--- title: "Flight compensation questions: 200 answers" url: https://flightcompensations.com/faq publisher: FlightCompensations summary: "The questions passengers ask most, in their own words, each with a short, direct answer you can search or browse by topic." --- # Flight compensation questions, answered These **flight compensation questions** are the ones passengers ask most, in their own words, with a direct answer to each. They cover flight delay compensation, cancellation compensation and overbooking compensation, then connections, airline excuses, money, deadlines and the rules outside the EU. Every answer rests on EU261, the UK and Israeli rules, and the Court of Justice's judgments. ## How much compensation can you get under each law? Per passenger, by flight distance (Canada: by hours late, on a large airline). | Law | Short | Medium | Long | | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | | EU261 (EU, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland) | €250 up to 1,500 km | €400 1,500–3,500 km | €600 over 3,500 km | | UK261 (United Kingdom) | £220 up to 1,500 km | £350 1,500–3,500 km | £520 over 3,500 km | | Israel, Aviation Services Law | about ₪1,490 up to 2,000 km | about ₪2,390 2,000–4,500 km | about ₪3,580 over 4,500 km | | Canada, APPR | CA$400 3–6 hours | CA$700 6–9 hours | CA$1,000 9 hours or more | Israel's amounts follow the consumer price index, so the figure for your date can differ slightly. ## Which flights can get compensation? Whether a law covers your flight depends on where it left from, where it landed and which airline flew it. [All 20 questions on this topic](/faq/eligibility). ### Which flights are covered by EU261? EU261 covers every flight that departs from an airport in the EU, whatever the airline. Flights from outside the EU into the EU are covered too, when an EU-licensed airline operates them. Iceland, Norway and Switzerland apply the same rules. Departures from the UK fall under the UK's own version, UK261. Two facts decide it: the airport you leave from and the airline that flies the plane. Under Article 3(1)(a) of Regulation 261/2004, any departure from an EU airport is covered. So a Delta flight out of Paris counts as much as an Air France one. Article 3(1)(b) adds flights into the EU, but only when an EU carrier operates them. Consider a delayed flight from Paris to New York, 5,833 km. If it lands five hours late, it is worth €600 per passenger, unless the airline proves extraordinary circumstances. Flying the other way, New York to Paris, a US airline owes nothing under EU261, because it is not an EU carrier. The map is wider than the EU itself. The Commission's 2024 Interpretative Guidelines bring in Iceland and Norway through the EEA Agreement. They bring in Switzerland through the 1999 EU–Swiss air transport agreement. They also count outermost regions such as the Canary Islands, Madeira and the Azores as EU territory. Start with the departure airport, then find the operating airline on your boarding pass. UK departures follow UK261, which pays in pounds. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Does EU261 apply to flights from the US to Europe? Only when a European airline operates the flight. Air France from New York to Paris is covered by EU261. The same route on American, Delta or United is not. For flights into the EU from outside, EU261 applies only when an airline licensed in an EU country operates them. Look at who flew the plane, not who sold the ticket. A Delta flight number on a plane Air France operates is covered. An Air France flight number on a Delta-operated plane is not. The rule sits in Article 3(1)(b) of Regulation 261/2004. For flights arriving in the EU from outside it, the operating carrier must hold an operating licence from an EU member state. The Regulation can also step aside if you already received benefits, compensation and assistance in the non-EU country. Suppose Air France brings you from New York to Paris, 5,833 km, and you reach Paris five hours late. Air France owes €600 per passenger, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. The same delay on United gives no fixed sum under EU261. Find the "operated by" line on your booking and boarding pass. If a US carrier flew you, the Montreal Convention is the place to look. It can pay damages you can prove, within limits, but not fixed compensation. Your flight home from Europe is another matter, because every departure from an EU airport is covered. [US passenger rights](/passenger-rights/united-states) ### Am I covered by EU261 on a flight home from Europe on a US airline? Yes. EU261 covers every flight that leaves an EU airport, whatever the airline's nationality. United, Delta or American from Paris, Rome or Frankfurt to the US is covered just like Air France. Departures from the UK fall under UK261, which works the same way in pounds. A Delta flight from Paris to New York, 5,833 km, has a technical problem with the aircraft. It reaches New York five hours late. Delta owes €600 per passenger. Under the Wallentin-Hermann judgment, a routine technical problem is generally not an extraordinary circumstance. From London to New York, 5,540 km, the UK figure is £520. Article 3(1)(a) of Regulation 261/2004 looks only at the departure airport. When a flight leaves an EU airport, the operating airline owes the Regulation's compensation, care and rerouting. Whether that airline is European makes no difference. The UK retained version does the same for departures from UK airports. A refusal is still possible if the airline proves extraordinary circumstances, such as severe weather or air traffic control restrictions. It must also show it took all reasonable measures. Send your claim to the airline that operated the flight. Give the flight number, the date and your arrival time at the final destination. That time is when a door opened and you could leave, not when the wheels touched down. [US passenger rights](/passenger-rights/united-states) ### If I booked a round trip from Europe, is the return flight covered by EU261 too? Not automatically. EU261 treats the outbound and the return as two separate flights, even when you bought them together. The return is covered only if it qualifies by itself: it departs an EU airport, or it flies into the EU on an EU airline. A US airline flying you back into Europe falls outside EU261. Picture this: a round trip from Frankfurt to Chicago on United. The Frankfurt to Chicago leg departs the EU, so EU261 covers it. The Chicago to Frankfurt leg flies into the EU on a US airline, so EU261 does not. Book the same trip on Lufthansa and both legs are covered, because Lufthansa holds an EU licence. The 2024 Commission Interpretative Guidelines explain why. They treat outbound and return flights as separate, even on one booking. A covered outbound does not pull the return into scope. Each leg passes or fails Article 3 of Regulation 261/2004 on its own facts. The route is 6,971 km. A five-hour delay on a covered leg is worth €600 per passenger, unless the airline proves extraordinary circumstances. On the uncovered leg, the airline owes no fixed sum under EU261. A damages claim under the Montreal Convention may still be open for losses you can prove. Go through the legs one at a time. Note where each departs and who operates it. Keep the booking, both boarding passes and any delay notice. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Does EU261 apply to non-EU airlines like Emirates when flying out of Europe? Yes. When a flight departs an EU airport, EU261 applies to every operating airline, including Emirates, Qatar Airways, Turkish Airlines and US carriers. On departures, the airline's home country plays no part. What counts is that the flight leaves the EU, and that the delay, cancellation or denied boarding meets the Regulation's conditions. Article 3(1)(a) of Regulation 261/2004 protects passengers departing from an airport in an EU member state. It sets no condition about the airline's nationality. So a Gulf, Asian or American carrier leaving Athens, Madrid or Amsterdam owes exactly what a European one would. Consider Emirates from Athens to Dubai, 3,272 km. If it reaches Dubai three or more hours late, Emirates owes €400 per passenger. To refuse, it must prove extraordinary circumstances and that it took all reasonable measures. Care is owed either way: on this distance, meals and refreshments start once the delay reaches three hours. Did that delay make you miss a connection in Dubai on the same booking? Then the delay may be assessed at your final destination. A connection outside the EU does not, by itself, take a journey that began in the EU out of the Regulation. Write to the airline that operated the flight. Quote Regulation 261/2004, the flight number and your actual arrival time. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Which airline do I claim from on a codeshare flight? Claim from the airline that operated the flight, not the one whose flight number is on your ticket. EU261 puts the duty on the operating carrier. Your booking or boarding pass usually names it after 'operated by'. The operating airline also decides whether a flight into the EU is covered at all. Suppose you hold a British Airways ticket, but Aer Lingus flies you from Dublin to London, 450 km. You arrive three hours late. Your claim goes to Aer Lingus. It is worth €250 per passenger, because the flight departs Ireland and EU261 applies. Regulation 261/2004 defines the operating air carrier as the airline that performs the flight. Under Article 3(5), that carrier is responsible even when it flies under a contract with another airline. A ticketing or marketing airline is generally not the one that owes the fixed compensation. Who operates the plane affects scope as well. On a flight into the EU from outside it, only a flight operated by an EU carrier is covered. So two seats on the same codeshare can carry different rights. Look for the "operated by" line in your confirmation email or on the boarding pass. Use that airline's claim form. Quote the flight number it used, which may differ from the one on your ticket. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Does EU261 apply to award tickets booked with miles or points? Yes. Article 3(3) of Regulation 261/2004 expressly covers tickets issued under a frequent flyer programme or another commercial programme. An Avios, Miles & More or Flying Blue redemption earns the same compensation as a paid ticket. The exclusion covers only free tickets and reduced fares the public cannot buy, such as airline staff fares. Compensation follows distance, so what you paid for the ticket makes no difference. Picture a Flying Blue award from Paris to New York, 5,833 km, that arrives five hours late. Air France owes €600 per passenger, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. A passenger on a full-fare ticket would get the same sum. Article 3(3) takes two groups out of the Regulation. One is passengers travelling free of charge. The other is passengers on a reduced fare not available, directly or indirectly, to the public. The same paragraph then brings frequent flyer and other commercial programme tickets back in. The UK retained version uses the same wording. The normal scope rules still apply. The flight must depart an EU airport, or fly into the EU on an EU carrier. The operating airline owes the money, even when a partner programme issued the award. Ask for cash, not miles. An airline may offer points or a voucher instead. A voucher needs your signed agreement, so you are free to say no. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Are staff tickets or free tickets covered by EU261? No, if the ticket was free or sold at a reduced fare the public cannot buy. Airline staff fares are the usual example. A promotional fare that anyone can book still counts as a public fare, even with conditions attached. Frequent flyer award tickets remain covered by name. Who could buy the fare? That question decides it. Article 3(3) of Regulation 261/2004 excludes passengers travelling free of charge. It also excludes those on a reduced fare not available directly or indirectly to the public. The Commission's guidelines name special fares for airline staff as an example. The guidelines draw the line at access. A discount reserved for a specific group falls outside. A discount open to anyone who wants to book, even with conditions, is still a public fare. So a cheap sale fare is covered in full. A sale fare from London to Rome, 1,443 km, arrives three hours late. Under UK261 the airline owes £220 per passenger, however little the ticket cost. Someone on a staff ticket on the same flight gets no fixed sum. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Can a lap infant get EU261 compensation? It is unsettled. The Commission's guidelines exclude infants who travel free, have no seat or boarding pass, and are not named on the booking. An infant named on the reservation, or one whose parents paid an infant fare or fee, is arguably covered. Airlines often dispute these claims, so the answer may depend on the court. Article 3(3) of Regulation 261/2004 leaves out passengers travelling free of charge. The 2024 Commission Interpretative Guidelines read this narrowly for young children. They exclude children who travel free because of their age, have no allocated seat or boarding pass, and do not appear on the parents' reservation. That leaves a grey zone. Many airlines charge an infant fee and print the baby's name on the booking. An infant in that position does not meet every condition the guidelines list. Airlines may still refuse, on the argument that a fee is not a fare. Picture this: a family flies Madrid to Tenerife South, 1,825 km, and lands four hours late. Each adult can claim €400. If the infant counts as a passenger, the family can claim another €400. If you paid anything for the infant and their name is on the booking, include them in the claim. Attach the receipt showing the infant charge. If the airline says no, you can complain to the national enforcement body or go to court. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Do children get the same flight delay compensation as adults? Yes, if the child has their own ticket. EU261 pays per passenger by flight distance, with no lower rate for children. A child on a flight that arrives three or more hours late is owed the same €250, €400 or €600 as an adult. Free infants without a seat are the exception. A family of four flies Barcelona to Amsterdam, 1,241 km: two adults and two children aged six and nine. They arrive three hours late. The airline owes €250 to each of them, €1,000 in total, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. From London, the same delay is worth £220 per person under UK261. Age plays no part in the sums. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 fixes them by great-circle distance alone. A child with a ticket is a passenger like any other, with a full claim of their own. Care works per person as well. On a flight up to 1,500 km, the airline owes every passenger meals and refreshments once the delay reaches two hours. Infants without their own seat are treated differently. The Commission's guidelines exclude a child who travels free, has no seat or boarding pass, and is not named on the booking. Claim for every family member with a ticket, and list each name on the claim. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Does EU261 apply to flights to and from the Canary Islands? Yes. The Canary Islands are an outermost region of the EU, and EU261 treats them as EU territory. Any flight departing Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote or Fuerteventura is covered, whatever the airline. So are flights to the islands from other EU airports. Flights from the UK fall under UK261 instead. For Regulation 261/2004, the 2024 Commission Interpretative Guidelines count the outermost regions as part of the EU. That list includes the Canary Islands, Madeira, the Azores and the French overseas departments. A Canary airport is treated like any other EU airport. Since these flights stay within the EU, the band matters. Flights within the EU over 1,500 km earn €400, not the long-haul €600. Madrid to Tenerife South is 1,825 km. Three hours late, the airline owes €400 per passenger, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. Flights from the UK follow UK261. London Gatwick to Tenerife South is 2,913 km, which gives £350 for a three-hour delay. The flight home from Tenerife to the UK departs an EU airport, so EU261 covers it at €400. Work out where the delayed flight departed, then choose the right regime. Claim from the airline that operated it, and give your arrival time at the destination. Care is owed during a long wait even when the cause was extraordinary, so keep your meal receipts. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Does UK261 cover flights into the UK on a non-UK airline? Only if the airline is a UK or EU carrier. UK261 covers flights into the UK from abroad when an airline licensed in the UK or the EU operates them. A Delta, United, Emirates or Qatar Airways flight into London is not covered. Any flight departing a UK airport is covered, whatever the airline. New York to London is 5,540 km. On Virgin Atlantic or British Airways, a five-hour delay means £520 per passenger, unless the airline proves extraordinary circumstances. On United or Delta, the same delay gives no fixed sum under UK261. The UK's retained Regulation 261/2004 has two branches. One covers passengers departing from a UK airport. The other covers flights from another country to the UK, but only when a UK air carrier or an EU carrier operates them. A UK air carrier is one licensed by the Civil Aviation Authority. Flip the direction and the answer flips. United's flight from London to New York departs the UK, so UK261 covers it at the same £520. For an inbound flight that is not covered, turn to the Montreal Convention. It can pay damages for proven losses caused by delay, within limits. Keep every receipt for meals, transport and hotels. When you book, check the "operated by" line, since a codeshare number can hide the real operator. [UK261 explained](/passenger-rights/uk261) ### Does EU261 cover flights that are part of a package holiday? Yes. EU261 applies to flights within a package holiday just as it does to flights booked alone. If the package flight departs the EU, or flies into the EU on an EU airline, a delay of three hours or more can bring compensation. Your package travel rights against the tour operator carry on alongside it. Consider a package from Madrid to Tenerife South, 1,825 km, that lands three hours late. The airline owes €400 per passenger, whether you booked the flight alone or with a hotel. The usual tests apply. The flight must be in scope, and the delay must reach three hours at the destination. Only extraordinary circumstances let the airline refuse. Article 3(6) of Regulation 261/2004 says it does not affect passengers' rights under package travel law. Recital 16 and the Commission's guidelines confirm that the Regulation also applies to flights within a package. So you hold two sets of rights: against the operating airline under EU261, and against the organiser under package travel law. There is one exception. The Regulation does not apply when the package is cancelled for a reason other than cancellation of the flight. The guidelines use a hotel cancellation as the example. Find out which airline operated the flight, and send the compensation claim there. Take problems with the rest of the holiday, such as the hotel, to the tour operator. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Should I claim flight delay compensation from the tour operator or the airline? Claim the fixed EU261 compensation from the airline that operated the flight, even if a tour operator sold you the package. Some tour operators run their own airline, so the operator and the airline can be the same company. Complaints about the rest of the holiday go to the tour operator under package travel law. Start with your holiday documents. Find the flight number and the "operated by" line. If the tour operator's own airline flew you, claim from that airline. If the operator booked you on another airline's flight, claim from that other airline. Regulation 261/2004 puts the duty to pay compensation on the operating air carrier. A tour operator that only sold the seat is not the operating carrier. The Commission's guidelines describe your position as twofold. You have rights against the organiser under package travel law, and against the airline under the Regulation. A typical case: a charter airline operates a package flight from Madrid to Tenerife South, 1,825 km. It arrives three hours late. The charter airline owes €400 per passenger, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. Selling the package does not make the tour operator owe that sum. Keep the package confirmation, your boarding passes and any delay notices. Send the compensation claim to the airline, and keep holiday complaints separate. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Can I claim EU261 compensation if my tour operator cancelled the whole package holiday? Not if the package was cancelled for a reason other than the flight being cancelled. Article 3(6) of EU261 excludes that case, so your remedy lies under package travel law against the organiser. If the airline cancelled the flight itself, EU261 can still apply to the flight in the usual way. What matters is why the trip was cancelled. Article 3(6) of Regulation 261/2004 switches the Regulation off where a package tour is cancelled for reasons other than cancellation of the flight. The Commission's guidelines give a hotel cancellation as the example. So the cause decides which law applies. If the hotel or the organiser cancelled the trip, the Package Travel Directive gives you rights against the organiser. If the airline cancelled the flight, EU261 covers that flight. Suppose your package includes a flight from Madrid to Tenerife South, 1,825 km. The airline cancels it three days before departure. It offers nothing that arrives within two hours of the original time. The airline owes €400 per passenger, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. If the hotel had closed and the organiser had cancelled everything instead, the airline would owe nothing under EU261. Ask the organiser in writing why the package was cancelled. Keep its answer, because the reason decides whether you have a flight claim. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Does EU261 cover domestic flights within the same country, like Hamburg to Munich? Yes. EU261 covers every flight that departs from an airport in an EU country, including flights that never leave that country. A domestic hop such as Hamburg to Munich or Madrid to Barcelona gets the same protection as an international one. In the UK, domestic flights fall under UK261 instead, with amounts in pounds. Article 3(1)(a) of Regulation 261/2004 looks only at where the flight departs. It does not ask whether the destination is abroad. So a flight from Hamburg to Munich is covered in exactly the same way as one from Hamburg to Lisbon. The airline's nationality makes no difference either. Hamburg to Munich is about 600 km. If that flight reaches Munich three hours or more late because of a crew shortage, the airline owes €250 per passenger. Longer domestic routes can pay more. Any flight inside the EU over 1,500 km earns €400, which matters for routes from the mainland out to the islands. The UK runs the same logic under its own version of the rules. London Heathrow to Edinburgh is about 534 km. A three-hour late arrival there gives £220 per passenger, unless the airline proves extraordinary circumstances. Claim from the airline that operated the flight. Give the flight number, the date and the time the doors opened at your destination. Keep receipts for anything you bought to eat during the wait. On routes up to 1,500 km, the airline owes meals and refreshments once the delay reaches two hours. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Do business class passengers get more EU261 compensation than economy? No. EU261 compensation depends on the distance of the flight, not the cabin or the fare. A business class passenger and an economy passenger on the same delayed flight get the same €250, €400 or €600. Ticket price only matters for a downgrade, where the refund is a share of what you paid. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 sets three fixed amounts by great-circle distance. Nothing in that scale changes with the cabin you sat in or the price you paid. A cheap promotional seat and a full business fare point to the same line of the same table. A Frankfurt to Singapore flight is about 10,280 km. If it lands 6 hours late after a maintenance problem, each covered passenger is owed €600. The traveller in seat 2A and the traveller in seat 45F receive the same amount, even if one ticket cost many times more. Cabin class does matter in one situation. If the airline moved you down from business to economy, Article 10 requires it to refund part of the ticket price. The share is 30%, 50% or 75%, depending on the distance and route. On a long flight like Frankfurt to Singapore, the share is 75%. A downgrade refund on a business fare can then exceed the delay payment. Keep your ticket receipt and a boarding pass that shows the cabin you actually flew in. The delay claim needs only your booking reference and arrival time. A downgrade claim needs the fare, because the refund is worked out from what you paid. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Can I claim flight delay compensation if my employer paid for the ticket? Yes. EU261 gives the compensation to the passenger who was delayed, cancelled or bumped, not to whoever paid for the ticket. A business trip booked by your company is covered on the same terms as a holiday. Whether you must pass the money to your employer depends on your contract or travel policy, not on the Regulation. Regulation 261/2004 attaches the right to the passenger. Article 7 says passengers receive the compensation, and the amount turns on distance alone. Who paid does not affect the scope test either, which looks at the departure airport and the operating airline. A Brussels to Lisbon flight, about 1,717 km, arrives four hours late because of a crew shortage. You were travelling for work on a ticket your company bought. The airline owes €400 to you as the passenger. It is an intra-EU flight over 1,500 km, so the higher band applies. Some employers ask staff to hand compensation over, because the trip happened on company time. Read your contract or travel policy before you claim. A ticket refund after a cancellation is a different matter. It repays the fare, so it normally goes back to the card that paid. Make the claim in your own name, with the booking reference from the company's travel agent. Hotel or meal costs should go back to whoever paid them. If they went on a company card, tell your finance team before you claim them. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Do I need to have checked in to claim compensation for a cancelled flight? No. EU261 asks passengers to present themselves for check-in on time, but it expressly leaves cancellations out of that rule. If the airline cancels your flight, you do not need to have checked in, online or at the airport, to claim. You only need a confirmed reservation on the flight. Article 3(2) of Regulation 261/2004 sets two conditions: a confirmed reservation and presenting for check-in on time. The check-in condition applies except in the case of cancellation. Once a flight is cancelled there is nothing to check in for, so the Regulation does not ask for it. Say your Dublin to Rome flight, about 1,886 km, is cancelled five days before departure because of a crew shortage. You had not checked in, because the online window had not opened yet. The airline's replacement lands seven hours after your original time. The notice was under seven days, and the new arrival is well past the two-hour limit. So the airline owes you €400. Delays and bumping work differently. For those, you must have presented for check-in by the deadline the airline gave you. If it gave none, the limit is 45 minutes before the published departure time. Keep your online check-in confirmation or bag tag in case the airline disputes it. If an airline turns down a cancellation claim because you never checked in, reply in writing. Point to Article 3(2) and its exception for cancellations. Repeat when you were told about the cancellation and when the replacement arrived. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Does EU261 still apply if I booked my flight on a US website or through Expedia? Yes. EU261 does not depend on where you bought the ticket, the currency you paid in or the website you used. Coverage depends on the departure airport and the airline that operates the flight. A flight leaving the EU is covered on any airline. You claim from the operating airline, not from Expedia or the agent. Regulation 261/2004 sets its scope in Article 3(1) by airports and carriers. A flight departing an EU airport is covered whatever the airline. A flight into the EU is covered when an EU airline operates it. Nothing in that test turns on the booking channel or the country of sale. Say you bought Rome to Chicago O'Hare on a US travel site and paid in dollars. The flight, about 7,742 km, lands four hours late after a fault found during the pre-flight checks. It departed an EU airport, so the operating airline owes €600 per passenger, even if it is an American carrier. The money comes from the airline that flew the plane. Articles 2(b) and 3(5) put the duty on the operating carrier. Expedia, a travel agent or another airline that sold you the ticket is not the one that owes it. Look for the 'operated by' line on your booking. Write to the operating airline and quote its own booking reference. If the agent's code differs, find the airline's code in the confirmation email or on the airline's website. Keep that email, since it shows the flight number and your scheduled arrival time. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ## When is a delayed flight owed compensation? A delay is measured at your final destination, by the time the doors open. [All 20 questions on this topic](/faq/flight-delays). ### How late does a flight have to be to get compensation? Under EU261 and UK261, you must reach your final destination at least three hours late. The airline then owes fixed compensation of €250 to €600, or £220 to £520 under UK rules, depending on distance. It can refuse only if extraordinary circumstances caused the delay and it took all reasonable measures. Picture this: a flight of under 1,500 km, Paris to Barcelona, is due to land at 14:00. The doors open at 17:10. You are three hours and ten minutes late, so the airline owes €250 per passenger. Had the doors opened at 16:55, no fixed sum would apply, though meals and drinks still would. The three-hour line comes from the Court of Justice in Sturgeon v Condor, confirmed in Nelson v Lufthansa. Once delayed passengers lose three hours or more, they get the same fixed compensation as passengers on a cancelled flight. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 then sets the amount by great-circle distance. What counts is your final arrival, not your departure. You arrive when at least one aircraft door opens and passengers may leave. The flight must also be in scope. That means a departure from an EU or UK airport, or an arrival there on a qualifying EU or UK airline. Write down when the doors opened and keep your boarding pass. Then claim from the operating airline, the one that flew the plane. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### Is flight delay compensation based on departure time or arrival time? Arrival time. Under EU261 and UK261, compensation depends on how late you reach your final destination, not how late you leave. Depart three hours late but arrive two hours fifty late, and no fixed compensation is due. The departure delay still matters for meals, a hotel and the five-hour refund. Suppose your flight from Rome to Amsterdam, under 1,500 km, leaves 3 hours 20 minutes late. Strong tailwinds help, and the doors open 2 hours 45 minutes late. No fixed sum is due. You were still owed meals and refreshments at the gate, though, because your wait passed two hours. The Court of Justice set the arrival test in Sturgeon v Condor and Nelson v Lufthansa. It measures the time lost at the final destination on your booking. So a late take-off that the crew makes up in the air can wipe out a claim. Departure time governs other rights. Article 6 of Regulation 261/2004 links meals, calls and hotels to how long you wait before leaving. It also gives you a right to a refund once the delay reaches five hours. These care rights apply even when the airline owes no compensation. Look up when the doors opened at your final airport. Three hours or more after the scheduled arrival means you can claim. Under three hours, keep your meal receipts instead. