Budapest flight delay and cancellation compensation

What are you owed for a Budapest flight delay or cancellation?

Budapest is Hungary's only major airport and Wizz Air's home base, with a dense low-cost network across Europe.

Hungary is in the EU, so EU261 covers every flight out of Budapest. Land three or more hours late at your final destination and the airline owes a fixed sum of €250, €400 or €600 per passenger, set by distance rather than by fare.

Does EU261 cover every flight from Budapest?

Hungary is in the EU, so EU261 covers every departure from Budapest, whoever flies it. A non-European airline leaving here is bound on the same terms as a European one.

An arrival into Budapest is narrower. It is covered only when an EU or EEA airline operates the flight. A flight in from outside Europe on a non-European airline falls outside the rules, even though it lands in the EU.

The sums are fixed by distance, never by the fare:

Flight distance	Delay at your final destination	Compensation per passenger
Up to 1,500 km	3 hours or more	€250
1,500 to 3,500 km	3 hours or more	€400
Over 3,500 km	3 hours or more	€600 (€400 if the flight is within the EU)

A cancellation inside fourteen days pays the same, and so does denied boarding.

How long do you have to claim after a Budapest delay?

It depends on the country where you bring the claim, and the limits differ widely.

The limit follows the country whose courts would hear the claim. Today the national limits run from one year in Poland to six in the UK. Check the limit before you treat an old flight as safe.

The EU261 reform approved in July 2026 will replace these national limits with one nine-month deadline across the EU, expected from the second half of 2027. Until then the national limits apply, so write early rather than late.

Why do Budapest flights run late?

Low-cost flying runs on fast rotations, so a delay early in an aircraft's day often lasts to its last. A late inbound aircraft is a common cause of a late departure.

Winter de-icing, summer storms and European flow limits all feature. Technical faults and crew shortages are the airline's own doing, so the money still stands.

How do you claim Budapest flight delay compensation?

Start with the flight itself. Our free flight check reads the recorded departure and arrival times for your flight from Budapest and tells you which band it falls in.

Your Budapest compensation claim turns on two things: the arrival time, and the reason the airline gives.

For a late arrival, read the flight delay compensation guide. For a flight that never flew, read the cancellation compensation guide. It covers Budapest cancellation compensation too. Has the airline said no? The case law summary sets out what the courts make of the usual excuses.