licensed in Canada, which makes it a non-EU carrier, and coverage under the European rules follows the departure airport:

• Departing the EU/EEA — Lisbon, Paris or Rome to Toronto — EU261 applies to any airline, Air Transat included.
• Departing the UK — Glasgow or Manchester to Toronto — UK261 applies.
• Departing Canada — not covered. A delayed Toronto to Lisbon flight has no EU261 claim because it departs a non-EU country on a non-EU carrier. Canada's own APPR regime may pay compensation on that leg instead, under different rules and amounts.

For the covered European departures, the triggers are arriving at your final destination three or more hours late, a cancellation with less than 14 days' notice, or involuntary denied boarding when you presented on time.

How much you could receive

Every Air Transat transatlantic route is over 3,500 km, so covered flights sit in the top bands:

• EUR 600 per passenger for an EU departure — Lisbon, Paris, Rome or Dublin to Canada
• GBP 520 per passenger for a UK departure — Glasgow or Manchester to Toronto
• The EUR 250 / EUR 400 bands apply only to shorter flights, which barely feature in the European programme

The amount can be halved if rerouting still gets you there under four hours late. Each passenger with a confirmed seat is paid separately, and package-holiday passengers qualify exactly like seat-only bookings.

When Air Transat doesn't have to pay

Compensation is excluded for extraordinary circumstances — Atlantic storms, air-traffic-control restrictions, airport closures, security alerts — but only where the airline proves they could not have been avoided with all reasonable measures.

The burden of proof is on Air Transat. A strike by its own crew is generally not extraordinary under the case law European courts apply; strikes by controllers or airport handlers usually are. Routine technical faults, including those found during ordinary maintenance, stay the airline's responsibility.

How to claim from Air Transat

Check which direction was disrupted first, because the departure airport decides which regime — EU261, UK261 or Canada's APPR — applies. Keep the booking reference, boarding passes and every notification, and ask in writing for the cause. We confirm coverage, submit the claim under the right regime, chase the response and escalate to the departure country's enforcement body where needed.

What it costs

The eligibility check is free. If we recover your compensation we charge a fixed EUR 39 success fee — the same whether you're owed EUR 250 or EUR 600 — and the airline's payment goes to you. No win, no fee.