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### Does arrival time mean when the plane lands or when the doors open? When the doors open. Under EU261 and UK261, a flight arrives when at least one aircraft door opens and passengers may leave. Touchdown and the gate time on a flight tracker do not count. Ten or twenty minutes of taxiing can push a delay past the three-hour line. A flight due at 18:00 lands at 20:45. It taxis to a remote stand and waits for steps. The front door opens at 21:05, so the arrival delay is three hours and five minutes. The airline owes compensation unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. A flight tracker showing 2 hours 45 would mislead you. The Court of Justice settled the point in the Germanwings case, C-452/13. Its reasoning was that passengers stay confined on a closed aircraft. They cannot phone freely, work or leave until a door opens, so the delay keeps running. The European Commission repeats the rule in its 2024 interpretative guidelines. Passengers must also be allowed off. On that reading, a door opened for catering or a jet bridge check, with everyone kept seated, does not end the delay. If your delay is close to three hours, note the exact time the first door opened. A photo of your phone's clock as you stand up does the job. Then ask the airline in writing for its own recorded arrival time. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### My flight was 2 hours 59 minutes late. Can I still claim compensation? Usually not, because fixed compensation starts at three hours late at your final destination. But check which clock was used. Arrival counts from when a door opened and passengers could leave, not touchdown or the time the airline shows. A flight that landed 2 hours 50 late can pass three hours by the time the doors open. Start by asking which time the airline used. In the Germanwings case, C-452/13, the Court of Justice ruled that arrival means the moment at least one door opens and passengers may leave. Airlines and flight trackers often show landing or gate times, which come earlier. Consider a flight due at 10:00. The tracker shows landing at 12:52, a delay of 2 hours 52. Taxiing takes six minutes, then you wait four more for steps. The door opens at 13:02, so you arrived 3 hours 2 minutes late. On a flight of under 1,500 km, the airline would owe €250, or £220 under UK rules. If the door time really is short of three hours, the answer is no. EU261 and UK261 draw a hard line there, set by the Court of Justice in Sturgeon v Condor. A delay of two hours fifty-nine minutes at the door earns no fixed sum, and no rule rounds it up. Write down the door time while it is fresh. Keep any photo or message sent at that moment. Whatever the final figure, you still had a right to meals and refreshments during the wait. [Delayed 2 hours](/flight-delayed-2-hours) ### How do I prove how late my flight arrived? Record when the first aircraft door opened, because under EU261 and UK261 that is the legal arrival time. Keep your boarding pass and booking. Take a timestamped photo or send a message as the door opens. Then ask the airline in writing for its recorded arrival time and compare it with yours. Flight trackers usually show landing or gate times. Those come before the legal arrival, which is the moment at least one door opens and passengers may leave. The Court of Justice set that rule in Germanwings, C-452/13. A tracker screenshot can therefore understate your delay. Build a simple file. Start with the booking confirmation showing the scheduled arrival time, and your boarding passes for every leg. Add the door time, noted on your phone or shown in a photo of the clock. A short voice note of the crew saying you can leave also helps. So do receipts for food and any hotel. A typical case: the airline says your flight from Madrid to Berlin landed 2 hours 40 minutes late. Your photo shows the door opened at 3 hours 4 minutes. On this intra-EU flight of over 1,500 km, that gap decides whether the airline owes €400. Send the airline your times and ask which source it used for its own figure. If it will not move, a national enforcement body or a court can weigh both records. Notes made on the day carry weight, because nobody wrote them afterwards. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### Can I claim if my flight was delayed because the plane arrived late from its previous flight? It can. A late incoming aircraft is not an excuse in itself. What matters is why the earlier flight ran late. If a maintenance problem or the airline's own planning caused it, the airline owes compensation for a three-hour delay. If an extraordinary event caused it, the airline must prove that link. Under EU261 and UK261, the airline escapes compensation only when extraordinary circumstances caused the delay. It must also show that all reasonable measures could not have avoided it. A tight schedule is the airline's own choice. So "the aircraft came in late" answers nothing until the airline explains the first delay. Consider an evening flight from Madrid to Berlin, over 1,500 km within the EU. It waits for an aircraft held up by a fault in Lisbon that morning. You arrive 3 hours 30 minutes late. The airline owes €400 unless it proves an extraordinary cause. Follow the chain back to where it began. Under Wallentin-Hermann v Alitalia, a maintenance problem on the morning flight stays internal. A storm or an air traffic control restriction on that earlier flight may count as extraordinary. Even then, the airline must link it to your flight and show what it did to limit the damage, such as using a spare aircraft. Ask the airline in writing for the reason behind the first delay. A refusal that only says "late inbound aircraft" leaves the real question open. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### Can I claim if my flight was delayed because of crew shortages or the airline's own staff? Usually yes. Staffing the aircraft is part of the airline's normal job under EU261 and UK261. A strike by its own staff generally does not excuse it, even an unexpected one. The airline avoids paying only if it proves extraordinary circumstances outside its control caused your delay of three hours or more. Planning crews and rosters is the airline's business. So when your flight waits for a crew from another late flight, the airline has work to do. It would have to show that something outside its control caused the crew problem, and that it could not reasonably find cover. Only extraordinary circumstances allow a refusal under Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004. Those are events outside the airline's normal activity and control. The Court of Justice applied this to staff in Krüsemann v TUIfly. A sudden walkout by the airline's own crew did not excuse it. A typical case: a flight from Manchester to Malaga, over 1,500 km, waits for a replacement first officer. The doors open in Malaga 3 hours 20 minutes late. Under UK rules the airline would owe £350 unless it proves an extraordinary cause. Note down what the crew or gate staff said about the reason. If the airline later blames something else, that note helps. Ask it to explain in writing why a crew problem was outside its control. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### What happens if my flight is delayed overnight? The airline must give you a hotel, transport to it, meals and refreshments, and two calls or emails, when the delay needs an overnight stay. This care applies even when bad weather caused the delay. If you then arrive three hours or more late, you may also claim fixed compensation, unless extraordinary circumstances caused it. Ask the airline for a hotel first. If it offers nothing, book a reasonable one and keep every receipt. You can then claim those costs and the compensation together. Articles 6 and 9 of Regulation 261/2004 set out the care. Once an overnight stay becomes necessary, the airline must provide a hotel and the transfer between the hotel and the airport. It must also provide meals in reasonable relation to the wait. The Court of Justice confirmed in McDonagh v Ryanair that these duties continue even in extraordinary circumstances. Compensation is a separate question. Under the Sturgeon v Condor rule, an arrival three hours or more late can earn fixed compensation. An overnight delay nearly always passes that line. The airline then owes the money unless it proves an extraordinary cause. Suppose your 21:00 flight from Rome to London, about 1,450 km, leaves at 09:00 the next morning. The airline must house you for the night, and you arrive twelve hours late. If a crew shortage caused it, the airline owes €250 under EU rules, because the flight left an EU airport. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### What am I entitled to while waiting at the airport for a delayed flight? Meals and refreshments, plus two phone calls or emails. Under EU261 and UK261, care starts after two hours on flights up to 1,500 km, three hours on medium flights and four hours on long-haul. If the delay runs overnight, the airline must also provide a hotel and transport. These rights apply whatever caused the delay. Article 9 of Regulation 261/2004 lists what you get, and Article 6 sets when. The airline must offer meals and refreshments in reasonable relation to the wait. It must also let you make two calls or send two emails. If an overnight stay becomes necessary, it must add a hotel and the transfer. When care starts depends on distance. Up to 1,500 km, it is two hours. For intra-EU flights over 1,500 km and other flights of 1,500 to 3,500 km, it is three hours. For everything longer, it is four hours. Fault plays no part. In McDonagh v Ryanair, the Court of Justice held that the duty continues even in extraordinary circumstances. A snowstorm does not cancel your meal voucher. On a flight from London to New York, over 3,500 km, food and drink are owed after four hours. The regulation sets no fixed voucher value. If staff hand out nothing, buy something reasonable and keep the receipt. Then ask the airline to repay it, separately from any compensation claim. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### Can I get a refund if my flight is delayed 5 hours and I don't want to fly? Yes. Under EU261 and UK261, once a delay reaches five hours you can choose not to travel and ask for a full refund of the ticket. The airline must pay within seven days, in money unless you agree in writing to a voucher. This right applies whatever caused the delay. Picture this: you booked a day trip from Glasgow to Amsterdam for a meeting at noon. Your 07:00 flight now shows 12:30, and the trip has lost its point. You tell the gate staff you will not fly and ask for your money back. The airline then owes the full fare within seven days. Article 6(1)(iii) of Regulation 261/2004 gives this right once the delay reaches five hours. Article 8 describes how the refund works, with repayment due within seven days. Under Article 7(3), a voucher needs your signed agreement. So you can refuse one and insist on cash or a card refund. Fixed compensation is a different right. The refund sits with the care duties in Article 6, so it does not depend on who caused the delay. Make your choice clear, in writing if you can. Email the airline from the airport, stating the delay and that you decline the flight. Keep a screenshot of the delayed departure time. Do not board, because boarding may count as accepting the later flight. [Flight refunds](/flight-refund) ### The airline rebooked me on a later flight after a delay. How much compensation do I get? Compensation depends on when the rebooked flight got you to your final destination. Arriving three hours or more late means the full amount for the distance. The airline may halve it only when the new flight arrived within the Article 7(2) limits, which run from two to four hours by distance. What counts is the door time on the new flight. Under Sturgeon v Condor, a delay needs three hours at the final destination before compensation arises. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 then sets €250, €400 or €600 by distance, or £220, £350 or £520 under UK rules. Article 7(2) lets the airline halve the sum when the rerouted arrival stays close to the original time. The limit is two hours for flights up to 1,500 km, three hours for medium flights and four hours for flights over 3,500 km. So on short and medium flights, the halving rarely bites. On long-haul flights, an arrival between three and four hours late may pay half. Consider your flight from London to Toronto, over 3,500 km. After a delay, the airline moves you to a later flight. You reach Toronto 3 hours 40 minutes late. Under UK rules the airline may pay £260 instead of £520. At 4 hours 10 minutes late, it would owe the full £520. Keep both booking confirmations and note when the doors opened on the new flight. Claim from the airline that operated your original flight. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### My long-haul flight was 3 and a half hours late. Do I get €600 or €300? Likely €300. On flights over 3,500 km, an arrival between three and four hours late lets the airline halve the €600 to €300 under EU261. Under UK261, the same flight pays £260 instead of £520. Arrive four hours or more late, and the airline owes the full amount. A flight from Frankfurt to New York, over 6,000 km, should open its doors at 15:00. They open at 18:30. At three and a half hours late, the airline may pay €300. Had they opened at 19:05, it would owe €600. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 sets €600 for flights over 3,500 km. Under Article 7(2), the airline can cut that by 50% when the arrival on these flights stays within four hours of the schedule. Put that next to the three-hour rule the Court of Justice applied in Sturgeon v Condor. A long-haul arrival between three and four hours late may then pay half. Distance runs along the great-circle route from your first departure to your final destination. A connection along the way does not split it. Paris to Chicago via Dublin on a single booking counts as one long-haul journey. Check the door time before you accept any offer, because thirty extra minutes can double the sum. Either figure also assumes the airline has no extraordinary circumstances defence. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### Can I claim compensation for a delayed flight home from the USA? It depends on the airline that flew the plane. A flight from the USA into the EU falls under EU261 only when an EU airline operates it. Into the UK, UK261 needs a qualifying UK or EU airline. On a US airline flying you home, those rules generally do not apply. Suppose you fly London to New York and back. On the way home, a delay gets you into London 5 hours late. If British Airways operated that flight, UK261 applies and the airline may owe £520. If a US airline operated it, UK261 generally does not apply. The Montreal Convention may still let you claim proven costs the delay caused. Article 3(1)(b) of Regulation 261/2004 covers flights from outside Europe into an EU airport only when a Community carrier operates them. UK261 follows the same pattern for the UK. The operating airline is what counts, not the one that sold your ticket. A codeshare number does not change who flew the plane. Each direction is judged on its own. Section 2.1 of the European Commission's 2024 guidelines treats outbound and return as separate flights. A covered flight out does not make an uncovered flight home covered. Find the "operated by" line on your boarding pass. If a European airline flew you, claim from it. If not, look at your receipts for losses you can prove, and at your travel insurance. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### My holiday flight home from Turkey or Egypt was delayed. Can I claim? Yes, if a UK or EU airline flew you home and you arrived three hours or more late. A flight from outside Europe into the UK or EU falls under UK261 or EU261 only on a qualifying European airline. On a Turkish or Egyptian airline, those rules generally do not cover the flight home. Antalya to Manchester is about 3,100 km. A UK airline operates the flight, and a technical fault with the aircraft holds it up. The doors open 4 hours late. Under UK rules the airline owes £350 per passenger, so £1,400 for a family of four. Had a Turkish airline operated the same flight, UK261 generally would not apply. Package holidays often use UK charter airlines for both legs. The flight home from Antalya or Hurghada can then fall under UK261. The airline still escapes compensation only if it proves extraordinary circumstances. The rule comes from Article 3(1)(b) of Regulation 261/2004, which covers inbound flights only when a Community carrier operates them. UK261 applies the same idea with UK rules and amounts. Your outbound flight does not decide it, because the 2024 Commission guidelines treat the return as a separate flight. Check the operating airline on your boarding pass. Claim the fixed sum from that airline, not the tour operator. Keep receipts for meals or a hotel during the wait as well. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### How much compensation do I get for a delayed flight? Under EU261 it is €250 for flights up to 1,500 km, €400 for medium flights and €600 for flights over 3,500 km. Under UK261 the amounts are £220, £350 and £520. You must arrive three hours or more late, and long-haul arrivals between three and four hours late may pay half. Distance sets the figure, not the ticket price. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 measures it by great-circle distance. The €400 band covers intra-EU flights over 1,500 km and other flights between 1,500 and 3,500 km. Anything longer falls in the €600 band. UK261 uses the same bands in pounds. A family of three flies Barcelona to Stockholm, over 2,000 km within the EU. They arrive 3 hours 45 minutes late because of a maintenance problem. The airline owes €400 each, so €1,200 in total. The same delay on a flight over 3,500 km could pay €300 each. The money is per passenger, and a cheap fare does not reduce it. On flights over 3,500 km, an arrival between three and four hours late lets the airline halve it, to €300 or £260. Other schemes use other figures. Canada's rules pay CA$400, CA$700 or CA$1,000 on large carriers, depending on the length of the delay. Israel's law sets indexed amounts. Work out which law covers your flight before you calculate the sum, then claim from the airline that operated it. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### Does the time I spent stuck on the plane on the tarmac count toward my delay? Yes, for compensation it does. Under EU261 and UK261, the delay runs until a door opens at your final destination and passengers may leave. Time on the tarmac before take-off or after landing all adds to your arrival delay. If that totals three hours or more, you may claim. Consider a flight from Milan to Brussels, under 1,500 km, that boards at 09:00. It sits on the taxiway for 2 hours 30 minutes because of a fault. Then it lands and waits 40 minutes for a gate. The door opens 3 hours 15 minutes after the scheduled arrival. The airline owes €250 unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. In Germanwings, C-452/13, the Court of Justice ruled that a flight arrives when at least one door opens and passengers may leave. The reasoning was simple. On a closed aircraft you cannot move freely or get on with your day. So every minute on board before that moment counts. A hold before departure works the same way. Board on time and then wait two hours on the stand, and that wait pushes your arrival back. The final door time against the schedule is what counts. Note when you boarded, when you took off and when the door opened. If the wait runs long, ask the crew for water. Keep any announcement about the cause, because the airline may give a different reason later. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### My flight kept getting delayed 30 minutes at a time, can I still claim compensation? Yes, if the small delays add up. The way the delay was announced does not matter. What counts is how late you reach your destination. Three hours or more at arrival can earn €250 to €600 per passenger on a covered flight. The airline can refuse only by proving extraordinary circumstances. A rolling delay arrives in small steps. The departure board moves by half an hour, then again, then again. Each step looks minor, but the law ignores the steps. It looks only at the moment you finally arrive. Arrival means the time a door opens and you may leave the aircraft, as the Court of Justice held in Germanwings (C-452/13). If that moment comes three hours or more after the scheduled arrival, fixed compensation can be due. A flight from Barcelona to Amsterdam covers about 1,241 km. Land there 3 hours 20 minutes late after six small updates, and Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 gives €250 per passenger. The steps still matter for care. On a flight of up to 1,500 km, the airline owes meals and refreshments once the delay reaches two hours. If it reaches five hours, you can give up the trip and ask for a refund instead. Screenshot each new departure time and keep the airline's messages. They show how the delay grew and that you stayed at the airport. Then claim from the operating airline with the scheduled and actual arrival times. It can refuse only by proving extraordinary circumstances that all reasonable measures could not have avoided. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### My flight was delayed for hours and then cancelled, do I claim for a delay or a cancellation? A cancellation. Once the airline cancels, the hours you already waited stop being measured as a delay. A cancellation at the airport comes with no notice. Compensation of €250 to €600 per passenger is then normally due by distance, unless the airline proves extraordinary circumstances. Start with an example. A Lisbon to Berlin flight, about 2,304 km, sits at the gate for five hours. Then the airline cancels it and moves you to the next morning. You claim for a cancellation, and on that intra-EU distance the amount is €400 per passenger. Why a cancellation claim? Under Article 5(1)(c) of Regulation 261/2004, a cancellation announced less than seven days before departure earns compensation. The only short-notice exception is a replacement that leaves no more than one hour early and arrives less than two hours late. A flight cancelled after hours of waiting almost never meets that test. The airline can still refuse if it proves extraordinary circumstances, such as severe weather, and shows it took all reasonable measures. A technical problem with the aircraft is normally its own matter. Ask in writing for the specific reason it cancelled. Your other rights change too. You can choose a refund, the earliest rerouting, or a later flight that suits you. Meals, and a hotel if you must stay overnight, remain due even when the cause was extraordinary. Keep the receipts for anything you buy, and keep the messages showing both the delay and the cancellation. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### My flight took off and then turned back to the airport, can I claim compensation? Often, yes. When a plane takes off, returns to its departure airport and passengers are moved to another flight, the flight counts as cancelled. Compensation then follows the cancellation rules: €250 to €600 per passenger under EU261, by distance, unless the airline proves extraordinary circumstances. The European Commission's 2024 interpretative guidelines, Section 3.2.3, settle the label. A flight that departs and returns to its departure airport, with passengers transferred to another flight, is treated as cancelled. The time spent in the air changes nothing, because the flight never reached its destination. Picture a Dublin to Rome flight, about 1,886 km, turning back an hour after take-off. The airline puts everyone on a flight the next morning, arriving 14 hours late. The notice was zero and the new arrival is far outside the two-hour margin, so EU261 gives €400 per passenger. The reason decides the rest. A technical problem found in the air is normally the airline's own matter, as the Court of Justice held in Wallentin-Hermann (C-549/07). A bird strike or severe weather may be extraordinary, but the airline must prove it and show it took all reasonable measures. Ask the crew or the desk why the plane turned back, and keep your old and new boarding passes. Claim from the operating airline. Meals, and a hotel for the night, remain due even if the cause turns out to be extraordinary. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ### My flight stopped on the way but kept the same flight number, which arrival counts for the delay? The arrival at the destination on your booking. If you booked through to the last stop, the delay and the distance are measured there, not at the stop in the middle. If your ticket ends at the intermediate stop, that stop is your destination. Three hours or more late can mean €250 to €600 under EU261. Some flights land on the way, refuel or change passengers, and then continue under one flight number. For compensation, the question is where your journey ends. The Court of Justice measures the delay on arrival at your final destination, as it did in Folkerts (C-11/11). Suppose a flight runs from Madrid to Santiago de Chile with a stop in São Paulo. You booked Madrid to Santiago, about 10,720 km. The flight leaves São Paulo late and you land in Santiago 4 hours 30 minutes late. EU261 applies because the flight left Madrid, and the amount is €600. Distance follows the same logic. It is a great-circle line from your first departure point to your final destination, so the stop does not shorten it. A passenger who booked only Madrid to São Paulo, about 8,380 km, is judged on the arrival in São Paulo instead. Check your ticket to see where it ends. Then claim from the operating airline with the scheduled and actual arrival time at that airport. If you arrived 3 to 4 hours late on a flight of over 3,500 km, the airline may pay €300 instead. [Flight delay compensation](/flight-delay-compensation) ## What are you owed when a flight is cancelled? A cancellation gives you a choice of refund or new flight, and compensation turns on how much notice you had. [All 20 questions on this topic](/faq/cancelled-flights). ### My flight was cancelled more than 2 weeks before departure, do I get compensation? No. If the airline told you about the cancellation at least 14 days before departure, no fixed compensation is due. You still choose between a full refund and a replacement flight. That choice is yours, and if you pick the money, the airline must pay it within seven days. An email on 1 May tells you your June flight is cancelled. That is more than 14 days' warning, so you get no €250 or €400 payment. You can still ask for the whole fare back or a seat on another flight. Under EU261, Article 5 of Regulation 261/2004 links cash compensation for a cancellation to the warning you got. With 14 days or more, the airline owes you no fixed payment, whatever caused the cancellation. Your other rights stay intact. Article 8 still lets you choose a refund, a new flight at the earliest opportunity, or a later flight that suits you. A refund must reach you within seven days. The airline may offer a voucher, but it only counts as payment with your signed agreement. Check the exact date and time of the airline's email or text. If it reached you inside the 14 days, different rules apply and compensation may be owed. Flights from the UK follow the same structure under the retained UK regulation, with amounts in pounds. [Cancellation compensation](/flight-cancellation-compensation) ### My flight was cancelled 10 days before departure, am I entitled to compensation? Possibly. With 7 to 13 days' notice, the airline owes compensation unless it offered a new flight leaving no more than two hours earlier and arriving less than four hours later. It can also refuse if extraordinary circumstances caused the cancellation and it took all reasonable measures. Imagine a 1,200 km flight booked to leave at 10:00 and land at 14:00. Ten days out, the airline cancels it and offers a flight landing at 19:00. You would arrive five hours late. With 7 to 13 days' notice, Article 5 of Regulation 261/2004 judges the airline by that replacement. It escapes compensation only if the new flight left at most two hours before your original time. It must also have landed less than four hours after it. Five hours late fails that test, so the airline owes €250 per passenger, or £220 on a UK261 flight. Its remaining defence is extraordinary circumstances, such as severe weather or air traffic restrictions. The airline must prove they caused the cancellation and that reasonable measures could not avoid it. A fault found during the pre-flight checks generally does not qualify. Keep the cancellation message and write down the times of every flight offered. Ask the airline in writing for compensation and the specific reason for the cancellation. Your choice of refund or rebooking under Article 8 stays open either way. [Cancellation compensation](/flight-cancellation-compensation) ### My flight was cancelled the night before, what am I entitled to? With under seven days' notice, the airline owes compensation unless it offered a flight leaving no more than one hour earlier and arriving less than two hours later. You also choose a refund or rebooking. The airline must provide meals and, when you need an overnight stay, a hotel. At 21:00 the evening before, the airline cancels your 1,800 km flight inside the EU. It rebooks you on a flight landing six hours late. That puts you in the tightest notice band of Article 5 of Regulation 261/2004. The airline avoids compensation only if the replacement left at most one hour before your original time. It must also have arrived less than two hours after it. Six hours misses that window, so the airline owes €400 per passenger. Its only way out is to prove extraordinary circumstances, and a maintenance problem generally does not count. Your practical rights start straight away. Article 8 lets you choose a refund within seven days, the earliest new flight, or a later date that suits you. While you wait, the airline owes meals and refreshments for the waiting time and two calls or emails. If you must stay overnight, it owes a hotel and transport to it. Those care duties apply even when the cause was extraordinary. Keep the message showing when you were told. Save receipts for anything you buy, and ask in writing for the reason. [Cancellation compensation](/flight-cancellation-compensation) ### Do I still get compensation if the airline rebooked me on a later flight after cancelling mine? Often, yes. Inside 14 days' notice, the test is how close the replacement flight was to your original times. With under seven days' notice, a new flight arriving two hours or more late leaves compensation due. With 7 to 13 days, the limit is four hours. Extraordinary circumstances can still excuse the airline. Being rebooked does not settle the question on its own. Under Article 5 of Regulation 261/2004, the airline avoids compensation only when its replacement fits tight time windows. With under seven days' notice, it must leave no more than one hour early and land less than two hours late. With 7 to 13 days, the limits are two hours early and four hours late. Here's how that plays out: a 1,000 km flight is cancelled with three days' notice. The airline moves you to a flight landing three hours after your original time. That misses the two-hour limit, so the airline owes €250, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. The payment can be halved. Article 7(2) allows this when your rerouted arrival stays within its distance-specific time limits. For a flight over 3,500 km, that can mean €300 instead of €600. Measure arrival at the moment the doors open, as the Court of Justice ruled in Germanwings. Compare the old and new arrival times in your booking emails. Then send the airline a written claim with both sets of times. [Cancellation compensation](/flight-cancellation-compensation) ### My flight got cancelled, should I take the refund or the rebooking? You choose. EU261 gives you three options: a full refund within seven days, a new flight at the earliest opportunity, or a later flight on a date that suits you. Take the refund if the trip no longer makes sense. Take rerouting if you still need to travel. Compensation is a separate question either way. Read the airline's options screen slowly before you click. Article 8 of Regulation 261/2004 puts the choice with you, not the airline. You can take your money back, fly at the earliest opportunity, or fly later on a date you prefer, subject to seats. Pick the refund when the trip has lost its point, such as a missed event. The airline must pay it within seven days, and in vouchers only with your signed agreement. Choose the earliest reroute when you still need to arrive. A later date suits flexible plans. None of this decides whether fixed compensation is owed. That turns on the notice, the replacement offered and the cause. Think of a traveller with a €180 fare, cancelled five days ahead. They can take the €180 back and may still claim €250 on a short flight. If the earliest flight on offer is days away while others fly sooner, say so in writing. When the airline fails to offer a compliant reroute, you may be able to recover reasonable costs of arranging your own. [Flight refunds](/flight-refund) ### If I accept a refund for a cancelled flight, can I still claim compensation? Yes. Taking a refund does not by itself remove your right to compensation. Compensation depends on how much notice you got, the replacement flight the airline offered and the cause of the cancellation. The refund returns your fare. Compensation is a separate fixed sum of €250, €400 or €600. You learn five days ahead that your 1,100 km flight is cancelled. The airline offers a flight the next day, and you take a €150 refund instead. That offered flight missed the one-hour-early and two-hour-late window. So the airline can owe you the €150 refund and €250 compensation, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. This works because Regulation 261/2004 keeps two rights apart. Article 8 covers the refund or new flight you choose. Article 7 covers the fixed compensation. Article 5 decides whether that compensation is owed. It looks at the notice and the replacement offered, not at the option you picked. Long notice changes the position. With 14 days or more, no fixed compensation is due, whichever option you chose. Ask for the refund first, since the airline must pay it within seven days. Then send a separate written compensation claim. Include the notice date and the times of the flight the airline offered. [Flight refunds](/flight-refund) ### How long does an airline have to refund a cancelled flight? Seven days. When you choose a refund after a cancellation covered by EU261 or UK261, the airline must pay it within seven days. It must pay in money. A voucher only counts as payment if you agree to it in writing. Once you choose a refund after a cancellation, Regulation 261/2004 gives the airline seven days to pay you. Article 8 gives you the choice, and Article 7(3) sets the payment terms. The same rule applies to flights under the retained UK regulation. You get back the full cost of the ticket you did not use. Say you paid €220 for a cancelled flight and asked for your money on 3 March. The €220 should be with you by 10 March. A €220 voucher does not meet that duty unless you signed up to accept it. When a refund stalls, send a dated written request naming the flight, the booking reference and your choice of a refund. Keep every reply. Once the deadline passes, send a reminder that quotes the seven-day rule. If that fails, complain to the national body that enforces the regulation in the departure country. Compensation is a separate matter. Your fare comes back either way, while fixed compensation depends on notice, the replacement offered and the cause. [Flight refunds](/flight-refund) ### The airline cancelled my flight and is only offering a voucher, do I have to accept it? No. Under EU261 and UK261, the airline can offer a voucher, but it can only pay you that way with your signed agreement. If you choose a refund, the airline owes you the money within seven days. Read any voucher button or email carefully before you accept. Airlines often put the voucher first, sometimes with a bonus. Think of a €240 return fare that is cancelled, with a €260 voucher on offer. That offer is legal, but taking it is optional. You can refuse it and ask for the €240 in money instead. Under Article 7(3) of Regulation 261/2004, travel vouchers count as payment only when the passenger agrees in writing. Article 8 gives you the right to choose reimbursement after a cancellation. Together they mean the airline cannot impose a voucher on you. Reply in writing that you choose a refund under Article 8. Quote the booking reference and the date you made the request. The airline then has seven days to pay. If you already clicked a voucher option, write promptly to explain that you wanted cash. Compensation is a separate question. Whether the airline also owes €250, €400 or €600 depends on notice, the replacement flight offered and the cause. [Voucher or cash](/voucher-or-cash) ### My flight was moved earlier, does that count as a cancellation? Yes, if the airline brought your departure forward by more than one hour. The Court of Justice treats that flight as cancelled. You then get cancellation rights: a refund or another flight, and possibly compensation depending on how much notice you had and the new times. A departure brought forward by more than one hour counts as a cancellation. The Court of Justice said so in Azurair (C-146/20), and the 2024 Commission guidelines follow that view. The cancellation rules of Regulation 261/2004 then apply in full. Here's how that plays out: five days before travel, your 14:00 departure moves to 11:30. With under seven days' notice, a replacement leaving more than one hour early fails the exception by definition. On a 1,200 km flight, the airline owes €250 unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. With 14 days' notice or more, though, no fixed compensation is due. You also keep the Article 8 choice. If the earlier time no longer works, ask for a refund within seven days or a different flight. Keep the change email and compare the old and new departure times to the minute. Ask the airline in writing to treat the change as a cancellation. If it refuses, keep its reply for your file. [Cancellation compensation](/flight-cancellation-compensation) ### The airline changed my flight time by several hours, can I get compensation? It depends on the direction and the notice. A departure moved more than one hour earlier counts as a cancellation. A later retiming is less settled, so check whether your booked flight still operates. With 14 days' notice or more, the airline owes no fixed compensation either way. Four days before travel, your 08:00 flight of 1,300 km is replaced by one at 13:00. It lands five hours late, so the airline can owe €250, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. That answer treats the replacement as a cancellation. For earlier departures the rule is clear: the Court of Justice treats a move of more than one hour forward as a cancellation. The 14-day notice test in Article 5 of Regulation 261/2004 then applies. Later retimings are less clear-cut. If the airline replaced your flight with a different one, treat it as a cancellation and apply the notice windows. With under seven days' notice, a replacement landing two hours or more late leaves compensation due. With 7 to 13 days, the limit is four hours. If the new time no longer works, ask what refund or alternative the airline offers. Keep the original confirmation and the change email. Then write to the airline with both sets of times. [Cancellation compensation](/flight-cancellation-compensation) ### My flight was cancelled and I was rebooked for the next day, does the airline have to pay for my hotel? Yes. When a cancellation leaves you needing an overnight stay, the airline must provide a hotel, transport between the airport and the hotel, and meals for the wait. This duty applies even when the cause was extraordinary, such as bad weather. If it provides nothing, pay reasonable costs yourself and keep receipts. Imagine your evening flight is cancelled and you are rebooked for 09:00 next day. The airline should book your room and get you there. If staff send you away with nothing, choose a reasonable hotel near the airport. Pay for simple meals and keep every receipt. That duty of care comes from Article 9 of Regulation 261/2004. After a cancellation, it covers meals and refreshments for the waiting time and two calls or emails. When you need to stay overnight, it adds a hotel and transport to it. In McDonagh v Ryanair, the Court of Justice confirmed that care continues even in extraordinary circumstances. Compensation is a separate right. A next-day flight usually lands far more than two hours late. With under 14 days' notice, the airline can also owe €250, €400 or €600, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. Before you book your own room, ask the desk for a hotel in writing or by app chat. Then claim the costs from the airline with the receipts attached. [Cancellation compensation](/flight-cancellation-compensation) ### The airline cancelled my flight and I bought another ticket myself, can I claim the cost back? Sometimes. You can recover reasonable costs of a replacement flight when the airline failed to offer a proper reroute at the earliest opportunity. You must show the purchase was necessary and that you kept the cost reasonable. Ask the airline first, and keep a record of its answer. In practice: the airline cancels your evening flight and offers a seat three days later. Another carrier flies the same route the next morning. You ask the airline to book it, and it refuses. You then buy that seat for €320, and you have a case for reclaiming the €320. The airline's refusal is your evidence. Article 8 of Regulation 261/2004 obliges it to reroute you at the earliest opportunity when you ask. When it fails to do this, the 2024 Commission guidelines say you may recover reasonable self-rerouting costs. You must prove the purchase was necessary and that you limited the cost. The case is weaker if you booked before asking. It is also weaker if you picked business class when economy was available. Compensation sits on top of this. With under 14 days' notice, the airline can still owe €250, €400 or €600, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. Keep screenshots of the airline's offer, your request, the fares available and your receipt. [Cancellation compensation](/flight-cancellation-compensation) ### The airline says my flight was cancelled for operational reasons, do I get compensation? 'Operational reasons' is not a legal defence by itself. The airline owes compensation unless it proves extraordinary circumstances that reasonable measures could not avoid. Routine technical faults and strikes by its own staff generally do not qualify. Ask the airline in writing for the specific cause. A vague label is not a defence. Under Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004, only extraordinary circumstances free the airline from compensation. It must prove the event caused the cancellation, and that it took all reasonable measures. 'Operational reasons' does neither. Some causes behind the phrase can count, such as air traffic restrictions or severe weather. Many cannot. In Wallentin-Hermann, the Court of Justice held that routine technical problems are generally part of normal operations. In Krüsemann, it held that a strike by the airline's own staff is not extraordinary merely because it came as a surprise. Imagine your 2,000 km flight inside the EU is cancelled two days ahead for operational reasons. If the airline cannot point to an extraordinary cause, it owes €400 per passenger. Write to the airline for the exact cause and its evidence. If it refuses or stays vague, keep its reply. You can then escalate the claim with that reply as part of your file. [Cancellation compensation](/flight-cancellation-compensation) ### Can I get compensation if my flight was cancelled because of a technical problem? Usually yes, if you got less than 14 days' notice. A technical problem found or caused during maintenance is generally part of the airline's normal operations, so it does not excuse compensation. Hidden manufacturing defects, sabotage or terrorism can be different. The replacement flight's times still matter. Think of a 3,800 km flight from Madrid to a non-EU city, cancelled at the gate for an engine fault. The airline rebooks you on the next morning's flight, landing 15 hours late. It can owe €600 per passenger. The amount falls to €300 only if the rerouted arrival stays within the Article 7(2) limits. The fault does not get the airline off. In Wallentin-Hermann v Alitalia, the Court of Justice held that technical problems found during maintenance, or caused by poor maintenance, are generally not extraordinary. The 2024 Commission guidelines repeat that view. They note that a hidden manufacturing defect, sabotage or terrorism can differ. Notice still matters under Article 5 of Regulation 261/2004. With 14 days' notice or more, no fixed compensation is due. With less, it depends on how close the replacement flight came to your original times. You also get meals, a hotel for the night and your choice of refund or rebooking. Ask the airline in writing what the fault was, and keep its reply. [Cancellation compensation](/flight-cancellation-compensation) ### I booked through a travel agent and they didn't tell me my flight was cancelled, can I still claim? Yes, the claim goes to the airline that operated the flight, not the agent. The 14-day notice rule looks at when you were told about the cancellation. If the agent's message reached you late, the airline's exception for long notice may not apply. Keep the email that first told you. You claim from the operating air carrier, the airline whose aircraft and crew were meant to fly you. Articles 2 and 3(5) of Regulation 261/2004 place the compensation duty there. The ticket seller or agent is not the party that owes it. What counts is when you were told. Article 5 removes compensation only when you were informed of the cancellation in time. Here's how that plays out: the airline tells your agent 20 days ahead, but the agent emails you five days ahead. You were informed five days ahead. The airline then owes compensation unless its replacement met the one-hour-early and two-hour-late window, or extraordinary circumstances apply. On a flight under 1,500 km, that is €250. It may argue that it informed you through the agent. Keep the first message you received and its timestamp, and ask the agent in writing when the airline told them. Your refund or rebooking choice under Article 8 also stays open. If the agent handles the refund, ask both the agent and the airline who will pay it. [Cancellation compensation](/flight-cancellation-compensation) ### My flight was diverted to a different airport, is that a cancellation? It can be. A diversion to an airport that does not serve the same town, city or region may count as a cancellation. A diversion to another airport serving the same area does not, but the airline must still get you to your booked airport or an agreed destination. Your 1,300 km flight to Frankfurt diverts to Cologne, and a coach gets you to Frankfurt four hours late. The airline can owe €250, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. Bad weather or a medical emergency may count, but the airline must prove it. Two rules decide how the diversion is treated. The 2024 Commission guidelines treat a diversion to a distant airport as a possible cancellation. When the new airport serves the same town, city or region, Article 8(3) of Regulation 261/2004 applies instead. The airline must then pay to move you to your booked airport or another agreed destination. The delay rule can apply as well. A final arrival three hours or more late can trigger fixed compensation, measured when the doors open at your real destination. The bus or train leg counts towards that time. Keep your boarding pass and note when you reached the booked airport. Save receipts if you paid for onward transport yourself. Then claim from the airline in writing. [Diverted flight compensation](/diverted-flight-compensation) ### My outbound flight was cancelled, can I get a refund for the return flight too? Usually yes, when both flights are on one booking and the cancellation leaves the trip pointless. Your EU261 refund right covers the ticket, not just one leg. Ask for the full refund in writing, and say clearly that you will not travel. In practice: your €300 return booking loses its outbound flight. If you no longer want to travel, ask for the full €300 back, not €150. If you still plan to fly the return, say so in writing, because some airlines cancel unused return legs on their own. Article 8 of Regulation 261/2004 lets you choose reimbursement after a cancellation, paid within seven days. On a single booking, the refund is meant to cover parts of the journey you can no longer use. A return leg loses its purpose when you never reach your destination. Compensation is counted per flight. The Commission's 2024 guidelines treat the outbound and return as separate flights. Only the cancelled flight can earn €250, €400 or €600. Your return flight earns nothing unless it was itself disrupted. Separate tickets change the answer. A return bought on a different booking is a separate contract, and its refund then depends on that ticket's terms. [Flight refunds](/flight-refund) ### How much compensation do I get for a cancelled flight? Under EU261, €250 for flights up to 1,500 km, €400 for flights inside the EU over 1,500 km and other flights of 1,500 to 3,500 km, and €600 beyond 3,500 km. UK261 pays £220, £350 or £520. It applies only with under 14 days' notice and no extraordinary circumstances. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 fixes the amounts by great-circle distance to your final destination. They are paid per passenger, and the UK version uses the same bands in pounds. For a family of four on a cancelled 1,400 km flight, the total today could reach €1,000. Two conditions come first. Article 5 removes compensation with 14 days' notice or more. Inside that period, the times of the replacement flight decide it. The airline also pays nothing if it proves extraordinary circumstances it could not avoid. The amount can drop. When the airline reroutes you and you land within the Article 7(2) time limits, it may pay half. On a flight over 3,500 km, that means €300 or £260. The rules are changing. The European Parliament approved an EU261 reform on 7 July 2026. It is expected to apply from the second half of 2027. It will give airlines 30 days to pay or give a specific reason for refusing. Until it applies, the current rules stand. [Cancellation compensation](/flight-cancellation-compensation) ### My flight was just cancelled at the airport, what should I do right now? Choose what you want first: a refund, the earliest new flight, or a later date. Ask staff for meal vouchers and, if you are stuck overnight, a hotel with transport. Photograph the departures board, keep every receipt and ask in writing why the flight was cancelled. Decide early what you want, because seats on the next flights go fast. Article 8 of Regulation 261/2004 gives you the choice between a refund, the earliest reroute and a later flight. If you want the refund, the airline must pay it within seven days. While you wait, Article 9 gives you care. That means meals and refreshments for the waiting time and two calls or emails. If you need to stay overnight, it means a hotel and transport there. The airline owes this even in extraordinary circumstances such as severe weather. If the airline offers a reroute days away while other flights leave sooner, ask it to book one of those. Write down its answer. When it fails to offer a compliant reroute, you may recover reasonable costs of booking yourself. Keep evidence for a compensation claim later: the cancellation message, your boarding pass and any rebooking. A next-day arrival on a 1,200 km flight can mean €250, unless the airline proves extraordinary circumstances. [Cancellation compensation](/flight-cancellation-compensation) ### The airline cancelled my flight and rebooked me into a different airport, who pays to get me to the one I booked? The airline does. If it reroutes you to another airport serving the same city or region, it must pay for the transfer. That means getting you to the airport you booked, or to a nearby destination you agree on. That is separate from any cancellation compensation of €250 to €600, which depends on the notice and the new times. Article 8(3) of Regulation 261/2004 deals with cities served by several airports. If the airline flies you to an alternative airport, it bears the cost of the onward transfer. That covers the trip to the airport on your booking, or to another close-by destination you agree with it. Imagine a Nice to London Heathrow flight, about 1,041 km, cancelled two days before departure. The airline books you on an evening flight to Gatwick, landing five hours after your original time. It owes the train or taxi from Gatwick to Heathrow. The late arrival on short notice also means €250 per passenger in compensation. Ask the airline first how it will get you there, since some arrange a coach. If it offers nothing, pick a reasonable option, such as the train or a shuttle, and keep the ticket. A long private taxi may be questioned when a cheaper route was easy, because you have to show the cost was necessary. Send the receipt to the operating airline with your booking reference and the cancellation message. The fixed compensation is a separate claim. It can fail if the airline proves extraordinary circumstances, but the transfer duty sits in Article 8, not in the compensation rules. [Cancellation compensation](/flight-cancellation-compensation) ## What if you were refused boarding or downgraded? Being bumped against your will pays the same as a cancellation; a downgrade pays back part of the fare. [All 20 questions on this topic](/faq/overbooking). ### How much compensation do I get if I'm bumped from an overbooked flight in the EU? Under EU261 the airline owes you €250, €400 or €600 when it refuses you boarding against your will on an overbooked flight. The amount depends on the flight distance. You need a confirmed booking, valid travel documents and to have presented yourself on time. Articles 4 and 7 of Regulation 261/2004 give you a fixed payment for involuntary denied boarding. You qualify when you hold a confirmed reservation, present yourself on time and carry valid documents. Overbooking is not one of the excluded grounds. Only reasonable health, safety, security or document grounds take you outside the rule. The distance bands are simple. A flight of up to 1,500 km pays €250. An intra-EU flight over 1,500 km, or another flight of 1,500 to 3,500 km, pays €400. Any other flight pays €600. Bumped from a 4,000 km flight from Madrid, you are owed €600. If the airline reroutes you within the time limits in Article 7(2), it may halve that to €300. The money is not all. You also choose between a refund and a replacement flight. While you wait, the airline must give you care, such as meals and a hotel if you need to stay overnight. Ask the gate staff to confirm in writing that they refused you boarding. Keep your boarding pass and receipts, then claim from the operating airline. [Overbooking compensation](/overbooking-compensation) ### How much compensation do you get for being bumped off an overbooked flight in the UK? Under UK261 the airline owes you £220, £350 or £520 if it bumps you against your will. The amount depends on the flight distance, using the same bands as EU261. You must hold a confirmed booking, carry valid documents and present yourself on time for the flight. Imagine you are bumped from a 1,000 km flight from Manchester. The airline owes you £220, even if your ticket cost less than that. A flight leaving a UK airport falls under UK261 whatever the airline. UK261 is the retained version of the EU rules. It uses UK territorial and carrier rules and pays in pounds. Its scope differs from EU261, so do not mix the two up. The bands match the EU ones: £220 up to 1,500 km and £350 for 1,500 to 3,500 km. A longer flight pays £520, or £260 when the reduced long-haul rate applies. You also keep the right to a refund or a new flight, plus care while you wait. The UK Civil Aviation Authority sets out these remedies in its passenger guidance. Get the refusal confirmed in writing at the gate, and keep receipts for food, hotel and transport. Then write to the operating airline and quote UK261, Articles 4 and 7. In England and Wales you generally have six years to go to court, and five years in Scotland. [UK261 explained](/passenger-rights/uk261) ### Do I get compensation if I volunteer to give up my seat on an overbooked flight? Usually not the fixed amount. EU261 and UK261 tie the €250 to €600 payment to involuntary denied boarding. If you volunteer, you accept whatever deal you agree with the airline instead. Read the offer before you say yes, and get it in writing. Article 4 of Regulation 261/2004 covers volunteers and passengers refused against their will, but it treats them differently. The fixed compensation is for those refused against their will. When you step forward as a volunteer, you have not been refused. The airline is then bound by the deal you strike, such as cash, vouchers or a later flight. That makes the comparison worth doing at the gate. Think of a 4,000 km flight leaving the EU, where an involuntary bump would earn €600. Volunteering for a €300 voucher means giving up the chance of that cash. On a 1,000 km flight the fixed sum is €250, so a better offer may be worth taking. Watch for tick boxes and forms. Which? has reported a case in which an airline treated a ticked online rebooking box as volunteering. Only volunteer when you clearly mean to. Ask exactly what you get, in what form and when, and whether the new flight is confirmed. If you refuse to volunteer and the airline still keeps you off, you are an involuntary passenger. [Overbooking compensation](/overbooking-compensation) ### Can an airline bump me if I've already checked in online and have a seat number? Yes, it can still happen. Checking in or holding a seat number does not stop an airline refusing you boarding. What it does do is help show you presented yourself on time with a confirmed booking. If you are then bumped against your will, EU261 or UK261 compensation applies. You check in online for a 1,400 km flight from Rome and reach the gate on time. Staff tell you the flight is full and give your seat away. The airline owes you €250, plus a refund or a later flight. It also owes you meals while you wait. A boarding pass does not guarantee a place on the aircraft. Airlines sometimes refuse passengers who already hold one. Your protection comes from the law, not from the seat number. Articles 3, 4 and 7 of Regulation 261/2004 set out what EU261 gives you when you are refused against your will: compensation, a refund or new flight, and care. You must have a confirmed reservation, valid documents and present yourself on time. Your boarding pass and check-in confirmation are good evidence for each point. Screenshot your boarding pass and keep any messages from the airline. Ask the gate staff to write down that they refused you boarding. Then send your claim to the operating airline. [Denied boarding compensation](/denied-boarding-compensation) ### Is it denied boarding if the gate closed before I got there? Usually not, if you arrived after the airline's published boarding deadline. EU261 protects passengers who present themselves on time. If you reached the gate before the deadline and staff still refused you, or the gate shut early, that can count as denied boarding. Under Articles 3 and 4 of Regulation 261/2004, denied-boarding rights protect passengers who did their part. You need a confirmed booking, and you must present yourself on time. If you reached the gate after the cut-off the airline told you, staff are not refusing you. You arrived too late. It is different when you were on time. Perhaps the gate closed before the time the airline gave, or staff stopped you while boarding was still open. Either way, you presented yourself properly. A refusal then can be involuntary denied boarding, with compensation, a refund or rerouting, and care. Here's how that plays out: your boarding pass says the gate closes 20 minutes before departure. You arrive 25 minutes before, but the gate is already shut. On a 1,200 km flight, the airline would owe you €250 if this counts as denied boarding. Evidence decides these cases. Photograph the departure board and the gate with the time showing. Keep your boarding pass with its printed closing time, and write down the names of the staff you spoke to. Then claim from the operating airline. [Denied boarding compensation](/denied-boarding-compensation) ### Can I get compensation if the airline refused to let me board because of my passport or visa? Not if the refusal was reasonable. EU261 excludes denied boarding on reasonable document grounds, such as a passport that does not meet entry rules. If your documents were actually valid and the airline got the rules wrong, the refusal can count as denied boarding, and compensation may be due. Imagine you fly 2,500 km from Athens to a city outside the EU. Staff refuse you, saying you need a visa. The destination's official rules show you did not need one. If the refusal was wrong, the airline owes you €400. Everything turns on one word: reasonable. Articles 2 and 4 of Regulation 261/2004 let an airline refuse you when your travel documents are inadequate, without the fixed compensation. If your passport had expired or you lacked a required visa, the airline is acting within the rules. Staff do get it wrong at times. They may misread passport validity rules or ask for a visa you do not need. You then carried valid documents and presented yourself on time. The refusal can be involuntary denied boarding, with compensation, a refund or rerouting, and care. Check the official entry rules of your destination and save a copy. Ask the staff to state in writing why they refused you. Photograph your passport's data page and expiry date, then claim from the operating airline. [Denied boarding compensation](/denied-boarding-compensation) ### Can an airline refuse to let me fly because they think I'm drunk, and do I get compensation? Yes, an airline can refuse you on reasonable safety or security grounds, and then EU261 compensation is not due. Intoxication or disruptive behaviour can be such a ground. If the refusal had no reasonable basis, it can count as involuntary denied boarding, and the usual compensation may apply. Stay calm at the gate, because your conduct there becomes evidence. EU261 treats a refusal on reasonable health, safety or security grounds differently from overbooking. If staff reasonably judge that you are drunk or a risk to others, they may keep you off. That refusal does not trigger the fixed payment. The grounds must be reasonable, though. If you were sober and calm and staff acted on a mistake, the refusal may fail that test. You would then be a passenger refused despite valid documents and timely presentation. Under Articles 2 and 4 of Regulation 261/2004, the airline would owe compensation, a refund or rerouting, and care. Think of a 3,800 km flight from Dublin where staff refuse you, saying you seem unwell from drink. You had not been drinking, and others saw you. If the refusal was not reasonable, the airline owes you €600. Ask for the reason in writing. Collect the names and contact details of witnesses. Note the time and the staff involved, then write to the operating airline. [Denied boarding compensation](/denied-boarding-compensation) ### Do I get compensation if I'm refused boarding because I don't have a fit-to-fly letter or I'm pregnant? Not when the airline refused you on reasonable health grounds, such as missing the medical certificate its published rules require. EU261 excludes those refusals. If you met the airline's written requirements and staff still refused you, it can count as involuntary denied boarding, and compensation may apply. The airline's rules ask for a certificate after a set week of pregnancy. You carry one, but staff reject it on a 1,300 km flight from Paris. If the refusal was not reasonable, the airline owes you €250. Airlines set their own rules for pregnant passengers and for people with medical conditions. They publish them in their conditions of carriage. Under Articles 2 and 4 of Regulation 261/2004, EU261 lets an airline refuse you on reasonable health grounds. That refusal does not trigger the fixed compensation. So the question is whether the refusal was reasonable. It may not be if you carried the letter the airline asked for and staff rejected it anyway. The same goes for a demand for a document the airline's own rules do not require. You then presented yourself on time with valid documents. The airline could owe you compensation, a refund or rerouting, and care. Print the airline's medical rules before you travel and bring them with you, along with the original certificate. Ask the staff to write down the reason for the refusal. Then claim from the operating airline. [Denied boarding compensation](/denied-boarding-compensation) ### Do I get compensation if I'm bumped because the airline switched to a smaller plane? Yes, under EU261 it can count as involuntary denied boarding. The excluded reasons are health, safety, security and document grounds; a smaller aircraft is not among them. If you had a confirmed booking, valid documents and presented on time, the airline owes €250 to €600, plus rerouting or refund and care. In practice: the airline swaps a large jet for a smaller one on a 3,000 km flight from Frankfurt to a non-EU city. You are one of 20 passengers kept off. The airline owes you €400. If it gets you there within the Article 7(2) limits, it may halve that to €200. From your side, a smaller aircraft looks just like overbooking. There are fewer seats than passengers, so some people stay behind. Articles 4 and 7 of Regulation 261/2004 ask whether you were refused against your will, not why seats ran short. The conditions stay the same: a confirmed reservation, valid documents and timely presentation. The excluded grounds are reasonable health, safety, security or document reasons. If none of those applies, the airline owes you compensation, a choice of refund or new flight, and care. Ask the gate staff to confirm in writing that they refused you boarding because of the aircraft change. Keep your boarding pass and receipts, then claim from the operating airline. [Denied boarding compensation](/denied-boarding-compensation) ### I was denied boarding on my connecting flight because my first flight was late. Is that denied boarding or a missed connection? It depends on timing. If you reached the connecting gate after boarding closed, it is a missed connection, and compensation depends on arriving at least three hours late at your final destination. If you got there in time and staff gave your seat away, it can be denied boarding. You fly Vienna to Brussels to a non-EU city on one booking. Vienna to that city is 4,200 km in a straight line. The first leg lands 40 minutes late and you miss the connection. You reach your destination five hours late, so the airline owes you €600, assessed on the full distance. That is the delay route. On a single booking, the airline must get you to your final destination. If the first flight runs late and you miss the second, EU261 treats it as a delay. Compensation is due when you arrive at least three hours late, unless the airline proves extraordinary circumstances. Sometimes you reach the gate in time, but the airline has already given your seat away. Staff may have expected you to miss the flight. You presented yourself on time, so the refusal can be denied boarding. Note the exact time you reached the connecting gate, keep both boarding passes and ask the staff what they recorded. Then claim from the operating airline, citing the Folkerts judgment or Article 4, depending on what happened. [Denied boarding compensation](/denied-boarding-compensation) ### What does the airline have to give me while I wait after being bumped? The airline owes you care: meals and refreshments in reasonable relation to the wait, two phone calls or emails, and a hotel with transport to it if you must stay overnight. This comes on top of the fixed compensation and your choice of a refund or a new flight. Imagine you are bumped from an evening 1,800 km flight from Barcelona, and the next seat is the following morning. The airline should give you dinner, a hotel room and transport to it. It also owes you €400 in compensation. Under EU261, Article 9 sets a duty of care for passengers refused boarding against their will. The airline must provide meals and refreshments while you wait. It must offer two phone calls, emails or similar messages. If your new flight leaves the next day, it must provide a hotel and transport between the airport and the hotel. Care runs alongside your other rights. The fixed compensation by distance under Article 7 still applies, and you still choose between a refund and a replacement flight. Care gets you through the wait; it is not the money for the disruption. If staff do not offer care, ask for it and note their answer. Buy only what is reasonable, such as a standard meal and a modest hotel. Keep every receipt and claim the costs from the operating airline. [Denied boarding compensation](/denied-boarding-compensation) ### If I get bumped from my flight, can I get a refund instead of a later flight? Yes. Under EU261 you choose: a refund of your ticket, the earliest available replacement flight, or a later flight at a date that suits you, subject to seats. The airline must pay a refund within seven days. You keep the fixed compensation whichever option you choose. You are bumped from a 1,100 km flight from Milan and no longer need to travel. You ask for a refund of your €180 ticket. The airline owes you that €180 within seven days, plus €250 in compensation. When an airline refuses you boarding against your will, the choice is yours. You can take a refund, the earliest possible rerouting, or a rerouting at a later date that suits you, if seats are available. A refund must reach you within seven days, and in vouchers only if you agree in writing. The fixed compensation is separate. You get it whether you choose the refund or the new flight. Tell the staff clearly which option you choose, and ask them to confirm it in writing. Do not sign anything that calls you a volunteer. Keep the confirmation and your boarding pass. In your claim, quote Articles 4, 7 and 8 of Regulation 261/2004. [Flight refunds](/flight-refund) ### Should I accept a voucher when the airline bumps me from a flight? Only if you prefer it. Under EU261 the airline pays compensation in money, and it may use vouchers only with your signed agreement. If you are bumped against your will, you can refuse a voucher and ask for the cash amount for your flight distance instead. Think of being bumped against your will from a 3,000 km flight from Stockholm to a non-EU city. The airline owes you €400 in money. A €300 voucher is worth less, and it may expire or carry conditions. A €700 voucher might suit a frequent traveller better. Gate staff sometimes offer vouchers in place of cash. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 lets an airline pay in travel vouchers only when you agree in writing. You do not have to sign, and if you refuse, the airline still owes you the cash amount. Read every form before you sign. Some describe you as a volunteer, and volunteering changes your rights. If a form says you accept the voucher in full settlement, think twice. If you decline, ask the staff to note that you refused the voucher. Keep your boarding pass, then claim the cash compensation from the operating airline afterwards. [Voucher or cash](/voucher-or-cash) ### How much compensation do I get if I'm downgraded from business class to economy? Under EU261 the airline must refund 30%, 50% or 75% of the ticket price for the downgraded flight. The share depends on distance: 30% up to 1,500 km, 50% for 1,500 to 3,500 km or intra-EU flights over 1,500 km, and 75% for longer flights. In practice: you paid €2,000 for business class on a 6,000 km flight from Amsterdam, and the airline seats you in economy. It owes you 75%, which is €1,500. On a 1,000 km flight with a €400 business fare, it would owe you €120. Article 10 sets these refunds. When an airline moves you to a lower class than you paid for, it must reimburse part of your ticket price. Flights of up to 1,500 km earn 30%. Intra-EU flights over 1,500 km earn 50%, except those between the EU and the French overseas departments. Other flights of 1,500 to 3,500 km also earn 50%, and all other flights earn 75%. This is a reimbursement, not the fixed compensation for delays or denied boarding. Call it a downgrade refund under Article 10 when you write. An airline that seats you in a higher class cannot charge you extra for it. Ask the crew or gate staff to confirm the downgrade in writing. Keep your boarding pass showing the new seat, then claim from the operating airline. [Denied boarding compensation](/denied-boarding-compensation) ### Is the downgrade refund based on my whole ticket or just the flight I was downgraded on? Article 10 bases the refund on the price of the ticket for the affected flight. On a multi-flight booking, that means the share of the fare linked to the downgraded flight, not the whole trip. How that share is worked out is often disputed, so ask the airline to show its calculation. You paid €3,000 for a business-class return between Amsterdam and Singapore, far over 3,500 km each way. On the way back you are moved to economy. That return flight is worth roughly half the fare, so €1,500. At 75%, the airline owes you about €1,125. The refund attaches only to the flight where you sat in the lower class. EU261 sets it at 30%, 50% or 75% of the affected ticket price, following the distance of that flight. Other flights on the same booking do not count. Return and multi-leg tickets often show one total price, which makes the calculation harder. If your ticket shows a separate price for the downgraded flight, use it. If not, the airline must work out a fair share of the total. Ask the airline to state in writing what price it used and how it reached it. Keep your booking confirmation and the fare breakdown. If you think the share is too low, challenge it with your own figures. Your claim rests on Article 10 of Regulation 261/2004. [Denied boarding compensation](/denied-boarding-compensation) ### I was moved from premium economy to economy. Am I owed anything? Yes, on a flight covered by EU261 or UK261. Premium economy counts as a higher class, so the airline must refund 30%, 50% or 75% of the ticket price for that flight, depending on distance. A refund of only the fare difference may fall short of what the rule provides. Airlines sometimes offer only the difference between the two fares. Article 10 of Regulation 261/2004 does not work that way. It applies whenever you are placed in a class lower than the one on your ticket. Premium economy is its own class, so moving you into economy is a downgrade. The airline must then reimburse a share of the ticket price for that flight. The share depends on distance: 30% up to 1,500 km, 50% for 1,500 to 3,500 km, and 75% for longer flights. A premium economy ticket on a 7,000 km flight leaving Madrid cost you €1,200, and the airline seats you in economy. At 75%, it owes you €900. A fare-difference offer of €300 would be well short of that. First check which rules cover your flight. A departure from the EU is covered on any airline. A flight into the EU is covered only on an EU carrier. Ask the airline to confirm the downgrade in writing, keep your boarding pass, and claim after the flight. [Denied boarding compensation](/denied-boarding-compensation) ### Do airlines have to pay denied boarding compensation at the airport? EU261 entitles you to compensation as soon as the airline refuses you boarding against your will, so ask for it at the desk. If staff cannot pay on the spot, you have not lost anything. Get the refusal in writing and claim the money from the operating airline afterwards. Your right to the money arises at the gate. Under Articles 4 and 7 of Regulation 261/2004, once the airline refuses you against your will, it owes the fixed amount for your distance. It also owes care and your choice of a refund or a new flight. Desk staff may still not hand over cash. They may offer a voucher, a form or a phone number. A voucher needs your signed agreement, so you can decline it. Declining does not cancel what the airline owes you. You are bumped from a 2,200 km flight from Copenhagen to a non-EU city. Ask the desk for €400. If staff can only offer a voucher, say no and ask for written confirmation that they refused you boarding. That written note is the most useful thing you can leave with. Add your boarding pass, booking reference and the names of staff, and note whether anyone asked for volunteers. Then send a written claim to the operating airline. [Denied boarding compensation](/denied-boarding-compensation) ### What counts as denied boarding under EU261? Denied boarding means the airline refuses to carry you even though you hold a confirmed booking, carry valid documents and presented yourself on time. It does not cover refusals on reasonable health, safety, security or document grounds. Volunteers are not involuntarily denied boarding, so the fixed compensation does not apply to them. EU261 uses the term for one situation, set out in Articles 2 and 4 of Regulation 261/2004. You did everything right, and the airline still would not let you on. The cause can be overbooking, a smaller aircraft or a seat given to someone else. Three conditions apply. You need a confirmed reservation. You must present yourself on time, as the airline required. You must carry valid travel documents. If any of these fails, the refusal is not denied boarding under the rule. Some refusals fall outside it. The airline may refuse you on reasonable health, safety or security grounds, or because your documents are inadequate. A passenger who volunteers to give up a seat has not been refused against their will either. When the definition fits, three rights follow: fixed compensation of €250, €400 or €600 by distance, a choice of refund or replacement flight, and care while you wait. A passenger refused on a 1,600 km intra-EU flight is owed €400. Check each condition against your own case, then claim from the operating airline. [Denied boarding compensation](/denied-boarding-compensation) ### Does easyJet or Ryanair have to pay compensation if they overbook my flight? Yes. Low-cost airlines follow the same EU261 and UK261 rules as any other carrier. If they refuse you boarding against your will, they owe €250 to €600, or £220 to £520 under UK261. They also owe a refund or new flight and care while you wait. A low-cost airline refuses you boarding on a 1,000 km flight from London Gatwick. Your ticket cost £40. The airline still owes you £220 under UK261, and it must also offer a refund or the next suitable flight. The rules attach to the flight, not to the ticket price or the airline's business model. Any departure from an EU airport is covered. A flight into the EU is covered when an EU carrier operates it. UK261 covers UK departures in the same way. The usual conditions in Articles 4 and 7 of the Regulation apply: a confirmed booking, valid documents and presenting yourself on time. The excluded grounds are reasonable health, safety, security or document reasons. Ask the gate staff to confirm the refusal in writing. Do not tick any voluntary rebooking box unless you mean to volunteer. Keep your boarding pass and receipts, then use the airline's claim form or write to it. [Overbooking compensation](/overbooking-compensation) ### I was offloaded from the plane after boarding, does that count as denied boarding? Usually, yes. Denied boarding is a refusal to carry you although you presented on time with valid documents. Being removed after you took your seat is still a refusal to carry you. Compensation of €250 to €600, or £220 to £520 under UK261, is due unless there was a reasonable health, safety, security or document reason. The denied boarding rules do not stop at the aircraft door. Article 4 of Regulation 261/2004 covers any involuntary refusal to carry a passenger who presented on time with valid documents. Being asked to leave a seat you were already in fits that description. Take an Edinburgh to Rome flight, about 1,934 km. You board, then staff offload you to make room for other passengers, and you fly the next day. UK261 covers that departure, so the amount is £350 per passenger. The airline also owes you a refund or a new flight, plus meals and a hotel while you wait. Airlines sometimes cite weight limits or a seat that cannot be used. A reasonable safety ground is excluded from compensation, so the stated reason matters. Ask for it in writing before you leave the airport. Compensation is for passengers who did not agree to give up their seat. If you did not volunteer, say so plainly in your claim. Keep your boarding pass, which proves you presented on time, and claim from the operating airline. [Denied boarding compensation](/denied-boarding-compensation) ## Can you claim for a missed connection? On one booking, the whole journey counts: the delay is measured at the final destination. [All 20 questions on this topic](/faq/missed-connections). ### Can I get compensation if my first flight was delayed and I missed my connecting flight? Yes, it can. If both flights were on one booking, the final arrival is what matters. Reach your final destination at least three hours late, and the airline can owe you €250, €400 or €600 under EU261. The first flight's own delay does not decide it. Extraordinary circumstances can still defeat the claim. A journey of over 3,500 km on one booking starts badly. Your first flight lands 90 minutes late, and you miss the onward flight. The airline moves you to a later one, and you arrive five hours late. It then owes you €600, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. It cannot point to the first flight being only 90 minutes late. The reason is the Court of Justice's ruling in Air France v Folkerts. When your flights form one reservation, EU261 looks at the whole journey. Compensation turns on the delay at your final destination. A delay of three hours or more there brings in the fixed amounts in Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004. The journey must also fall within the rules. Any journey that departs from an EU airport is covered, whatever the airline. A flight into the EU counts when an EU carrier operates it, subject to some conditions. Your arrival time is the moment a door opens and passengers may leave the aircraft. Write to the operating airline with your booking reference, both flight numbers and your real arrival time. Mention the Folkerts judgment and the Commission's 2024 Guidelines in your letter. Keep your boarding passes and any rebooking messages. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### My first flight was only an hour late but I missed my connection, can I still claim? Yes, you can. On a single booking, even a short delay on the first flight can qualify. What matters is reaching your final destination at least three hours late. The first flight does not need to be three hours late on its own. The airline can still refuse if extraordinary circumstances caused the delay. What decides your claim is the end of the journey, not the connecting airport. In Air France v Folkerts, the Court of Justice ruled on directly connecting flights. Compensation depends on the arrival delay at the final destination. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 then sets the amount. A one-hour delay that breaks the connection is enough if the knock-on delay reaches three hours. Picture a journey of up to 1,500 km on one ticket, with a change of plane. Your first flight lands one hour late, and the doors of the next flight have closed. The next seat gets you home four hours late. The airline owes you €250 per passenger, unless it shows extraordinary circumstances. Check two things before you write. Both flights must be on the same reservation. And the cause matters. A technical problem with the aircraft is generally the airline's own risk. Severe weather or air traffic control limits may be extraordinary, but the airline must prove it. Send your claim to the operating airline. Include both flight numbers and the time you actually got off the plane. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### Can I claim compensation for a missed connection if my flights were on separate tickets? Usually not for the missed flight itself. EU261 treats a connection as one journey only when the flights were booked as a single unit. On separate tickets, each flight stands alone. You can still claim for the first flight alone if it arrived at least three hours late and met the other conditions. Two separate tickets mean two separate journeys. The Court of Justice judges delay and distance to the final destination only when flights were booked as a single unit. Folkerts and Wegener are the through-booking cases. With separate tickets there is no shared final destination, and each airline is judged only on its own flight. The consequence can be harsh. Your first flight lands two hours late, and you miss a second flight on another ticket. The first airline arrived under three hours late, so it owes no fixed compensation. The second airline's flight left on time, so it owes nothing either. The cost of a new ticket generally falls on you. One exception is worth checking. If the first flight on its own arrived three hours late or more, Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 can apply to it alone. A flight of up to 1,500 km would then carry €250. The amount follows that flight's distance, not your whole trip. If you buy separate tickets, leave a long gap between flights. Read any travel insurance wording before you travel. Keep proof of the first flight's arrival time. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### What does self-transfer mean and am I protected if I miss the second flight? Self-transfer means your flights are separate bookings, joined by you or a booking site. You collect your bags, check in again and make the connection on your own. EU261 does not treat the two flights as one journey. So if you miss the second flight, its airline owes you nothing. On a self-transfer, each flight is its own contract. A normal connection is one reservation to your final destination, sold by the airline. Here, the airlines do not know about each other. If the first flight runs late, the second one leaves without you. One common case: your first flight lands 100 minutes late, and you miss the self-transfer flight. You buy a new seat. Neither airline owes you fixed compensation, because neither flight reached three hours late. Had the first flight landed three hours late, its airline could owe you €250, €400 or €600 by distance. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 sets those amounts. EU261 links flights for compensation only when they were booked as a single unit. The Court of Justice applied that idea in Folkerts and Wegener. A self-transfer breaks the link, so each flight is judged on its own arrival delay and its own distance. Some booking sites sell their own connection guarantee. That promise comes from their terms, not from the regulation, so read what it covers. Leave plenty of time between flights. Check whether your travel insurance covers missed departures. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### Is the 3-hour delay for compensation measured at my connecting airport or my final destination? At your final destination, when the flights were on one booking. EU261 compares your actual arrival there with the scheduled arrival on your ticket. A gap of three hours or more can bring compensation. Arrival means the moment a door opens and passengers may leave, not touchdown. As an illustration, your ticket says you land at your final destination at 18:00. The first leg is 40 minutes late and you miss the connection. The replacement flight lands at 20:40, but the doors open at 21:05. Your delay is three hours and five minutes, so compensation can be due. Two rulings explain that result. In Air France v Folkerts, the Court of Justice looked at directly connecting flights booked together. It measured the delay at the end of the journey. The delay on each separate leg does not decide the claim. In Germanwings, the Court fixed the moment the clock stops. That is when at least one aircraft door opens and passengers are allowed off. Time spent taxiing or waiting on the stand counts toward your delay. Note the door-opening time yourself, or ask a fellow passenger to confirm it. Claim from the operating airline under Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004, citing Folkerts, Germanwings and the Commission's 2024 Guidelines. Keep your original itinerary showing the planned arrival. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### How is the distance worked out for compensation on a connecting flight? On a single booking, the distance runs from your first departure airport to your final destination, in a straight great-circle line. The miles flown via the connecting airport do not count. That distance sets the band: €250 up to 1,500 km, €400 for the middle band, €600 over 3,500 km. Under EU261, Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 pays a fixed amount by distance band, not by ticket price. Up to 1,500 km pays €250. Flights within the EU over 1,500 km, and other flights from 1,500 to 3,500 km, pay €400. Anything over 3,500 km pays €600. Under UK261 the same bands pay £220, £350 and £520. For directly connecting flights booked as one unit, distance may be assessed to the final destination. The regulation uses the great-circle distance. That is the shortest line over the earth's surface, not the route you flew. This matters when the first leg is a short hop to a hub, followed by a long flight onward. An airline may offer €250 based on the first leg alone. If the straight line from your first airport to your final destination is over 3,500 km, the band is €600. There is one cut to know. On a journey over 3,500 km, a final delay between three and four hours can halve the amount to €300. Look up the great-circle distance for your own route, and quote it in your claim. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### I flew from Europe and missed my connection in Dubai on Emirates, does EU261 still apply? Yes, it can. A journey that departs from an EU airport is covered whatever the airline's nationality. On one booking, a connection outside the EU does not by itself take you out of EU261. Compensation then depends on your delay at the final destination and the distance to it. Your journey from an EU airport to Asia is over 3,500 km, on one Emirates booking. The first flight lands late and you miss the onward flight in Dubai. You reach your final destination six hours late. Emirates can owe you €600, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. Article 3 sets the scope, and Article 7 the amount. Article 3(1)(a) of Regulation 261/2004 covers every flight departing from an airport in the EU, whatever the airline. In Wegener, the Court of Justice added a key point. A directly connecting journey that starts in the EU stays covered even when you change planes outside Europe. The same logic applies at other hubs outside Europe, such as Doha or Istanbul. What matters is that the journey began in the EU and was booked as a single unit. A separate ticket for the onward flight breaks that link. Claim from the operating airline, and state your final destination and planned arrival time. Keep the full itinerary that shows both flights on one booking. If you started in the UK, UK261 applies instead and pays in pounds. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### Do I have to pay for a new ticket if I miss my connecting flight because the first one was late? Not if both flights are on one booking. Ask the airline to put you on the next available flight to your final destination. If it offers no proper rerouting and you buy your own seat, you may recover reasonable costs. On separate tickets, the second airline generally owes you nothing. Before you buy anything, go to the transfer desk or open the airline's app. On a single booking, the airline sold you a journey to your final destination. When its delay breaks the connection, ask for the earliest flight that gets you there. The Commission's 2024 Guidelines, Section 4.2, cover the case where the airline offers no proper rerouting. Reasonable self-rerouting costs may then be recoverable. You must show the purchase was necessary and that you kept costs down. A last-minute business seat when economy was free will be hard to justify. Keep the airline's refusal in writing, and every receipt. Compensation is a separate claim from the rebooking. Suppose your journey from Europe to the United States is over 3,500 km, and you land six hours late. Under the Folkerts case, that final-destination delay is what counts. The airline can still owe you €600 on top of the new seat, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. Separate tickets are different. Each airline is judged only on its own flight, so the second airline can treat you as a no-show. Regulation 261/2004 generally gives you no claim against it for the missed seat. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### Does EU261 apply if I fly from the US to Asia with a connection in Europe? No, not simply because you change planes in Europe. The Court of Justice held that a single-booking journey beginning and ending outside the EU is not covered. Connecting at an EU airport does not change that. That is true even when a European airline operates the flights. A trip from the United States to Asia via Frankfurt, all on one ticket, runs late. You miss the onward flight in Frankfurt and reach Asia eight hours late. EU261 fixed compensation is not due on that basis, because the journey starts and ends outside the EU. The Court of Justice settled this in Airhelp v Austrian Airlines, case C-451/20. A passenger flew on one reservation between two places outside the EU, changing planes at an EU hub. Reading Article 3(1), the Court held that the EU connection did not bring the journey within Regulation 261/2004. It made no difference that a Community carrier operated the flights. Your other rights do not disappear. The Montreal Convention can cover provable losses caused by delay, such as extra costs you can show with receipts. It is not automatic fixed compensation, and it has limits and defences. Keep receipts for meals, hotels and transport you paid for yourself. Then write to the airline with your losses. If your trip started or ended in Canada, check Canada's own passenger rules instead. [US passenger rights](/passenger-rights/united-states) ### Can I claim if KLM or Lufthansa flew me into Europe and I missed my connection there? Yes, it can apply. A flight into the EU is covered when an EU carrier operates it. If that carrier's late arrival makes you miss a connection on the same booking, compensation can be due. It turns on your delay at the final destination. The airline can still rely on extraordinary circumstances. Article 3(1)(b) of Regulation 261/2004 covers flights from outside the EU to an EU airport when a Community carrier operates them. KLM, Lufthansa and Air France are examples of Community carriers. Equivalent benefits in the country of departure must not displace the regulation. Add the Folkerts rule on connections. On one booking, the delay that counts is the delay at your final destination. So a short delay on the inbound leg can be enough if it breaks the connection. As an illustration, you fly from Toronto to Vienna via Amsterdam on one KLM booking, a journey over 3,500 km. The first flight lands late and you miss the onward flight. You reach Vienna five hours late. KLM can owe you €600 under Article 7, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances such as severe weather. A maintenance problem is generally not extraordinary. Claim from the operating carrier of the delayed flight. The answer may differ if an airline outside the EU operated it under an EU flight number. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### Which airline do I claim from if two different airlines flew my connecting flights? Generally the operating airline of the flight whose delay made you miss the connection. EU261 places responsibility on the airline that actually flies the aircraft, not the one that sold the ticket. If the first flight was late and broke the connection, start your claim with that flight's operating airline. Start with your boarding pass or booking confirmation. It usually says "operated by", and that is the name to use, not the flight number prefix. Articles 2(b) and 3(5) of Regulation 261/2004 make the operating air carrier responsible. That is the airline whose crew and aircraft flew the flight. The ticket seller, the marketing airline and the travel agent are not generally liable just because they sold the trip. On a connection, find which flight caused the problem, and claim from its operator. One common case: an EU airline flies you from Lisbon to Frankfurt, and a partner flies you on to Asia. The Lisbon flight lands late and you miss the onward flight. Your claim goes to the airline that operated the Lisbon flight. Under Folkerts, your final delay and the total distance still decide the amount. A journey over 3,500 km arriving four hours late or more carries €600. If the airline you write to says another carrier is responsible, ask it to name that carrier in writing. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### Does the airline have to give me a hotel if I miss my connection and have to stay overnight? Yes, when EU261 covers your journey and the rebooking means an overnight stay. The airline owes you a hotel, transport between the airport and the hotel, meals and refreshments, and two calls or emails. This duty of care applies even when the cause was outside the airline's control. Picture a missed connection late in the evening, with the next flight at 07:00. The airline should book and pay for your room and the shuttle. If it gives you nothing, book a reasonable hotel yourself. Keep every receipt, and ask staff to note in writing that no help was offered. This duty of care comes from Articles 6 and 9 of Regulation 261/2004, with the detail in Article 9. When a delay forces an overnight stay, the airline must provide a hotel and transport to and from it. It must also offer meals and refreshments in proportion to the wait, and two calls or emails. McDonagh v Ryanair confirms that care continues during extraordinary events. The meal duty starts at set points. It begins after two hours for flights up to 1,500 km, and after three hours in the middle band. For other flights it begins after four hours. The hotel duty applies whenever you need to stay overnight. Care is separate from compensation. You can get a hotel and still claim €250, €400 or €600 if you arrive three hours late or more. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### Do I still get a hotel and meals if my missed connection was caused by bad weather? Yes. Under EU261 the duty of care continues even when extraordinary circumstances, such as severe weather, caused the disruption. The airline must still give you meals, refreshments and a hotel if you need to stay overnight. Bad weather can remove the fixed compensation, but not the care. Suppose a storm delays your first flight, and you miss the last connection of the day. The airline may owe you no compensation. It still owes you meals, a hotel for the night, transport to the hotel and two calls or emails. Articles 5(3) and 9 of Regulation 261/2004 treat care and compensation differently. The fixed payment of €250 to €600 can fall away if the airline proves extraordinary circumstances. Severe weather, air traffic control limits and some airport events may qualify. The airline must still show the event caused the delay and that it took all reasonable measures. Care is another matter. In McDonagh v Ryanair, the Court of Justice held that the duty of care continues during extraordinary events. There, a volcanic ash cloud had stranded the passengers. The airline still had to look after them. If the airline offers nothing, pay for reasonable options yourself and keep the receipts. Then claim the costs back from the operating airline in writing. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### I missed my connecting flight because of long passport control queues, can I get compensation? Usually not, if your flights ran on time. EU261 compensation follows a delay or cancellation by the airline. A queue at passport control or security is not the airline's flight running late. If your first flight was also late, the claim depends on why it was late and how late you arrived. Regulation 261/2004 pays fixed compensation for a cancellation, a denied boarding, or arrival three hours late or more. Articles 3 and 7 set the scope and the amounts. A long queue at the border is not one of those events by itself. Airport and security events may also count as extraordinary circumstances, though the airline must prove the link. You are also expected to present yourself on time. Article 3(2) generally requires a confirmed booking and timely check-in, unless an airline transferred you. Missing a flight that left on time is a weak basis for a claim. The picture changes when the first flight was late. It lands 50 minutes late, and the passport queue then makes you miss the connection. You arrive five hours late on a journey of up to 1,500 km. Under Folkerts, the airline can owe you €250 if its delay caused the missed connection, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. Ask the airline in writing why you were rebooked. Keep your boarding passes, and note the time the first flight's doors opened. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### How much compensation do I get for a missed connecting flight? Under EU261 it is €250, €400 or €600 per passenger, set by the distance from your first airport to your final destination. Under UK261 it is £220, £350 or £520. You need to arrive at least three hours late. In some long-haul and rerouting cases the amount can be halved. A family of three flies over 3,500 km on one booking, misses the connection and arrives five hours late. The airline can owe €600 each, so €1,800 in total, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. Claim per passenger, children included. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 sets a fixed sum, not a share of your ticket. On one booking, the band follows the great-circle distance to your final destination. Up to 1,500 km pays €250. Flights within the EU over 1,500 km, and other flights between 1,500 and 3,500 km, pay €400. Over 3,500 km pays €600. The long-haul amount can drop. For a journey over 3,500 km arriving between three and four hours late, the airline may halve it to €300. A rerouting that arrives within the limits set by Article 7(2) can also be halved. Arrive four hours late or more on that journey, and the full €600 applies. The UK's retained version, UK261, uses the same bands in pounds. They are £220, £350 and £520, with a reduced long-haul amount of £260. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### The airline says my missed connection was due to extraordinary circumstances, what can I do? Ask the airline in writing for the specific cause and its evidence. A routine technical fault or a strike by the airline's own staff is generally not extraordinary. Weather or air traffic control can be, but the airline must prove the event caused your delay and that it took all reasonable measures. On a connection, first ask which flight the event affected. Suppose the airline blames a storm at your final destination. Your first flight, though, was late because of a fault found during the pre-flight checks. That fault caused the missed connection. Point it out, and ask for the full €250, €400 or €600. The burden sits with the airline under Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004. It must prove an extraordinary circumstance, show it caused your delay, and show it took all reasonable measures. A one-line refusal does not meet that test. Some reasons often fail. In Wallentin-Hermann the Court of Justice held that routine technical problems are generally part of running an airline. In Krüsemann it held that a strike by the airline's own staff is generally not extraordinary just because it was sudden. Severe weather, air traffic control limits, bird strikes and external strikes may qualify. If the airline still refuses, you can complain to the national enforcement body or go to court. Check your country's time limit first: one year in Poland, six years in England and Wales. The European Parliament approved a reform on 7 July 2026 with a single nine-month limit. It is expected to apply from the second half of 2027, and the current national limits stand until then. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### My direct flight was cancelled and I was put on a connecting flight instead, can I still claim? Often yes. A cancellation with less than 14 days' notice can earn compensation unless the replacement stays close to your original times. With under seven days' notice, the rerouting must leave no more than an hour early and arrive less than two hours late. A connection that lands later than that keeps your claim alive. As an illustration, your direct flight of up to 1,500 km is cancelled two days before departure. The airline gives you a connection that lands three hours after your original time. That is outside the two-hour limit, so the airline can owe you €250, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. If the rerouting arrives within the Article 7(2) limits, the amount can be halved. The notice windows sit in Article 5(1)(c) of Regulation 261/2004. Told 14 days or more ahead, you get no fixed compensation. Told between seven and 13 days ahead, you lose the claim in one case only. The new flight must leave up to two hours early and land under four hours late. Told under seven days ahead, the limits shrink to one hour early and two hours late. The replacement being a connection changes nothing in that test. What matters is when the new journey leaves and when you finally arrive. If the connection itself goes wrong, the later arrival counts too. You could also have chosen a refund or a later flight instead. Keep the cancellation message that shows the date you were told. Articles 5, 7 and 8 together cover the notice, the amount and that choice. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### Does UK261 cover a missed connection through London Heathrow? Yes, when your journey falls within UK261. It covers flights departing from the UK, and flights into the UK on a qualifying UK or EU carrier. On one booking, the delay at your final destination is what counts. The amounts are £220, £350 or £520 by distance. Picture a trip from Manchester to Heathrow and on to a city over 3,500 km away, all on one booking. The first flight lands late and you miss the onward flight. You reach your final destination five hours late. The airline can owe you £520, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. A three-to-four-hour delay on that journey can reduce it to £260. After Brexit the UK kept its own version of Regulation 261/2004. It works like the EU rules, but uses UK territory and UK carriers, and pays in pounds. EU and UK coverage are separate, so check which one fits your trip. A departure from Heathrow is covered whatever the airline. A flight into the UK from outside is covered when a qualifying carrier operates it. Connections on one booking follow the same final-destination logic as the EU rules. The UK Civil Aviation Authority publishes guidance on delays and cancellations. In England and Wales you generally have six years to bring a claim, and five in Scotland. All of this rests on the UK's retained Regulation 261/2004. [UK261 explained](/passenger-rights/uk261) ### The airline sold me a 45-minute connection and I missed it. Can I claim compensation? Yes, if your first flight was late at all and both flights were on one booking. What counts is how late you reach your final destination. If that is three hours or more, the airline owes compensation unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. If the first flight landed on time and you still missed the second, a compensation claim is much harder. A tight connection that the airline itself sold is part of its own planning. When the first flight lands late and you miss the second, the length of the layover is not the test. The test is how late you finally reach the airport on your ticket. The Court of Justice settled this in Folkerts (C-11/11). On one booking, a short first-leg delay counts if it makes you three hours late at the end. Picture a Dublin to Rome trip on one KLM booking, changing in Amsterdam with 45 minutes to spare. The Dublin flight lands 25 minutes late and the Rome flight leaves without you. You reach Rome 4 hours late. Dublin to Rome is about 1,890 km and stays inside the EU, so Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 sets €400 per passenger. The picture changes if the first flight was on time. Compensation follows a delay, a cancellation or a refusal to board. If nothing ran late and you simply could not reach the gate, there may be no event to claim for. If staff refused to board you while you were at the gate in time, that is a denied-boarding question instead. Ask the transfer desk to move you to the next flight on the same booking, and keep both boarding passes. Note when the aircraft door opened at your final airport, because that is the arrival time that counts. Then send your claim to the operating airline, quoting that final arrival time. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ### My connecting flight was rebooked for the next day. What compensation am I owed? Usually the full amount for your route, plus a hotel and meals. Arriving a day late on one booking is well past the three-hour mark. The airline owes €250, €400 or €600 by distance, unless it proves extraordinary circumstances. While you wait overnight, it must also provide a hotel, transport to it and meals, whatever caused the delay. A trip from Madrid to Montreal on one ticket changes planes in Paris. A late first flight makes you miss the evening departure, and the airline moves you to the next morning. You land in Montreal about 18 hours late. Madrid to Montreal is about 5,550 km, so the compensation is €600 per passenger. The cut to €300 on long flights applies only to arrivals 3 to 4 hours late, so it does not apply here. Compensation is measured at your final destination, not at the airport where the chain broke. The Court of Justice said so in Folkerts (C-11/11), and the 2024 Commission guidelines follow it. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 takes the great-circle distance from where you started to where you end. The airline can refuse only if it proves the first delay came from extraordinary circumstances. The overnight stay is a separate duty. Under Article 9, the airline must give you a hotel, transport between the airport and the hotel, and meals while you wait. That care is owed even when the cause was extraordinary, as the Court confirmed in McDonagh v Ryanair (C-12/11). At the transfer desk, ask for a hotel voucher before you leave the airport. If none is offered, book a reasonable room and keep every receipt. Keep the new boarding pass too, since it shows when you finally arrived. [Missed connection compensation](/missed-connection-compensation) ## What can an airline use to refuse compensation? Airlines may refuse for extraordinary circumstances, but they carry the burden of proof. [All 20 questions on this topic](/faq/extraordinary-circumstances). ### What counts as extraordinary circumstances for a delayed or cancelled flight? Extraordinary circumstances are events outside the airline's normal operations that it could not avoid even with all reasonable measures. Severe weather, air traffic control restrictions, security events, bird strikes and strikes by outside staff may qualify. Ordinary technical problems and strikes by the airline's own staff generally do not. The airline must prove the defence. An airline can refuse fixed compensation only when it proves two things. First, an extraordinary circumstance caused the delay or cancellation. Second, it could not have avoided it even with all reasonable measures. That is the defence in Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004, and the UK version of the rules contains the same one. The Court of Justice drew the line in Wallentin-Hermann v Alitalia. A routine or maintenance-related technical problem is part of running an airline, so it is generally not extraordinary. Krüsemann v TUIfly reached a similar result for a strike by the airline's own staff. Severe weather, air traffic control restrictions, airport security events, bird strikes and strikes by outside workers may count. Even then, the airline must show that the event really caused your delay. A 1,200 km flight lands four hours late because of a worn part. The airline owes you €250 under EU261, or £220 under UK261, unless it proves the defence. A label in a rejection email proves nothing by itself. In your written reply, ask for the specific event and how it caused your delay. Keep your boarding pass, your booking and every message about the reason. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### Is bad weather an extraordinary circumstance for flight delay compensation? Severe weather can be an extraordinary circumstance, so the airline may not owe fixed compensation. It must still prove that the weather actually caused your delay or cancellation, and that it took all reasonable measures to avoid it. A general mention of weather, without the place, time and effect, does not prove the defence. Weather only helps the airline if it was severe enough to stop or slow operations. That means at the airport, or on the route your aircraft used. A forecast storm, or rain that other flights flew through, is weaker evidence. The airline should be able to say where the weather hit, when, and how it stopped your flight. Severe weather is on the list of events that may count as extraordinary under Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004. The UK rules work the same way. The airline must prove the weather caused your disruption, and that all reasonable measures could not have avoided it. As an illustration, a snowstorm at your departure airport cancels your 2,000 km flight on the day. If the airline proves the storm and its effect, it owes no fixed compensation. If it cannot, it can owe you €400 under EU261 or £350 under UK261. In both cases it must still offer a refund or rerouting, and meals and a hotel where needed. Your next step is a written question: which airport and which hours does the airline rely on? Then compare its answer with the airport weather reports and with other departures in the same window. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### Airline blamed bad weather for my delay but the weather was fine, can I still claim? Yes, you can challenge it. The airline must prove that severe weather actually caused your delay, not just that weather existed somewhere. If conditions at both airports looked normal and other flights left on time, ask for the specific place, time and evidence. An unproven weather excuse does not meet the airline's burden. Start with the facts you can check yourself. Look up the weather reports for your departure and arrival airports at the scheduled time. Check a flight-tracking site to see whether other flights on the same route left on time. Note anything the crew or gate staff said on the day, and keep screenshots of delay messages. Those checks matter because the burden of proof is on the airline. Under Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004, it must show that an extraordinary event caused your delay. It must also show that all reasonable measures could not have avoided it. A rejection that simply says "adverse weather" does neither. Your 1,000 km flight arrives three and a half hours late. The airline blames weather, yet the reports show light wind and good visibility at both airports. Unless it proves weather elsewhere on the aircraft's route, it can owe you €250 under EU261 or £220 under UK261. Write back to the airline with what you found. Ask it to name the airport, the hours and the weather it relies on, and to explain the link to your flight. If it still refuses without evidence, you can escalate the claim. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### How can I check what the weather was at the airport when my flight was delayed? Look up the airport's METAR reports for your flight date and time. A METAR is the standard aviation weather report that airports issue at regular intervals, and public archives keep past reports. Compare the wind, visibility and storm codes with the airline's explanation. Then check whether other flights operated in the same hours. Each METAR is a short coded weather report for one airport. It gives the time, wind, visibility, weather and cloud. Common codes include TS for thunderstorm, SN for snow and FG for fog. Wind appears in knots, marked KT. Several free aviation weather archives let you search past METARs by airport code and date. Check both your departure and arrival airports. Look at the hour before your scheduled departure and the hours around it. Then use a flight-tracking site to see whether other flights left or landed in the same window. If they did, the weather was probably not stopping traffic at that airport. Why this matters: the airline carries the burden under Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004. It must prove that severe weather caused your delay, and that all reasonable measures could not have avoided it. One common case: your 1,400 km flight arrives four hours late, and clear reports at both ends contradict a weather excuse. Unless the airline proves weather elsewhere on the route, it can owe you €250 under EU261 or £220 under UK261. Save the reports as screenshots or files. Send them with your reply to the airline, and ask it to show its own evidence. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### Do I get compensation if my flight was delayed by air traffic control restrictions? Possibly not, if the airline can prove it. Air traffic control restrictions may be an extraordinary circumstance under EU261 and UK261. The airline must show that the restriction actually caused your delay or cancellation, and that it took all reasonable measures to avoid it. A one-line mention of air traffic control is not proof. Your 1,300 km flight arrives four hours late. The rejection says "air traffic control restrictions" and nothing more. Without evidence of the restriction and its effect, the airline can owe you €250 under EU261 or £220 under UK261. Air traffic control can limit how many flights use a piece of airspace or an airport. An airline may rely on such a restriction as an extraordinary circumstance under Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004. The UK rules work the same way. But the defence only works when the airline proves it. The airline must show three things. A restriction existed at the relevant time and place. That restriction caused your delay, not some other problem. And all reasonable measures could not have avoided it. A slot delay of one hour does not explain a delay of five hours on its own. Reply in writing and ask for the restriction, the hours it applied and the delay it imposed on your flight. Note what you were told on the day, and check whether other flights on the same route left on time. Your right to meals and refreshments continues whatever the cause. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### Is an air traffic control strike an extraordinary circumstance? It can be. A strike by air traffic controllers is a strike by people outside the airline, so it may be an extraordinary circumstance. The airline must still prove the strike caused your delay or cancellation and that it took all reasonable measures. Your rights to care, rerouting and a refund remain either way. Air traffic controllers are not employed by the airline. So a strike by them may be an extraordinary circumstance. That lets the airline refuse fixed compensation under Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004. The UK rules contain the same defence. A strike by the airline's own staff is treated differently. The airline must still prove its case. It must show that the strike affected your flight's route or airport at the relevant time. It must also show that all reasonable measures could not have avoided the disruption. Strikes are often announced in advance, so ask what the airline did with that notice. Suppose your 1,600 km intra-EU flight is cancelled two days before departure, during a controllers' strike. If the airline proves the strike stopped your flight, it owes no fixed compensation. If it cannot, it can owe you €400 under EU261. Either way it must let you choose a refund or rerouting, and offer meals and a hotel where needed. Check whether your flight actually used the affected airspace or airport, and ask the airline for that link in writing. Keep receipts for any meals or hotel you paid for yourself. [Strike compensation](/airline-strike-compensation) ### Can I claim compensation if my flight was cancelled because the airline's own staff went on strike? Generally yes. A strike by the operating airline's own staff is generally not an extraordinary circumstance merely because it was unexpected. The Court of Justice took this approach in Krüsemann v TUIfly. If your flight is in scope and the notice or delay rules are met, the airline can owe you fixed compensation. In Krüsemann v TUIfly, the Court of Justice treated mass absence of the airline's own crew as part of its normal activity. That matters, because Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004 only protects airlines from events outside that activity. The Commission's 2024 guidelines say the same about strikes by an airline's own staff. Managing its workforce is the airline's job. The usual conditions still apply. A cancellation with at least 14 days' notice brings no fixed compensation. For a delay, you must reach your final destination at least three hours late. The responsible party is the airline that operated the flight. One common case: the cabin crew walk out, and your 1,800 km flight within the EU is cancelled three days before departure. The airline offers no rerouting that fits the notice rules. It can owe you €400 under EU261, or £350 for a UK flight of the same length. You also choose between a refund and rerouting, and the airline must give meals and a hotel where needed. Check who was striking, because a strike by air traffic controllers or airport staff works differently. Then claim from the operating airline, and keep the strike notice or news report. [Strike compensation](/airline-strike-compensation) ### Do I get compensation if my flight was delayed by an airport staff or baggage handler strike? Possibly not. A strike by people who do not work for the airline, such as airport or security staff, may be an extraordinary circumstance. The airline must still prove the strike caused your delay and that it took all reasonable measures. If the strikers are the airline's own employees, the position is different. The first question is who employed the strikers. A strike by workers outside the airline, such as airport security or airport staff, may be an extraordinary circumstance it could not avoid. That defence sits in Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004. A strike by the airline's own staff generally does not qualify, as the Court of Justice held in Krüsemann v TUIfly. The UK rules follow the same logic. The second question is whether the strike actually caused your delay. The airline must prove both points, and show that all reasonable measures could not have avoided the disruption. A strike at one terminal may not explain a delay at another. Picture a 700 km flight that lands four hours late during an airport security strike. If the airline proves the strike caused the delay, it owes no fixed compensation. If the strikers worked for the airline, it can owe you €250 under EU261 or £220 under UK261. Find out which group was on strike and who employed them, and keep news reports of the strike. Even when no compensation is due, the airline must still give you meals and refreshments during a long wait. [Strike compensation](/airline-strike-compensation) ### Is a technical fault with the plane an extraordinary circumstance? Generally no. The Court of Justice ruled in Wallentin-Hermann v Alitalia that a routine or maintenance-related technical problem is part of the airline's normal activity, so it is generally not extraordinary. A hidden manufacturing defect, sabotage or terrorism can be different. An ordinary fault can therefore lead to compensation if the delay rules are met. A 4,800 km flight from Frankfurt to Dubai reaches its final destination five hours late after a hydraulic fault. The airline can owe you €600 under EU261. Had the same flight arrived three and a half hours late, the airline could halve it to €300. A UK flight of that length brings £520, or £260 when halved. Two Court of Justice rulings explain why. In Wallentin-Hermann v Alitalia, it held that technical problems arising from the normal operation and maintenance of aircraft are part of those operations. In van der Lans v KLM, it applied the same approach to parts that failed unexpectedly early. Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004 only excuses events outside normal operations, and the UK rules contain the same defence. There are narrow exceptions. A hidden manufacturing defect, sabotage or terrorism can be extraordinary. The airline must prove that one of these caused your delay. A general claim that the fault was "for safety reasons" does not do that, because every grounded aircraft is grounded for safety. Find out in writing what failed and why. Keep the delay messages that mention a technical problem. Meals and refreshments are due while you wait, whatever the cause. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### The airline says the technical fault was a hidden defect or unforeseeable, can they refuse to pay? Only if they prove it. A hidden manufacturing defect, sabotage or terrorism can be an extraordinary circumstance. An ordinary fault from normal operation or maintenance generally is not, even if it came without warning. Ask the airline to name the part that failed and to show evidence of a hidden defect, not just the word 'unforeseeable'. Surprise alone is not enough. In Wallentin-Hermann v Alitalia, the Court of Justice held that technical problems from normal operation and maintenance do not qualify. In van der Lans v KLM, it applied that approach to a part that failed early and unexpectedly. Under Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004, the airline can refuse fixed compensation only for extraordinary circumstances it proves. A hidden manufacturing defect is different. That means a flaw in how the aircraft or part was designed or made, not ordinary wear. Sabotage and terrorism can also be extraordinary. The airline must show which of these happened and how it caused your delay. As an illustration, a 1,900 km flight from Malaga to Frankfurt lands six hours late after an engine warning. The airline calls it unforeseeable but gives no details. Unless it proves a hidden defect, it can owe you €400 under EU261. Write back and ask for the part, the cause its engineers found, and any manufacturer notice it relies on. Keep your booking and delay messages. If it still refuses without evidence, you can escalate the claim to a national enforcement body or a court. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### Can I get compensation if my flight was delayed by a bird strike? Possibly not for the bird strike itself. A bird strike may be an extraordinary circumstance, as the Court of Justice accepted in Pešková v Travel Service. The airline must still prove the strike caused your delay and that it took all reasonable measures afterwards. Your right to meals and refreshments continues whatever the outcome. In Pešková v Travel Service, the Court of Justice accepted that a collision with a bird can be an extraordinary circumstance. An airline can then avoid fixed compensation under Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004, if it could not avoid the delay. The UK rules contain the same defence. The burden stays with the airline. It must prove the bird strike happened and that it caused your delay. It must also show that all reasonable measures could not have avoided or shortened the delay. If the strike happened on an earlier flight, the airline must show the link to yours. Your 2,200 km flight arrives four hours late. The airline says a bird hit the aircraft as it landed from its previous flight. If it proves the strike and its reasonable response, it owes no fixed compensation. If it cannot, it can owe you €400 under EU261 or £350 under UK261. Get the airline to state when and where the strike happened, and how long the inspection took. Compare that with your total delay. If the airline gave you nothing, keep receipts for the food you bought, because care is due either way. [Strike compensation](/airline-strike-compensation) ### Can I claim compensation if my flight was delayed because of crew sickness? Often you can. Staff illness is generally treated as part of an airline's normal operations, not as an extraordinary circumstance. The airline must prove any defence it raises. Check that your flight meets the delay and scope rules. A pilot calls in sick on the morning of departure, and your 600 km domestic UK flight is cancelled. The airline rebooks you on a flight arriving five hours late. It can owe you £220 under UK261. On an EU flight of the same length, the figure is €250. Illness among the people who fly the aircraft is generally treated as part of running an airline. That matters because Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004 only excuses events outside the airline's normal activity. The other conditions still apply. Your flight must be in scope, and you must reach your final destination at least three hours late. A cancellation with at least 14 days' notice brings no fixed compensation. If the illness came from an outside event, the airline may argue differently, and it must prove that. Ask the airline to confirm the reason in writing, and keep the cancellation message. The airline must also give you meals, refreshments and a hotel where needed while you wait. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### My flight was cancelled because the crew ran out of hours, can I claim compensation? It depends on why the crew ran out of hours. The question is what caused the earlier delay that used up their duty time. If that was a technical problem with the aircraft or the airline's own planning, the airline can owe compensation. If it was severe weather or an air traffic control restriction, the airline may argue extraordinary circumstances. Crew duty limits are safety rules the airline knows in advance. So the real question is what pushed the crew past them. The airline must prove that cause was extraordinary and could not be avoided with all reasonable measures. Only then does Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004 excuse it. A crew that timed out after a maintenance problem has an internal root cause. Wallentin-Hermann v Alitalia treats such technical problems as part of normal operations. If the earlier delay came from severe weather or an air traffic control restriction, the airline may rely on that. It must still show what it did to find a replacement crew or another solution. Suppose your 1,500 km flight is cancelled at the gate. The crew timed out after a two-hour fault on the inbound aircraft, and the airline rebooks you for the next morning. It can owe you €250 under EU261 or £220 under UK261. Because you stay overnight, it must also provide a hotel, transport to it and meals. Put two questions to the airline: what caused the original delay, and what did it do to replace the crew? Keep the messages from the gate and any receipts for meals or a hotel. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### Can I claim compensation if a drone closed the airport and my flight was cancelled? Possibly not. A drone sighting that closes an airport is a security event outside the airline's control, so it may be an extraordinary circumstance. The airline must still prove it caused your cancellation and that it took all reasonable measures. You keep the right to a refund or rerouting, and to meals and a hotel. A drone over the runway can close an airport. Closures and security events like this may count as extraordinary circumstances under Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004. The UK rules contain the same defence. The airline must still prove that the closure caused your cancellation or delay, and that all reasonable measures could not have avoided it. Closures also cause knock-on disruption. Aircraft and crews end up in the wrong place for a day or more. The airline can rely on that only if it proves the link to your flight. A cancellation several days after the airport reopened needs a clear explanation. Your other rights do not depend on the cause. For a cancellation, you choose between a refund, rerouting at the earliest opportunity, or a later flight that suits you. A refund is due within seven days. The airline must also give meals, refreshments and a hotel where needed. One common case: your 1,100 km flight is cancelled during the closure. If the airline proves the drone caused it, it owes no fixed £220 or €250. It still owes care and your choice of refund or rerouting. Keep receipts for anything you paid for yourself, and ask the airline to confirm the reason in writing. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### Who has to prove extraordinary circumstances, me or the airline? The airline does. Under Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004, it escapes fixed compensation only by proving two things. Extraordinary circumstances caused the delay or cancellation, and all reasonable measures could not have avoided them. You need to show your booking, your flight and how late you arrived. A one-line rejection is not proof. Your part is the simpler one. Show that your flight was in scope, and that you had a confirmed booking and checked in on time. Then show how late you reached your final destination. Arrival time is when a door opens and passengers may leave, not touchdown. The airline has the harder job. The Regulation sets out your rights and then gives the airline one main defence, in Article 5(3). It need not pay fixed compensation if it proves extraordinary circumstances that all reasonable measures could not have avoided. The Court of Justice confirmed this approach in Wallentin-Hermann v Alitalia. The UK rules work the same way. A 5,800 km flight from Paris to New York arrives five hours late. The airline writes that the delay was "due to extraordinary circumstances" and gives no detail. Unless it proves what happened and why it could not be avoided, it can owe you €600 under EU261. A London to New York flight in the same position would bring £520 under UK261. Reply in writing. Ask the airline to name the event, show how it caused your delay and list the measures it took. Keep a copy of every message, because you may need them if you escalate the claim. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### What does 'all reasonable measures' mean for a flight delay? It means the airline must show it did what it reasonably could to avoid the disruption or limit it once the event happened. Even when the cause is extraordinary, an airline that let a short problem grow into a long delay without good reason may still owe compensation. The airline must prove its measures. The airline's defence has two parts, and it must prove both. First, an extraordinary circumstance. Second, that the disruption could not have been avoided even with all reasonable measures. The Court of Justice applied this two-part test to Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004 in Wallentin-Hermann v Alitalia. The second part is often where the argument happens. Reasonable measures depend on the airline's real options at the time. Could it have used another aircraft or crew it had nearby? Could it have rebooked passengers sooner? Did it plan its schedule with enough slack for known risks? The airline must explain what it did. As an illustration, a storm closes your departure airport for two hours. Your 1,900 km flight then leaves nine hours late, because the airline waited for its own aircraft. If it had a reasonable alternative and did not use it, it may still owe you €400 under EU261 or £350 under UK261. Ask the airline what it did once the event happened, and when. Compare the length of the event with the length of your delay. A large gap is worth raising in your reply. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### Do I still get meals and a hotel if my flight delay was caused by extraordinary circumstances? Yes. The right to care continues even when the airline owes no compensation because of extraordinary circumstances. The Court of Justice confirmed this in McDonagh v Ryanair. Depending on flight distance, the airline must offer meals and refreshments after two to four hours, plus a hotel and transport if you need to stay overnight. Even when the airline owes no compensation, it still owes you care. Extraordinary circumstances only remove the fixed compensation in Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004. In McDonagh v Ryanair, the Court of Justice held that care continues even during long, widespread disruption caused by events outside the airline's control. The UK rules give the same protection. Picture a snowstorm that cancels your 1,200 km evening flight, with the next seat the following afternoon. The airline may owe no fixed compensation of €250. It must still give you meals, a hotel and transfers, and let you choose a refund instead. The care starts at set points. For flights up to 1,500 km, meals and refreshments are due after two hours. For flights of 1,500 to 3,500 km, and intra-EU flights over 1,500 km, the point is three hours. For other flights it is four hours. When you need to stay overnight, the airline must give you a hotel and transport to it. You also get two calls or emails. If the airline gives you nothing, keep your spending reasonable. Save every receipt for meals, the hotel and taxis. Then claim the costs back from the operating airline in writing. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### The airline changed the reason for my flight delay, what can I do? Write down and screenshot every reason the airline gave on the day, with times. Then ask the airline in writing which event it now relies on and what evidence it holds. The airline carries the burden of proving extraordinary circumstances, so a shifting explanation is worth pointing out when you challenge a rejection. Build a simple timeline first. Include each delay message, app notification and email, with the time it arrived. Add what the pilot or gate staff said, in their words if you can. Use a flight-tracking site to note when the aircraft arrived from its previous flight. A changed reason matters because the airline carries the burden. Under Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004, it must prove that an extraordinary circumstance caused your delay. It must also prove that all reasonable measures could not have avoided it. When the reason shifts between the gate and the rejection letter, ask which version it can prove. A gate message about a technical fault helps you, because an ordinary fault is generally not extraordinary. Your 1,700 km flight from Manchester to Rome arrives four hours late. On the day, the app said "technical issue". The rejection now says "air traffic control". If the airline cannot prove the restriction and its effect, it can owe you £350 under UK261. Send the timeline with a short reply asking the airline to explain the change and show its evidence. Keep copies of everything. If it still refuses without proof, you can escalate the claim to a national enforcement body or a court. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### What can I do if the airline rejects my claim because of extraordinary circumstances? Reply in writing and ask the airline to name the specific event, explain how it caused your delay and show the reasonable measures it took. If it still refuses, complain to the national enforcement body or an approved dispute scheme, or take the claim to court within your country's deadline. Your first reply goes to the airline, which carries the burden of proof under Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004. Ask for the event, the time and place, the link to your flight and the measures it took. Attach your own evidence, such as delay messages and weather reports. Suppose your 1,600 km flight from Dublin to Lisbon arrived five hours late after a fault the airline called extraordinary. If a court rejects that defence, the airline can owe you €400. If the airline still refuses, you have outside routes. Each EU country has a national enforcement body for passenger rights, and the UK has the Civil Aviation Authority. Some airlines belong to approved dispute schemes. You can also go to court. The Regulation sets no court deadline, so national law does, as Cuadrench Moré v KLM confirmed. The limit is six years in England and Wales, five in France and Spain, two in the Netherlands and one in Poland. A reform of the rules is on its way. The European Parliament approved it on 7 July 2026, and it is expected to apply from the second half of 2027. It brings a 30-day deadline for airlines to pay or give a specific reason. It also sets one EU-wide 9-month claim deadline. Until it applies, the current rules and national deadlines stand. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ### Do I get compensation if my flight was cancelled because of volcanic ash? Usually not. An ash cloud that closes airspace or an airport is outside the airline's control, so it normally counts as an extraordinary circumstance. You keep your other rights: a refund or a new flight. You also keep meals and a hotel while you are stranded, even when the closure lasts days. When Etna sends ash over Catania, flights stop because no one can safely fly through it. Article 5(3) of Regulation 261/2004 lets the airline refuse compensation for extraordinary circumstances that all reasonable measures could not have avoided. The 2024 Commission guidelines treat airport and airspace events of this kind as possible extraordinary circumstances. The airline still has to show that the ash really caused your cancellation. A Catania to London Gatwick flight is about 1,940 km. Cancelled at short notice for an internal reason, such as a crew shortage, it would earn €400 per passenger under Article 7. When the ash is the true cause, that payment falls away, but nothing else does. The Court of Justice dealt with the 2010 Icelandic ash cloud in McDonagh v Ryanair (C-12/11). It held that the duty of care continues even in a crisis of that size. So the airline must still offer meals, a hotel and transfers while you wait. Under Article 8, you also choose between a refund and the next available flight. Keep receipts for anything you pay for yourself, and ask for the cancellation reason in writing. Once the airport reopens, check the reason given for any later disruption. A cancellation days after the ash cleared may have a different cause, and that cause is judged on its own. [Court of Justice case law](/passenger-rights/case-law) ## How much compensation can you get, and how is it paid? The amount depends on the law and the distance, not on the ticket price. [All 20 questions on this topic](/faq/compensation-amounts). ### How much is UK261 compensation in pounds? UK261 pays £220 for flights up to 1,500 km, £350 for flights of 1,500 to 3,500 km, and £520 for longer flights. The trigger is the same three-hour arrival delay as EU261. On a long-haul flight the airline may cut the £520 to £260 in limited cases. Article 7 of the UK retained Regulation 261/2004 fixes the sums in pounds. They are £220, £350 or £520, by the same distance bands as EU261. The UK kept this copy of the regulation after leaving the EU. You are owed the money when you reach your final destination at least three hours late, unless the airline proves extraordinary circumstances. Let's say you fly 2,500 km from London and land five hours late because of a crew shortage. That is the middle band, so the airline owes you £350. On a flight over 3,500 km that arrives three to four hours late, it may pay £260 instead of £520. Check which regime covers your flight before you quote an amount. UK261 and EU261 have different reach, because UK rules depend on UK airports and UK carriers. A departure from London falls under UK261. A departure from an EU airport falls under EU261, in euros. Send your claim in writing to the operating airline. The court deadline is six years in England and Wales and five in Scotland. [UK261 explained](/passenger-rights/uk261) ### How is flight distance calculated for EU261 compensation? EU261 uses the great-circle distance: the shortest line over the Earth's surface between two airports. The route the plane actually flew, detours and holding patterns do not count. On a single booking with connections, the distance runs from your first departure airport to your final destination. A flight-tracking site shows 1,600 km flown, but the great-circle distance between the two airports is 1,450 km. That flight sits in the first band, so the airline owes €250, not €400. It can work the other way too: an airline may put you in the wrong band. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 sets the bands and the great-circle rule. Up to 1,500 km pays €250, 1,500 to 3,500 km pays €400, and over 3,500 km pays €600. Intra-EU flights over 1,500 km also pay €400. The miles shown on the flight map play no part. For a single booking, the Wegener judgment confirms that the final destination counts. So when the flights share one booking, measure from your first departure airport to your final destination. Enter the two airport codes in a great-circle distance calculator. If the result lands near 1,500 km or 3,500 km, check it twice. Then quote your figure to the airline. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### Is EU261 compensation per person or per booking? Per passenger. Each person on the booking who meets the conditions has their own claim for the full amount for that distance. A family of four on a 1,200 km flight that arrives three hours late can claim €250 each, so €1,000 in total. The booking reference sets no cap. Four people on one booking, on a flight over 3,500 km that lands five hours late, are owed €600 each. That makes €2,400 in total. If the airline lawfully applies the 50% reduction, it applies per passenger, so each would receive €300. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 sets the amount each passenger receives, and Article 3 sets who it covers. The right belongs to each traveller, not to the person who paid. A shared booking reference changes nothing. Every traveller needs a confirmed reservation and must have checked in on time, except after a cancellation. One claim can usually cover the whole party. List every passenger's full name as it appears on the ticket. Attach each boarding pass or the booking confirmation. The airline checks every name separately, so keep each passenger's documents together. If it pays only one person, write back and ask for the others by name. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### My flight only cost €30, can I still get €250 compensation? Yes, in principle. EU261 ties the amount to distance and arrival delay, not to the fare. A €30 ticket on a 1,000 km flight that arrives three hours late carries the same €250 as a full-price ticket. The airline escapes only if it proves extraordinary circumstances. You paid €30 for a 1,000 km flight. It reached your destination four hours late, after a fault found during the pre-flight checks. The airline owes you €250. A technical problem like that generally counts as part of running an airline, so it is not an extraordinary circumstance. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 makes compensation a fixed sum for lost time, not a refund of your fare. That is why it can exceed a cheap ticket. The bands are €250 up to 1,500 km, €400 for the middle band and €600 over 3,500 km. The ticket price matters in one case only: a downgrade. Under Article 10, the airline then repays 30%, 50% or 75% of the price of the affected flight. For a delay or cancellation, price plays no part in the amount. Claim from the operating airline, with your booking and boarding pass. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### Why is my compensation only €300 instead of €600 for a long-haul delay? EU261 lets the airline halve compensation in two cases. On a flight over 3,500 km, arriving three to four hours late pays €300 instead of €600. It may also halve it after a cancellation or denied boarding, if the new flight arrived within the regulation's time limits. Timing decides it, so count carefully. Arrival is the moment a door opens and passengers may leave, not touchdown, as the Germanwings judgment held. Let's say the plane touched down 3 hours 50 minutes late, but the doors opened 4 hours 5 minutes late. The airline owes €600, not €300. Article 7(2) of Regulation 261/2004 allows the cut. On flights over 3,500 km, the full €600 applies when you reach the final destination four hours or more late. Between three and four hours, the airline may pay €300. UK261 works the same way, with £260 instead of £520. The second case covers rerouting. If the airline cancelled your flight or denied you boarding and moved you to another one, it may halve the sum. It can do so only when your new arrival stays within the distance-based limits in Article 7(2). Outside them, it owes the full amount. Ask the airline for its recorded arrival time and compare it with your own notes. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### Should I accept a voucher instead of cash for flight delay compensation? You do not have to. EU261 allows payment in vouchers only if you sign your agreement; otherwise the airline owes money. A bigger voucher can suit a frequent flyer. Before signing, check its expiry, which flights it covers and whether you can transfer it. Airlines sometimes offer a voucher with a higher face value. Consider an airline that owes you €400 and offers a €500 voucher instead. The extra €100 helps only if you will fly with that airline before the voucher expires. If you never use it, you lose all €400. Article 7(3) of Regulation 261/2004 makes money the default. The airline may offer travel vouchers, but only with your signed agreement. Without that signature, it must pay the amount in money. Read the voucher terms before you decide. Look for the expiry date and any fare restrictions. Check whether you can use it for other people, and whether any balance carries over. If the terms are unclear, reply that you want the payment by bank transfer. Turning down a voucher does not reduce what the airline owes. Answer in writing and keep the offer email. [Voucher or cash](/voucher-or-cash) ### Can the airline pay my EU261 compensation in miles or points? Only if you agree. Money is the default under EU261, and the airline can pay in vouchers or other non-cash forms only with your signed agreement. If it offers miles or points, you can refuse and ask for the full amount by bank transfer. Some airlines invite you to take compensation as loyalty points. The offer can look generous, but points have no fixed cash value. Their worth depends on what you can book with them, and when. To see how it works, picture an airline that owes you €600 for a long-haul delay and offers 40,000 points instead. Price a route you actually fly, including taxes and fees. If the points buy less than €600 in real use, money serves you better. Article 7(1) of Regulation 261/2004 sets the amount. Article 7(3) allows non-cash payment only with the passenger's signed agreement, so you can decline. Say so in writing, ask for money and give your bank details. Keep the offer email in case you need to escalate. If you already accepted points by mistake, contact the airline in writing straight away. Ask to switch to money. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### How long do airlines take to pay EU261 compensation? EU261 sets no deadline today for paying fixed compensation. The wait depends on the airline and on whether it disputes the claim. Refunds differ: they are due within seven days. A reform approved in July 2026 will give airlines 30 days to pay or give a reason. It is expected from the second half of 2027. Send the claim in writing with your booking, boarding passes and the amount, for example €400. Ask for payment within a set period, such as 30 days. If you hear nothing, send a final reminder before you consider court. That plan matters because the regulation fixes the amount but not the payment date. Airlines answer at their own pace, and a disputed claim takes longer. Your protection is the national court deadline, which keeps running while you wait. The Moré judgment confirms that national law sets it. These deadlines vary a lot. Poland allows one year and the Netherlands two. Germany allows three, counted to the end of the third year. England and Wales allow six. A passenger in Poland who waits passively can lose the claim. The reform changes this picture. It adds a 30-day duty to pay or give a specific reason, and a single EU-wide 9-month claim deadline replacing national limits. It should apply from the second half of 2027. Until then, the current rules stand. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### What can I do if the airline accepted my claim but never paid? Chase in writing and quote the airline's own acceptance. Give a short final deadline. Then look at the national route: a complaint body or a small claims court, within your country's limitation period. Keep every email, because the written acceptance is strong evidence of what the airline owes. The airline confirmed €600 for a long-haul delay eight weeks ago, and nothing has arrived. Reply to that acceptance email, quoting its reference and the amount. Ask for payment within 14 days and attach your bank details again. An acceptance email is not money in the bank. Payments can stall because of wrong bank details, a lost file or a backlog. So check the details you gave the airline before you write. If the deadline passes, look at the options in the country concerned. Many countries have a public body that handles passenger complaints, and courts hear unpaid claims. Act within the national limitation period: one year in Poland, three in Germany and six in England and Wales. The Moré judgment confirms that national law sets these limits. The operating airline remains responsible for paying the amount set by Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004. A reform expected from the second half of 2027 adds a 30-day payment deadline. Until it applies, the current rules stand. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### Can I get EU261 compensation paid in pounds or dollars instead of euros? EU261 sets the amounts in euros, and UK261 sets them in pounds. Outside the eurozone, ask the airline in writing to pay the full euro value in your currency. Ask it to state the rate it used, and check that the amount you receive matches. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 fixes the sums at €250, €400 and €600. Article 7 of the UK retained Regulation uses its own sterling amounts of £220, £350 and £520. Which regime applies depends on the flight, not on where you live. Currency matters when the payment crosses borders. An airline owes you €400 and pays it into a dollar account. Your bank converts it at its own rate and may charge a fee. You could end up with less than €400 in value. You can limit that loss. Ask the airline to pay in your currency and to name the exchange rate and date. Or give it an account that receives euros. If the payment arrives short, ask the airline to explain the difference and pay the balance. No confirmed rule on how to convert the amounts could be found, so ask the airline to explain its method. Keep the payment advice and your bank statement, so you can show any gap. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### Can the airline deduct fees from my flight delay compensation? EU261 sets fixed sums, and its only cut is the 50% reduction in specific cases. Nothing in the regulation lets an airline subtract admin or processing fees. If the payment arrives short, ask the airline in writing to explain the difference and pay the balance. A real-world pattern: a payment arrives short, with the gap labelled a handling fee. If the airline owes €400 and pays €370, write back and quote the €400 owed for your distance band. Ask for the €30 balance. If it says it applied the 50% reduction instead, ask it to show your arrival time. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 fixes the amounts by distance. They are €250, €400 or €600 under EU261, or £220, £350 or £520 under UK261. Article 7(2) provides the only reduction. It lets the airline halve the sum on some long-haul delays and some rerouted journeys. Bank charges are a separate issue. Your own bank may charge to receive an international transfer or to convert currency. Ask the airline to pay in your currency if it can. Keep the payment advice that shows what arrived and when. If the airline will not pay the balance, treat the shortfall as part of your claim. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### Can I get EU261 compensation if I don't have an IBAN or want it paid to my credit card? Yes, the money is still yours. Compensation is a payment owed to you, not a refund of the ticket, so it need not go back to your card. Ask the airline in writing which other methods it can use, such as an international bank transfer. Then give the details your bank needs. Airline claim forms often ask for an IBAN, a European account number. Passengers with banks in the United States, Australia or elsewhere may not have one. The design of a form does not reduce what the airline owes you under Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004. Consider a €600 claim after a long-haul delay, where the form will not accept your account number. Email the airline and quote your claim reference. Give your bank's SWIFT code, account number and address. Ask the airline to confirm it can pay that way. Some travellers open a multi-currency account that provides a European account number. That can also avoid conversion fees. A card refund is a different matter: it returns a ticket price, not compensation. Do not accept a voucher just because the bank form is awkward, since a voucher needs your signed agreement. Keep copies of every message about payment details. That makes any delay on the airline's side easy to show. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### Can I do a chargeback if the airline won't refund my cancelled flight? Possibly. A chargeback is a card-scheme process, separate from EU261, and your card issuer decides it under its own rules and time limits. It can help recover a ticket price the airline will not refund. It is not the route for fixed compensation, which you claim from the operating airline. Start with the airline, and ask it in writing for the refund before you go to your card issuer. Under Article 8 of Regulation 261/2004, read with Article 7(3), the refund is due within seven days. That applies once you choose a refund after a cancellation. If the airline misses that, a chargeback through your card issuer is one way to get the ticket money back. The issuer applies its own rules, not the regulation. You paid €300 by card, the airline cancelled, you asked for a refund, and weeks went by. Show your issuer the cancellation notice, your written refund request and its date. Ask how long you have to open a dispute, because card issuers set their own limits. Fixed compensation of €250, €400 or €600 is a different claim. It is not a payment you made, so a chargeback does not fit it. Claim it from the operating airline, and keep the two claims apart. [Flight refunds](/flight-refund) ### Do I have to pay tax on flight delay compensation? It depends on your country's tax rules, because EU261 and UK261 say nothing about tax. Ask a tax adviser or your tax authority how your country treats it. Keep the airline's payment letter: it shows what the money was for, a fixed sum under Regulation 261/2004. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004, or of the UK retained Regulation, decides how much the airline owes you. It does not decide how your government taxes it. That is a question for national law, and it can differ between countries and between types of payment. To see how it works, picture €400 received for a cancelled flight, plus interest a court awarded because the airline paid late. Your adviser may treat the two parts differently. Tell them exactly what you received and why. Keep a simple record. Save the airline's letter or email confirming the amount and the reason, the date it arrived, and any court order. For a business trip, tell your employer's finance team too, since the ticket cost may already sit in their accounts. This answer does not give a tax rule. Check with a tax adviser or your national tax authority before you file a return. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### Can I claim for a missed hotel night or lost wages after a flight delay? Possibly, but not automatically. The Montreal Convention can cover losses you prove a delay caused, such as a prepaid hotel night. The airline's defences and a cap in Special Drawing Rights apply. You must show the loss, the cause and that you tried to limit it. Court action must start within two years. Your flight arrives a day late, and you lose a €150 prepaid hotel night that the hotel would not refund. You can claim that €150 from the airline under the Montreal Convention 1999. Send the booking and the hotel's refusal. Separately, the airline may owe €400 fixed compensation for a 2,000 km flight. The two systems work in opposite ways. EU261 compensation is a fixed sum that needs no proof of loss. Article 19 of the Convention covers actual, provable damage caused by a delay on an international flight. The two can sit side by side. Lost wages are harder. You need evidence that you lost pay, that the delay caused it and that you could not reasonably avoid it. The airline can defend itself, for example by showing it took all reasonable measures. Article 22 sets the cap on what it pays. Claim in writing with documents. Under Article 35, the right ends unless court action starts within two years. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### If both my outbound and return flights were delayed, can I claim compensation for both? Yes. EU261 treats the outbound and the return as two separate flights, even on one booking. Each one that arrives three or more hours late can earn its own payment. That flight must be covered, and its delay must not come from extraordinary circumstances. You may end up with two different amounts. The 2024 Commission guidelines say an outbound and a return are separate flights, even when you bought them together. That cuts both ways. Each leg is judged on its own delay, its own cause and its own coverage. A return that is not covered does not become covered because the outbound left from Europe. Paris to Boston and back on Air France shows how it works. The outbound lands 5 hours late after a crew shortage in Paris. The route is about 5,530 km, so Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 sets €600. The return lands 3 hours 30 minutes late, also for an internal reason. On flights over 3,500 km, a delay of 3 to 4 hours can be halved, so that leg may pay €300. Coverage is where round trips catch people out. A flight leaving an EU airport is covered whatever the airline. A flight into the EU from outside is covered only when an EU airline operates it, under Article 3(1)(b). So the Boston leg counts on Air France, but would not count on a US airline. Claim each flight separately, with its own flight number and arrival time. If both legs were with the same airline, you can send both claims together, listed as two delays. If the airline pays one and rejects the other, ask for the reason for that leg in writing. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### Do I get more compensation if my flight was delayed 10 hours instead of 3? No, not under EU261. Once you arrive three hours or more late, the amount is fixed by distance: €250, €400 or €600. A 10-hour delay pays the same as a 3-hour one. The only time element is on flights over 3,500 km, where a delay of 3 to 4 hours can be cut to €300. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 pays a flat sum for a long delay. It does not add money for each extra hour. The three-hour mark comes from the Sturgeon judgment and is measured at your final destination. For most flights it is the only line that matters. An Amsterdam to Prague flight is about 705 km. Land 3 hours 10 minutes late or 10 hours late, and the airline owes €250 per passenger either way. The only escape is proof of extraordinary circumstances. Long-haul flights have one extra step. Lisbon to New York is about 5,410 km. Arrive 3 hours 30 minutes late and the airline may pay €300. Arrive 4 hours or more late and the full €600 is due. Beyond that, a 12-hour delay pays the same €600. A longer wait still gets you more help, if not more compensation. Meals and refreshments are due from 2, 3 or 4 hours depending on distance, and a hotel when you need to stay overnight. After a 5-hour delay you can give up the trip and ask for a refund. Keep receipts for anything you pay for yourself while you wait. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### Both of my connecting flights were delayed. Do I get compensation for each one? Usually not. When the flights are on one booking, EU261 looks at how late you reach your final destination. It pays one sum per passenger for that journey. The amount uses the distance from your first departure airport to your final one. Two late legs do not add up to two payments. For connecting flights booked together, the delay is measured at the end of the journey. The Court of Justice set this out in Folkerts (C-11/11), and the 2024 Commission guidelines follow it. What matters is the gap between the scheduled and actual arrival at your last airport, not the delay on each leg. A Vienna to Toronto trip on one booking changes in Frankfurt. The Vienna flight leaves 90 minutes late, and the Frankfurt flight is then held up by a technical problem with the aircraft. You reach Toronto 5 hours late. Vienna to Toronto is about 6,950 km, so the claim is for €600 per passenger, once. Separate bookings work the other way. Each ticket is its own journey, so each delayed flight is judged alone against the three-hour mark. That can mean two claims, but each leg must reach three hours on its own arrival. Claim once, quoting both flight numbers and the final arrival time. If the airline says one of the delays was extraordinary, ask for the reason for each leg in writing. Meals and drinks during each wait are a separate right and do not depend on this calculation. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### The airline paid me €250 but I think I'm owed €400. Can I claim the difference? Yes. The amount is fixed by the flight's great-circle distance, so an airline that used the wrong band still owes the rest. Check the distance between your departure airport and your final one. If it is over 1,500 km, the amount is at least €400, and you can ask for the missing €150. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 ties each amount to a distance band: up to 1,500 km, 1,500 to 3,500 km, and over 3,500 km. Flights inside the EU of more than 1,500 km sit in the €400 band, whatever their length. Once your delay qualifies, the band follows from the distance alone. A Milan Malpensa to Lisbon flight is about 1,650 km. Routes close to the 1,500 km line are worth checking with a great-circle calculator. If that flight lands 4 hours late for an internal reason, the airline owes €400, not €250. Long-haul payments can go wrong too. On a flight over 3,500 km, €300 is correct only in two cases. You arrived 3 to 4 hours late, or a rerouting stayed within the Article 7(2) limits. Arrive 4 hours or more late and the full €600 is due. Reply to the airline in writing, name the two airports, give the distance and ask for the balance. Do not sign anything saying the payment settles your claim in full until you have checked the band. The EU reform approved by the European Parliament on 7 July 2026 will give airlines 30 days to pay or give a specific reason. It is expected to apply from the second half of 2027, and until it applies the current rules stand. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ### My travel insurance paid out for the delay. Can I still claim EU261 compensation from the airline? Usually yes. EU261 compensation is owed by the airline that operated the flight, at a fixed amount set by distance. An insurance payout comes from a separate contract with your insurer. What you must check is your policy. Some insurers ask you to claim from the airline first, or to tell them what the airline paid. The two payments come from different places. Regulation 261/2004 puts the duty on the operating airline, under Articles 2(b) and 3(5), and Article 7 fixes the amount. Your insurer pays under the terms of the policy you bought. The regulation's test is distance, arrival time and the cause of the delay; an insurance payout is not part of it. A Rome to Athens flight is about 1,090 km. It lands 5 hours late after a crew shortage, and your policy pays a small fixed sum for the delay. The airline still owes €250 per passenger under EU261, because the cause was its own. Read the policy wording before you claim on both. A policy may pay delay benefits only when the airline is not liable, or may ask you to pursue the airline first. It may also ask you to declare other payments, so you are not paid twice for the same cost. If you claim hotel or meal costs from both, expect one of them to ask for the money back. Claim from the airline first, with your booking reference and arrival time. Keep its reply, since an insurer may ask to see it. Then tell your insurer exactly what the airline paid and what it was for. [Compensation calculator](/flight-delay-compensation-calculator) ## What must the airline give you while you wait? Care is owed during long waits, even when the cause was extraordinary. [All 20 questions on this topic](/faq/meals-and-hotels). ### How long does a flight have to be delayed before the airline gives you food? Under EU261 the airline owes you meals and refreshments once the delay reaches 2 hours on flights up to 1,500 km. For flights of 1,500 to 3,500 km, and intra-EU flights over 1,500 km, the threshold is 3 hours. For all other flights it is 4 hours. UK261 keeps the same care rights. A London to Barcelona flight covers about 1,150 km. If it leaves 2 hours late, the airline owes you food and drink. A flight from London to Athens, about 2,400 km, needs 3 hours. A long-haul flight to New York needs 4 hours. Articles 6 and 9 of Regulation 261/2004 tie these thresholds to the flight's distance, not to how long it lasts. Up to 1,500 km, meals and refreshments start at 2 hours. From 1,500 to 3,500 km, or on an intra-EU flight over 1,500 km, they start at 3 hours. Every other flight triggers them at 4 hours. As soon as the threshold passes, ask the gate staff for a voucher. If they give nothing, buy something sensible and keep the receipt. The same care rules apply when the airline cancels or refuses you boarding. UK passengers keep the same care rights under the retained UK version of the regulation. [Stranded at the airport](/stranded) ### How much should a flight delay meal voucher be worth in Europe? EU261 sets no fixed euro amount for meal vouchers. The airline must give meals and refreshments that fit the length of your wait. Talk of a set €40 voucher does not come from the regulation. If the voucher buys nothing sensible at the airport, keep receipts for what you buy. Your 900 km flight leaves 5 hours late, and the airline hands you a £5 voucher. At many airports that buys a coffee, not a meal. You can buy a modest meal and a soft drink and claim the difference in writing. Article 9 of Regulation 261/2004 describes meals and refreshments, not a price. In practice, the test is whether the voucher lets you eat and drink properly during the wait. A long wait at an expensive airport calls for more than a short wait at a cheap one. Keep it reasonable. A sandwich, a hot meal and water will look fair to an airline or a court. A bottle of wine or a restaurant tasting menu will not. Send copies of the voucher, your receipts and your boarding pass to the airline that operated the flight. Keep the originals. UK passengers have the same care rights under the retained UK regulation. [Voucher or cash](/voucher-or-cash) ### The airline's meal voucher didn't cover a meal, can I claim the rest back? You can ask the airline to repay what you spent on top of a voucher that was too small. EU261 makes the airline responsible for meals and refreshments during a long wait. Keep the receipts and the spending modest. Send the claim in writing to the operating airline after the trip. Let's say your 1,200 km flight leaves 6 hours late, across lunch and dinner. The airline gives you one €8 voucher. You buy two simple meals and water for €26. You can claim the €18 you paid yourself. A voucher is how the airline delivers care, but it does not cap what the airline owes. If the voucher was too small for the wait, the shortfall is still care the airline failed to give. Write to the airline that operated the flight with the flight number, the date and the delay. Attach copies of the voucher and the itemised receipts, and keep the originals. Leave out alcohol and anything that looks like a treat. The duty comes from Articles 6 and 9 of Regulation 261/2004. It holds even when no cash compensation is due, as in bad weather. The Court of Justice confirmed this in McDonagh v Ryanair. [Voucher or cash](/voucher-or-cash) ### The airline didn't give me a meal voucher during the delay, can I claim my food receipts? Yes, under EU261 you can claim reasonable food and drink costs if the airline gave you nothing. The duty starts after 2, 3 or 4 hours depending on distance. Send copies of itemised receipts to the operating airline. It owes this care even when the delay was outside its control. A real-world pattern: during big disruptions, airlines run out of vouchers or close the desk. That does not end the care duty in Articles 6 and 9 of Regulation 261/2004. Once the delay passes the threshold for your flight, meals and refreshments are still owed. The Court of Justice held in McDonagh v Ryanair that care continues even in extraordinary circumstances. UK passengers keep the same care rights under the retained regulation. A 2,000 km flight from Manchester to Athens leaves 4 hours late. No staff appear and no voucher arrives. You buy a meal and a soft drink for £14. That cost sits within what the airline owed you after 3 hours. Claim from the airline that operated the flight. Include the booking reference, the flight number and copies of itemised receipts. Card slips alone may not show what you bought. Keep the originals at home. [Voucher or cash](/voucher-or-cash) ### Does the airline have to pay for a hotel if my flight is delayed or cancelled overnight? Yes. Under EU261 and UK261 the airline owes you a hotel when a delay or cancellation means you must stay overnight. It also owes transport between the airport and the hotel. This care applies even when the cause was bad weather or another extraordinary circumstance. Your flight from Dublin to Lisbon is cancelled at 21:00, and the new flight leaves at 09:00. The airline owes you a room for the night, dinner, breakfast and transport to and from the hotel. Article 9 of Regulation 261/2004 sets this duty whenever the disruption makes an overnight stay necessary. A flight moved from 20:00 to 07:00 the next morning is the classic case. So is a cancellation where the airline rebooks you on a flight the following day. The airline should arrange the room and the transfers itself. If it hands you a hotel voucher and a bus ticket, use them. If it gives you nothing, book a sensible room nearby and keep the receipt. The rule covers flights leaving an EU or UK airport on any airline. It also covers flights into Europe on a European or UK airline. The Court of Justice confirmed in McDonagh v Ryanair that care continues during extraordinary circumstances. [Stranded at the airport](/stranded) ### Can I book my own hotel and claim it back from the airline? Yes, if the airline owed you a hotel under EU261 and did not provide one. Ask the airline first and note its answer. Then book a reasonably priced room near the airport, keep the receipt and claim the cost from the operating airline in writing. Consider a late-night cancellation of your flight from Rome to Edinburgh. Nobody staffs the desk, and the app says to book a hotel. You pay €120 for an airport hotel and €15 for the shuttle. Claim both, with the receipts and a screenshot of the app. Under Article 9 of Regulation 261/2004, the hotel duty belongs to the airline. Ideally it books the room and the transfer for you. When staff are absent or tell you to sort it out yourself, you can book your own and seek repayment. Two things help your claim. First, show that you asked the airline for help. An app screenshot, a chat log or a note of what the desk said all work. Second, show that your choice was reasonable. A standard room near the airport is easy to defend, but a five-star suite is not. Send the claim to the airline that operated the flight. UK passengers have the same right under the retained UK regulation. [Stranded at the airport](/stranded) ### Is there a limit on how much the airline will pay for a hotel I booked myself? EU261 sets no euro cap on hotel costs. The airline owes a reasonable room for the night you had to stay. Airlines often publish their own limits, but the real test is what was reasonable and available at the time. Keep proof of the prices you saw. To see how it works, picture an airline policy of €100 per night. You reach the hotel desk at midnight, and the cheapest room left costs €180. Claim the full €180 with a screenshot of the prices. If the airline pays only €100, you can challenge the rest. Many airlines say they will repay up to a set figure per night. That figure is the airline's own policy. Article 9 of Regulation 261/2004 sets no such limit. What matters is whether your choice was reasonable in the circumstances. Context counts. During a big disruption, every airport hotel may fill within an hour. The only room left may cost far more than usual. A screenshot of a booking site showing the cheaper hotels sold out helps prove that. Send the claim to the airline that operated the flight first. If it will not pay a fair amount, escalate to the national enforcement body or a court in the right country. [Stranded at the airport](/stranded) ### Does the airline have to pay for a taxi to the hotel if there's no bus? Yes. Under EU261, transport between the airport and the hotel is part of the care the airline owes when you must stay overnight. If the airline gives no shuttle and no bus or train runs, a taxi can be a reasonable cost. Keep the receipt and note why you needed it. Your flight from Palma to Bristol is cancelled at 01:00. The airline books a hotel 12 km away but gives no transfer, and no buses run until 06:00. A €35 taxi there and back the next morning is a reasonable claim. Article 9 of Regulation 261/2004 puts transport to and from the hotel alongside the room itself. The airline should provide a shuttle, a coach or a voucher. When it does not, you can arrange the cheapest sensible option. A taxi is easier to justify when public transport has stopped or the hotel is far from the station. It is harder when a free hotel shuttle runs every 20 minutes. Show the airline why the taxi was necessary. Keep the taxi receipt, a screenshot of the timetable and any message from the airline. Claim from the airline that operated the flight. UK passengers keep this right under the retained regulation. [Stranded at the airport](/stranded) ### Do airlines have to pay for a hotel if the flight is cancelled because of bad weather? Yes. Under EU261 the airline must still provide a hotel and meals when bad weather forces an overnight stay. Weather can free the airline from paying fixed compensation, but not from its care duty. The Court of Justice confirmed this in McDonagh v Ryanair. Snow closes Geneva, and the airline cancels your evening flight to London. The next seat is two days later. The airline owes you hotel nights, meals and transfers for that wait. It may not owe you the £220 compensation. EU261 contains two separate rights. Compensation is the fixed €250, €400 or €600 payment. Care is the food, drinks, hotel and transport during the wait. Genuinely extraordinary events can excuse the airline from compensation. They cannot excuse it from care. Severe weather may count as extraordinary. Even then, the airline must prove the weather caused the cancellation and that it took all reasonable measures. It must back that up with evidence. Article 9 of Regulation 261/2004 holds the care duty, and McDonagh v Ryanair (C-12/11) confirmed it continues in extraordinary circumstances. UK passengers keep the same right under the retained regulation. Keep receipts for every night and meal you pay for yourself. [Stranded at the airport](/stranded) ### How many nights does the airline have to pay for if I'm stranded? EU261 ties the hotel duty to the overnight stays the disruption makes necessary. It names no one-night limit. If the airline cannot fly you home for three nights, it owes care for that whole wait. Keep receipts for each night and each meal. Snow closes your departure airport, and the airline's first free seat home leaves in four days. You take it. The airline owes four nights in a reasonable hotel, plus meals and transfers. That holds even though the snow may excuse it from compensation. Airlines sometimes offer one night and then go quiet. Under Article 9 of Regulation 261/2004, care does not stop at the first morning. It follows the wait until the airline gets you on a flight, or until you choose a refund instead of rerouting. The Court of Justice held in McDonagh v Ryanair that care continues in extraordinary circumstances. Your own choices matter here. Article 8 lets you choose a refund, rerouting at the earliest opportunity, or rerouting at a later date that suits you. If you pick a later date for your own convenience, the extra nights are your own. Send the claim, with receipts for each night, to the airline that operated the flight. [Stranded at the airport](/stranded) ### Do I still get food and drinks if the airline says the delay was extraordinary circumstances? Yes. Under EU261 the airline owes meals and refreshments during a long delay, even when the cause was extraordinary. A storm or air traffic control limits are typical examples. Extraordinary circumstances can cancel the compensation payment. They do not cancel the airline's care duty. Air traffic control limits hold your 1,000 km flight from Paris to Milan for 3 hours. The airline may not owe the €250 compensation. It still owes you food and drink from the 2-hour mark. One phrase at the gate can sound as if it ends every right. It does not. Extraordinary circumstances are a defence to fixed compensation only. The care duty in Articles 6 and 9 of Regulation 261/2004 stands on its own, as McDonagh v Ryanair confirmed. The airline still has to prove the event was extraordinary, and Wallentin-Hermann v Alitalia sets the test. The airline must show the event caused your delay and that it took all reasonable steps. A technical problem with the aircraft does not count. A strike by the airline's own staff generally does not count either. If the airline gave you nothing, keep your receipts and claim the cost. [Stranded at the airport](/stranded) ### Can I get food, a hotel and delay compensation at the same time? Yes. Care and compensation are separate rights under EU261. The airline owes food, drinks and a hotel while you wait. It may also owe €250, €400 or €600 if the cause was within its control. That applies when you arrive at least 3 hours late. One does not reduce the other. A routine technical fault delays your 2,500 km flight overnight, and you reach your destination 15 hours late. The airline owes your hotel, meals and transfers. It also owes €400 compensation, because a fault like that is generally not extraordinary. Care and compensation do different jobs. Care, under Article 9 of Regulation 261/2004, covers your needs whatever the cause. Compensation, under Article 7, is a fixed sum for the lost time. It depends on the cause and on how late you arrived, and Sturgeon v Condor applies it to delays. Compensation follows distance. EU flights pay €250 up to 1,500 km and €600 over 3,500 km. The €400 band covers 1,500 to 3,500 km and intra-EU flights over that. UK261 pays £220, £350 or £520 in the same bands. The delay counts from when a door opens at your final destination. Claim both from the operating airline, with receipts for the care costs. [Stranded at the airport](/stranded) ### Do I need receipts to claim my expenses back from the airline? Yes, in practice. The airline will ask what you spent and why. Keep itemised receipts that show what you bought, not just card slips. Add your boarding pass, the delay notice and any message from the airline. Send copies and keep the originals. Let's say an overnight cancellation costs you €22 for two meals, €130 for a hotel and €30 for taxis. Your claim lists each item with its receipt. It also includes a screenshot showing the airline offered no hotel. The care rules in Article 9 of Regulation 261/2004 let you recover what the airline should have provided. To prove it, show what you paid for and when. An itemised receipt does both. A card statement shows only an amount and a shop name. Build a small folder as you go. Photograph each receipt on the spot, because thermal paper fades. Screenshot the departure board, the app notices and any chat with the airline. Note the times you asked for help. Send the claim to the airline that operated the flight. A separate claim for compensation can go in the same letter. [Stranded at the airport](/stranded) ### The airline rejected my hotel claim as a private arrangement, what can I do? Reply in writing and cite Article 9 of EU261. Explain that the disruption forced the overnight stay and that the airline gave no hotel. Attach receipts and proof that you asked for help. If it still refuses, take the claim to the national enforcement body or a court. Airlines sometimes treat a self-booked hotel as a personal choice. That answer misses the point when the airline owed the room and did not provide it. Your reply should link the hotel to the disruption. Your flight is cancelled at 20:00, and the new one leaves at 08:00. The app says no hotels are available through the airline, so you book a €95 room nearby. That room was a direct result of the cancellation, not a holiday extra. Set out the timeline in a few lines. Give the original departure, the cancellation or delay, and the new departure the next day. Say you asked for a hotel and what the airline said. Attach the booking, the receipt and any screenshot. If the airline still refuses, escalate. Each EU country has a national enforcement body for Regulation 261/2004, and courts hear these claims under national time limits. In the UK, those limits are 6 years in England and Wales and 5 in Scotland. [Stranded at the airport](/stranded) ### What can I do if the airline's next available flight is days away? Under EU261 you choose between a refund, rerouting at the earliest opportunity or a later flight that suits you. If you wait for rerouting, the airline owes meals and a hotel in the meantime. If it offers nothing reasonable, the cost of booking your own flight may be recoverable with proof. Consider a cancelled flight from Lisbon to Dublin where the airline's next seat leaves in four days. You can accept and claim care for those four days. You can take a refund within 7 days and travel another way. Or you can book a sooner flight and claim the reasonable cost. Whichever you pick, make your choice in writing. If you want the earliest possible flight, say so. If the airline offers only a flight days away, ask whether anything sooner exists. Keep a record of each answer. Waiting has a cost for the airline too. Article 8 of Regulation 261/2004 gives you the three options. Article 9 makes the airline provide care while you wait for its rerouting. That means food, drinks, hotel nights and transfers for each day you stay. Section 4.2 of the 2024 Commission Guidelines covers self-rerouting costs. You must show the new ticket was necessary and that you kept the cost down, so keep screenshots. [Stranded at the airport](/stranded) ### Will the airline pay for a train or taxi if I make my own way after a cancellation? It may, if the airline failed to offer proper rerouting at the earliest opportunity. The 2024 Commission Guidelines say reasonable self-rerouting costs can be recoverable. You must show the journey was necessary and that you chose a sensible option. Keep tickets, receipts and the airline's messages. A real-world pattern: a train or coach gets you home sooner than the next flight. Rerouting does not always mean another plane. What counts is whether the airline gave you a compliant option first. If it did, and you chose to travel another way anyway, the cost is usually yours. If it offered nothing, or only a flight days later, a reasonable ground journey makes a stronger claim. Your short evening flight from Brussels to Amsterdam is cancelled. The airline offers a flight two days later, but a train leaves in an hour for €60. You take it, keep the ticket and the airline's offer, and claim the €60. Your claim rests on Article 8 of Regulation 261/2004 and Section 4.2 of the 2024 Guidelines. [Stranded at the airport](/stranded) ### Am I entitled to a hotel if my UK flight is cancelled? Yes. Under UK261 the airline owes you a hotel and transfers when a cancellation forces an overnight stay. This covers flights leaving a UK airport on any airline, and some flights into the UK on a UK airline. Meals and refreshments are due during the wait too. Your easyJet flight from Gatwick to Glasgow is cancelled at 21:00, and the new one leaves at 07:00. The airline owes you a hotel, transport, dinner and breakfast. If the cause was within its control, it may also owe £220 compensation. After Brexit the UK kept its own version of Regulation 261/2004. It gives UK passengers the same care, refund and rerouting rights as before. Only the currency of compensation changed, to £220, £350 and £520. The UK and EU rules run side by side. A flight from Manchester to Malaga falls under UK261. A flight from Malaga to Manchester falls under EU261, because it leaves an EU airport. The UK Civil Aviation Authority oversees these rights. If the airline will not pay your costs, write to it first with receipts, and escalate if it still refuses. Court claims can run for 6 years in England and Wales, and for 5 in Scotland. [Stranded at the airport](/stranded) ### Does the airline have to pay for clothes and toiletries if my bag doesn't arrive after a disrupted flight? Often, yes. Under the Montreal Convention the airline can be liable for damage caused by delayed checked baggage, such as essential clothes and toiletries. You must prove the costs and keep them reasonable. Complain in writing within 21 days of getting the bag back. Limits apply. Your bag misses the rebooked flight and turns up three days later. You spend €70 on essentials in the meantime. File a report at the airport, then send a written claim with receipts. You must send it within 21 days of the day the bag reached you. Two different laws can apply after a disrupted trip. EU261 covers meals, hotels and transport during the flight disruption. Articles 17 and 19 of the Montreal Convention 1999 cover checked bags that arrive late, get lost or get damaged. For a delayed bag, the airline may repay what you reasonably needed to buy before it returned. Toiletries, underwear and a change of clothes fit that test, but a new wardrobe does not. Some airlines repay only part of the price of items you will keep. Article 22 caps liability in Special Drawing Rights, and the airline can raise defences. Keep every receipt and the property irregularity report. [Baggage compensation](/baggage-compensation) ### How long do I have to claim for a delayed bag from the airline? Under the Montreal Convention you must complain to the airline in writing within 21 days of receiving the delayed bag. For a damaged bag the window is 7 days. Court action must start within two years. Report the problem at the airport too, before you leave. Baggage claims run on much shorter clocks than flight compensation. Article 31 of the Montreal Convention 1999 sets the notice periods, and the written complaint is the key step. Without it in time, the airline may refuse the claim even if the facts are clear. Your bag arrives on 3 March after a cancellation and rebooking. You have until 24 March to send the written claim for the essentials you bought. If the airline refuses, Article 35 gives you two years to start a court claim. The 21 days start when the bag reaches you, not when the flight landed. The 7 days for damage start when you receive the damaged bag. Use email or the airline's online form, so you have a dated record. Keep the airport report, the bag tag and your receipts with the claim. [Baggage compensation](/baggage-compensation) ### What can I claim if the airline loses my luggage after a cancelled flight? Under the Montreal Convention the airline can be liable for the loss of checked baggage. Its liability stops at a limit set in Special Drawing Rights. You claim the value of the missing items, with proof. This sits apart from any EU261 compensation for the cancellation itself. A cancellation and a lost bag are two separate problems with two separate claims. EU261 deals with the flight: care, rerouting, refunds and fixed compensation. Articles 17 and 22 of the Montreal Convention 1999 deal with the bag. The airline cancels your flight from Vienna to London and rebooks you the next day. Your bag never arrives. Under EU261 you can claim care costs and possibly €250 compensation. Separately, you claim the bag's contents under the Montreal Convention. For the bag, show what it held and what it was worth. Receipts, photos and bank records all help. The airline can raise defences, and its liability has a cap unless you made a special declaration of value at check-in. Report the missing bag at the airport and get a reference. Then claim in writing from the airline. Under Article 35, court action must start within two years. [Baggage compensation](/baggage-compensation) ## How long do you have to claim, and what do you need? EU261 sets no deadline of its own; the country decides, and a reform will change that. [All 20 questions on this topic](/faq/claim-deadlines). ### How long do I have to claim compensation for a delayed flight? It depends on the country where you bring the claim, because EU261 sets no time limit of its own. National limits run from one year in Poland to six years in England and Wales. Germany allows three years, the Netherlands two, and France and Spain five. Claim as soon as you can. A flight lands in Warsaw four hours late. If a Polish court would hear the claim, you have one year to bring it. Once that passes, the airline can refuse to pay on that ground alone. That is why the country matters so much. Regulation 261/2004 gives you the right to compensation but says nothing about how long it lasts. In Cuadrench Moré v KLM, the Court of Justice left that to each country's own limitation rules. So the deadline turns on which court could hear your claim. Those national limits vary widely. Poland allows one year. The Netherlands and Italy allow two years, and Italian courts read this as about 26 months. Germany, Austria and Portugal allow three years. France, Spain and Greece allow five. Ireland and England and Wales allow six, while Scotland allows five. Work from the shortest limit that might apply, and write to the airline early. A reform will change the picture later. The European Parliament approved it on 7 July 2026, and it should apply from the second half of 2027. It swaps the national limits for one EU-wide 9-month claim deadline. Until it applies, the current national limits stand. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ### Can I still claim compensation for a flight from 3 years ago? Often yes, but the country decides. A three-year-old flight can still be inside the limit in England and Wales and Ireland (six years). So can one in Scotland, France, Spain and Greece (five). It is outside the limit in Poland, the Netherlands and Italy. Germany's three years run to the end of the third year. An old flight is not lost by default. EU261 has no expiry date of its own. In Cuadrench Moré v KLM, the Court of Justice ruled that national limitation rules decide how old a claim can be. What matters is which country's limit applies to your flight. Germany counts in its own way. Under the German Civil Code, its three-year period starts at the end of the year of the flight. A flight delayed in December 2023 can therefore reach a German court until 31 December 2026. Poland sits at the other end, with only one year. Gather what still exists: the booking confirmation, any emails from the airline and the bank statement for the ticket. Then write to the airline that operated the flight. Give the flight number and date, and name the country whose limit you rely on. One change is on the way. The European Parliament voted through an EU261 reform on 7 July 2026, due to apply from the second half of 2027. A single EU-wide 9-month claim deadline will then replace the national limits. Until it applies, those national limits stand. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ### What is the time limit to claim flight delay compensation in the UK? In England and Wales you have six years from the flight to bring a UK261 claim, under section 5 of the Limitation Act 1980. Scotland allows five years. UK261, the UK's own version of the EU rules, pays £220, £350 or £520 depending on distance. A London to Faro flight arrives five hours late in October 2021. The distance falls between 1,500 and 3,500 km, so the UK amount is £350 per passenger. A couple on board could claim £700. In England, that claim can go to court until October 2027. The six years come from domestic law, not from UK261 itself. Since Brexit, UK261 keeps the shape of the EU rule inside UK law, but it sets no deadline. Section 5 of the Limitation Act 1980 fills the gap with six years in England and Wales. Scotland applies a five-year period. Do not leave it to the last month. Write first to the airline that operated the flight and keep a copy. If it refuses or goes silent, the UK Civil Aviation Authority publishes passenger guidance on delays and cancellations. Court stays a last option inside the six years. Being in time only means you may ask. The airline can still refuse if it proves extraordinary circumstances. [UK261 explained](/passenger-rights/uk261) ### How long do I have to claim flight compensation in Germany? Three years, counted from the end of the year. Germany's general limitation period, under sections 195 and 199 of the German Civil Code, starts at the end of the year of the flight. So a flight delayed in December 2023 can reach a German court until 31 December 2026. For instance, a Frankfurt to Lisbon flight lands four hours late in March 2024. It covers about 1,900 km inside the EU, so the airline owes €400 per passenger. The German clock starts on 31 December 2024 and stops on 31 December 2027. EU261 sets no deadline, so German law decides when a claim heard in Germany runs out. The Court of Justice confirmed this approach in Cuadrench Moré v KLM. The German Civil Code allows three years and starts counting at the end of the calendar year. Write to the airline that operated the flight well before the end date, and keep proof you sent it. A letter alone may not stop the clock. Court action has to begin before the period runs out. Allow months, not days, for the airline to answer and for you to file. The rules will change later. On 7 July 2026 the European Parliament approved an EU261 reform, which should apply from the second half of 2027. It brings one EU-wide 9-month claim deadline in place of the national limits. Until then, the current national limits stand. [Passenger rights in Germany](/passenger-rights/germany) ### Is it true you only have one year to claim flight compensation in Poland? Yes, for claims heard under Polish law. In resolution III CZP 111/16, the Polish Supreme Court applied the one-year period in article 778 of the Civil Code. That gives Poland the tightest major deadline in Europe. If a Polish court may hear your claim, act within months, not years. A Warsaw to Barcelona flight lands three and a half hours late in May 2026. It covers about 1,860 km inside the EU, so the airline owes €400 per passenger. Under Polish law, that claim runs out in May 2027. The short limit is national, because EU261 sets no deadline of its own. The Court of Justice confirmed this in Cuadrench Moré v KLM. Poland's Supreme Court then placed these claims under the one-year rule for carriage contracts in article 778 of the Civil Code. Some websites quote longer periods for Polish flights. Treat one year as the safe working figure whenever a Polish court could hear the case. Another country on the same route may allow longer, but check before you rely on that. Write to the airline that operated the flight straight away, and set a short reply date. A single 9-month EU deadline is coming, under the reform the European Parliament approved on 7 July 2026. It should apply from the second half of 2027. Until it applies, Poland's one year stands. [Passenger rights in Poland](/passenger-rights/poland) ### What is the deadline for flight compensation claims in the Netherlands and Italy? Two years in both countries. The Netherlands applies two years under article 8:1835 of the Dutch Civil Code. Italy uses two years as well, which Italian courts read as about 26 months. Both are short by European standards, so if you flew from Amsterdam or Rome, claim well inside that window. EU261 sets no deadline, and in Cuadrench Moré v KLM the Court of Justice left the question to national law. For claims from air carriage, the Dutch Civil Code allows two years. Italian law also uses two years, which Italian courts read as about 26 months. Put it in numbers: an Amsterdam to Rome flight lands three hours and twenty minutes late in November 2025. It covers about 1,300 km, so the airline owes €250 per passenger. A family of four could claim €1,000. Under Dutch law, the claim runs out in November 2027. Airlines sometimes argue for an even shorter period. Answer in writing and name the national rule that applies. Start your claim early, so a long exchange of letters does not use up the window. Both limits are due to go. A reform of EU261, approved by the European Parliament on 7 July 2026, should apply from the second half of 2027. It replaces the national limits with one EU-wide 9-month claim deadline. Until it applies, the current national limits stand. [Passenger rights in the Netherlands](/passenger-rights/netherlands) ### How long do I have to claim flight compensation in Spain, France or Ireland? Spain and France each allow five years, under article 1964 of the Spanish Civil Code and article 2224 of the French Civil Code. Ireland allows six years under the Statute of Limitations 1957. These are among the longest windows in Europe. Even so, the limit that counts is the one where your claim would go. Websites disagree on some of these figures, so check before you rely on one. A Paris to Madrid flight that landed four hours late in June 2022 shows how they work. It covers about 1,050 km, so the airline owes €250 per passenger. Under French law, that claim can go to court until June 2027. The figures come from national law. EU261 does not say how long a claim lasts, and the Court of Justice in Cuadrench Moré v KLM left that to each country. Spain and France apply their general five-year civil limits. Ireland applies the six-year limit in its Statute of Limitations 1957. A long limit does not make an old claim easy. Evidence fades, and airlines take time to reply. Write now to the airline that operated the flight, with your booking reference and flight details. These long windows are set to shrink. The European Parliament approved an EU261 reform on 7 July 2026, expected to apply from the second half of 2027. One EU-wide 9-month claim deadline will then replace the national limits. Until it applies, the current national limits stand. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ### Which country's time limit applies to my flight compensation claim? The limit of the country whose courts hear the claim. EU261 sets none, so in Cuadrench Moré v KLM the Court of Justice left it to national law. On a route between two countries, you may have a choice of courts. Each one brings its own deadline. Two steps answer this. First, find which courts could hear your case. Second, read that country's limit. Regulation 261/2004 sets the amounts but not the deadline. The Court of Justice ruled in Cuadrench Moré v KLM that national limitation rules apply. Courts usually look at where the flight left or landed, and sometimes at where the airline has its base. Imagine an Amsterdam to Paris flight that arrives three hours late. The Netherlands allows two years and France allows five. If both courts can hear the claim, the French limit gives you more time. Still, check the shortest limit that might apply before you relax. A consumer advice centre in either country can tell you which courts fit your route. Whichever court you may end up in, write early to the airline that operated the flight. Most of this question will go away once the EU261 reform applies. The European Parliament approved it on 7 July 2026, and it should apply from the second half of 2027. It sets one EU-wide 9-month claim deadline in place of the national limits. Until it applies, the current national limits stand. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ### Will the new EU261 rules give me only 9 months to claim? Yes, once the reform applies. The European Parliament approved it on 7 July 2026, and it should apply from the second half of 2027. One EU-wide 9-month claim deadline will replace the national limits. Until then the current rules stand, with limits from one year in Poland to six in England and Wales. Today's Regulation 261/2004 sets no deadline at all. Under Cuadrench Moré v KLM, national law decides, so the window depends on the country. The reform approved by the European Parliament on 7 July 2026 swaps that patchwork for a single 9-month deadline. The gap can be large. A passenger whose claim goes to a Spanish court has five years under today's rules. Under the reform, the same passenger would have nine months. For a Polish claim, nine months is also shorter than today's one year. Two other changes come with it. The airline gets a 30-day deadline to pay or give a specific reason for refusing. It also takes on a 96-hour duty to tell passengers their rights. All of this should apply from the second half of 2027. Until the reform applies, the current national limits stand. If you have an older claim, do not assume you can wait. Write to the airline that operated the flight now. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ### Do the new EU261 rules already apply to my delayed flight? Not yet. The European Parliament approved the reform on 7 July 2026, but it should only apply from the second half of 2027. Until then Regulation 261/2004 stands as it is, with the same compensation amounts, the same three-hour arrival-delay threshold and the current national claim deadlines. A worked case: a Rome to Brussels flight lands three and a half hours late in October 2026. It covers about 1,170 km, so under today's rules the airline owes €250 per passenger. The deadline for the claim comes from national law, not from the reform. Every flight today still falls under the current regulation. In Sturgeon and Nelson, the Court of Justice held that an arrival delay of three hours or more can trigger fixed compensation. The airline can still refuse if it proves extraordinary circumstances. Once the reform applies, three changes matter to you. The airline will have 30 days to pay or give a specific reason. It will have a 96-hour duty to tell passengers their rights. And a single EU-wide 9-month claim deadline will replace the national limits. So claim under the current rules now, rather than holding back for the reform. The national deadline for your flight keeps running in the meantime. In Poland it is only one year. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ### Can I still claim flight compensation if I lost my boarding pass? Usually yes. EU261 asks for a confirmed reservation and that you present yourself for check-in on time, not for a boarding pass as such. A booking confirmation, e-ticket receipt, airline emails or a bank statement for the ticket can show you held a seat. Send whatever proof you have with your claim. Imagine a family of four on a Manchester to Tenerife flight that lands four hours late. The distance falls between 1,500 and 3,500 km, so under UK261 the airline owes £350 each, or £1,400 in total. One booking confirmation that lists all four names supports all four claims. Article 3(2) of Regulation 261/2004 sets two conditions for a delay claim. You need a confirmed reservation, and you must present yourself for check-in on time. A cancellation claim drops the check-in condition altogether. A boarding pass proves this well, but other papers can do the same job. Your booking confirmation shows the reservation. Airline emails about the delay show the airline knew you were travelling. A bank or card statement ties you to the ticket. You can also request that the airline confirm your check-in from its own records. Keep screenshots of the airline app or any check-in email. Then send the claim with every piece of proof you still have. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ### What documents do I need to claim flight delay compensation? You need proof of a confirmed booking, the flight number and date, and every passenger's name. A booking confirmation or e-ticket covers the booking, and a boarding pass helps if you kept it. Add any airline messages about the delay, plus receipts for meals, hotels or transport you paid for. Your papers should show the two things Article 3(2) of Regulation 261/2004 asks for: a confirmed reservation and timely check-in. A booking confirmation proves the reservation. A boarding pass, check-in email or app screenshot shows you turned up. A couple flies Berlin to Athens and lands three hours and forty minutes late. The route covers about 1,800 km inside the EU, so the airline owes €400 each, or €800 together. Their receipt for an airport dinner supports a separate claim for care costs under Article 9. Missed a connection? Include the single booking that covers both flights. Under Air France v Folkerts, the delay counts at your final destination on a single reservation. Note the time you got off the aircraft, since arrival means when a door opens. Send copies, not originals, and keep a full set yourself. Put the booking reference in the subject line so the airline can match the papers. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ### Where do I find my booking reference for a flight compensation claim? It is the code of letters and numbers, usually six characters, on your booking confirmation email or e-ticket. Airlines call it the booking reference, PNR or confirmation code. Put it in your claim's subject line, with the flight number and date, so the airline can find your reservation. Check the confirmation email, the airline app or the e-ticket receipt first. Booked through a travel agent? The agent may show its own reference. Get the airline's reference from the agent too, because the airline cannot search the agent's system. The airline uses that code to find your reservation. It also helps prove the confirmed reservation that Article 3(2) of Regulation 261/2004 requires. Without it, the airline may ask for more proof before it looks at your claim. One reference can also show that two flights formed a single booking. For instance, you might fly Dublin to Singapore via Frankfurt on one reference. Under Wegener and the Commission's 2024 guidelines, the delay can count at Singapore. That journey covers over 3,500 km, so the airline owes up to €600 per passenger. Lost the code? Search your inbox for the airline's name and the travel date. The airline can also find the booking from your name, flight number and date. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ### How do I write a compensation claim letter to an airline? Keep it short and factual. Give the booking reference, flight number, date, route and every passenger's name. Say what happened and when you reached your final destination. Cite Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 and state the amount per passenger. Add your bank details and set a reply deadline, such as 28 days. Send it to the airline that operated the flight, not one that only sold the ticket. If it has an online claim form, use it and attach the same facts. Put the booking reference and flight details in the subject line. Two or three sentences are enough to describe what happened. Give the scheduled arrival time and the time a door opened at your final destination. Then cite Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 for compensation, and Article 9 for care costs. Put it in numbers: a Brussels to Lisbon flight on 3 May 2026 arrives 3 hours 40 minutes late. It covers about 1,700 km inside the EU, so the airline owes €400 per passenger. A letter for two passengers would ask for €800, plus any meal receipts. Keep a copy and proof that you sent it. The claim costs nothing to make, so do not pay anyone to send this letter. If no answer comes by your date, send one reminder before you escalate. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ### Can I claim EU261 compensation myself without paying anyone? Yes. The right is yours, and you can claim directly from the airline that operated the flight at no cost. Use its claim form, or write to it with the booking reference, flight details and the amount Regulation 261/2004 sets. You pay nothing unless you choose outside help or go to court. Regulation 261/2004 puts the duty to pay on the operating air carrier. You can reach it yourself, through its online form or by letter. Nothing in the regulation requires a lawyer or any other go-between. A Stockholm to Rome flight is cancelled three days before departure. The airline offers no rerouting that leaves within one hour of the original time and arrives within two hours. The route covers about 1,980 km inside the EU, so the airline owes €400 per passenger. You claim that full amount from the airline. Set out the facts in writing and attach your booking confirmation. Name Article 5 for the cancellation and Article 7 for the amount. Give a reply date and keep copies of everything you send. A refusal does not end it. Many countries run free complaint routes through a national enforcement body or a dispute scheme. Court is the final step, and it may carry a fee. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ### How long does an airline have to reply to a compensation claim? Today, EU261 sets no fixed reply deadline for compensation claims, so set your own in your letter, such as 28 days. That will change under the reform the European Parliament approved on 7 July 2026. From the second half of 2027, the airline should have 30 days to pay or give a specific reason. Regulation 261/2004 fixes the amounts but not how fast the airline must answer a compensation claim. A ticket refund works differently. When you choose reimbursement after a cancellation, Articles 7(3) and 8 require payment within seven days. For compensation, build your own timetable. Imagine you send a claim on 1 June for a three-hour delay on a 1,200 km flight. The airline owes €250 per passenger if no extraordinary circumstances apply. You ask for a reply by 29 June. If you hear nothing, you remind the airline and then escalate in July. Diary the reply date. A reminder should quote your first message and set a final date. Watch the national limit while you wait, because a slow reply does not stop the clock in every country. A fixed reply time is on its way. The reform will add a 30-day deadline for the airline to pay or give a specific reason. Until it applies, the current rules stand. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ### What can I do if the airline ignores my compensation claim? Send one written reminder that quotes your first claim and sets a final date. If the airline stays silent, use an approved dispute-resolution scheme if it belongs to one. If not, go to the national body that enforces passenger rights. Court remains the last option, inside your country's limitation period. Silence is not a refusal, but it eats into your time. Log every message with its date. In the reminder, quote your booking reference, your first claim and the amount under Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004. Keep an eye on the calendar. If a Polish court could hear your claim, the limit is one year. An airline that ignores you for six months leaves you six months to start court action. In England and Wales the limit is six years, but evidence still fades. When the reminder fails, take it outside the airline. Some airlines take part in out-of-court dispute schemes. Each EU country also has a body that enforces air passenger rights. In the UK, the Civil Aviation Authority publishes guidance on what to do next. Court is the final step. Cuadrench Moré v KLM leaves the deadline to national law, so file before your country's limit ends. Bring your letters as proof that you tried to settle first. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ### Can I complain to the CAA if a UK airline refuses my compensation claim? The UK Civil Aviation Authority publishes guidance for passengers whose delay or cancellation claims go wrong. Complain to the airline first. If it refuses or stays silent, your next step depends on whether the airline belongs to an approved dispute-resolution scheme. The CAA's guidance on delays and cancellations explains which route fits your airline. Two passengers on an Edinburgh to Rome flight land four hours late. The distance falls between 1,500 and 3,500 km, so the airline owes £350 each, or £700. In Scotland the court deadline is five years; in England and Wales it is six. The airline can still refuse if it proves extraordinary circumstances. Their rights come from UK261, the UK's retained version of Regulation 261/2004. It keeps compensation, care, refund and rerouting rights, with amounts in pounds. The CAA sets out those rights in its passenger guidance on delays and cancellations. The first claim goes to the airline that operated the flight. Include the booking reference, flight details and the amount. Keep its reply, because any later complaint will need it. If the airline refuses, check whether it belongs to a dispute-resolution scheme, which reviews the case outside court. If it does not, the CAA's guidance explains how to raise the complaint instead. Either way, send your claim, the airline's answer and your booking confirmation. [UK261 explained](/passenger-rights/uk261) ### Who do I complain to in the EU if an airline refuses to pay EU261 compensation? Complain to the national body that enforces air passenger rights in the country where the problem happened. Some countries also run out-of-court dispute schemes for airline complaints. These routes cost nothing to use but can take months, so keep your country's court deadline in view while you wait. Every EU country has a public body that checks airlines follow Regulation 261/2004. Use the one in the country where the problem happened, which is usually where the flight left. Its website explains how to file and what to attach. For instance, a Madrid to Frankfurt flight lands three and a half hours late. It covers about 1,420 km, so the airline owes €250 per passenger. If the airline refuses, the Spanish enforcement body is the natural place to complain. Meanwhile, Spain's five-year limit keeps running. Send the complete file: your claim, the airline's reply, the booking confirmation and any receipts. Keep the complaint short and name Article 7 for compensation. A consumer advice centre can help with cross-border cases. Airlines will face a firmer timetable later. Under the reform approved on 7 July 2026, they get a 30-day deadline to pay or give a specific reason. It should apply from the second half of 2027. Until it applies, the current rules stand. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ### Can I take an airline to small claims court for EU261 compensation? Yes. If the airline refuses or ignores a valid claim, you can sue it for the fixed amount. Many countries offer a simplified procedure for low-value claims. Start the case before the national limitation period ends, for example within six years in England and Wales or one year in Poland. Three passengers on a Manchester to Málaga flight land five hours late. The distance falls between 1,500 and 3,500 km, so under UK261 the airline owes £350 each, or £1,050. In England, that claim can go to court for six years after the flight. Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 fixes the amount, so the court does not need to value your loss. It only decides whether the rules apply and whether the airline has a defence. If the airline relies on extraordinary circumstances, it must prove them. Before you file, check which court can hear the case. Courts usually look at where the flight left or landed, and sometimes at where the airline has its base. Under Cuadrench Moré v KLM, each court brings its own deadline. Bring your letters, the booking confirmation and the airline's refusal. Courts expect you to have tried to settle first. Court fees vary by country, so check them before you start. [Claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) ## Which rules apply outside the EU? The UK, Israel and Canada have their own compensation laws; the US and most other countries do not. [All 20 questions on this topic](/faq/uk-israel-canada). ### Does UK261 still apply after Brexit, and is it the same as EU261? Yes. The UK kept the EU rules as its own law, known as UK261. It works much like EU261, with the same three-hour delay test and distance bands, but it pays in pounds: £220, £350 or £520. It covers flights from UK airports, and flights into the UK on UK or EU airlines. After Brexit, the UK copied Regulation 261/2004 into its own law, and airlines and lawyers call this version UK261. You keep the rights you knew: compensation, meals and drinks, hotels, refunds and rebooking. The Civil Aviation Authority still sets these rights out in its passenger guidance. Article 7 of the UK's retained version sets the amounts on the same distance bands as the EU rules. A flight up to 1,500 km pays £220. A flight between 1,500 and 3,500 km pays £350. A longer flight pays £520, or £260 when it lands three to four hours late. A London to New York flight lands five hours late because of a crew shortage. The route covers about 5,540 km, so the airline owes you £520. The two systems are now separate laws, so keep them apart in your letter. Name UK261 for a flight from a UK airport, and EU261 for a flight from an EU airport. In England and Wales you generally have six years to go to court, and five in Scotland. Write first to the airline that operated the flight. Keep your booking, boarding pass and any messages about the delay. [UK261 explained](/passenger-rights/uk261) ### If I fly London to Paris is it UK261 or EU261, and what about Paris to London? It depends on where you take off. London to Paris falls under UK261 because it leaves a UK airport, whatever the airline. Paris to London falls under EU261 because it leaves an EU airport. A UK or EU airline can bring the Paris flight under UK261 too, but you claim once, not twice. Put it in numbers: a London to Paris hop of about 347 km lands three and a half hours late after a maintenance problem. Under UK261, the airline owes you £220. Your Paris to London return lands just as late for the same reason. That flight falls under EU261, so the airline owes you €250. The split follows one shared rule in Article 3 of Regulation 261/2004 and of the UK's retained version: the departure airport decides. UK261 covers every flight that leaves a UK airport. EU261 covers every flight that leaves an EU airport. For departures, the airline's nationality does not matter. Flights into the UK add one twist. UK261 also reaches a flight from the EU into the UK when a UK or EU airline operates it. EU261 already covers that Paris departure, so the two rules overlap. The UK rule steps aside when you already received compensation and care under the EU rule. So pick the regime that fits your departure airport, and claim under it once. Write to the airline that operated the flight and name the right regulation. [UK261 explained](/passenger-rights/uk261) ### Is my New York to London flight covered by UK261 if American Airlines operates it instead of British Airways? Usually not on American. UK261 covers a flight into the UK from outside only when a UK or EU airline operates it. A British Airways-operated flight from New York to London qualifies. An American Airlines-operated one does not, even on a BA ticket. Your return from London qualifies on either airline. Check your booking for the words “operated by”. Under Article 3 of the UK's retained Regulation 261/2004, the operating airline decides whether a flight into the UK is covered. The airline that sold you the ticket does not. UK261 treats flights into the UK differently from flights out of it. Any flight leaving a UK airport qualifies. A flight arriving from outside qualifies only when a UK or EU airline operates it. A worked case: British Airways operates your New York to London flight. A technical problem with the aircraft makes it land four hours late. The route covers about 5,540 km, so under Article 7 British Airways owes you £520. Put the same delay on an American Airlines-operated flight, and UK261 gives you nothing. The return leg from London is a separate flight, covered on either airline. Without UK261, the Montreal Convention may still help with costs you can prove. That treaty pays actual losses, not a fixed sum. US federal rules do not add cash compensation for a delay. Claim from the operating airline in writing, and keep receipts for meals or hotels. [UK261 explained](/passenger-rights/uk261) ### Does the US have a law like EU261 that pays compensation for delayed flights? No. No US federal law makes airlines pay a fixed sum for a delayed flight. US rules mainly protect your money. When the airline cancels or significantly changes your flight and you choose not to travel, you can ask for a refund. Meal vouchers or hotels for delays come from each airline's own policy. A US trip can still fall under European rules. Article 3 of Regulation 261/2004 brings in every flight that leaves an EU airport, on any airline. Imagine flying Paris to New York on a US airline. A fault found during the pre-flight checks makes you land five hours late. The route covers about 5,830 km, so the airline owes you €600. The other direction is narrower. A flight from the US into the EU qualifies only when an EU airline operates it. At home, the US takes a different route. EU261 sets fixed cash amounts for long delays, cancellations and denied boarding. US federal rules focus on refunds, not compensation, for the delay itself. Extras for a late flight, such as meal vouchers, depend on the airline's own commitments. On an international trip, Article 19 of the Montreal Convention can also cover losses you can prove, such as a hotel night you lost. It pays actual damage, not a fixed sum, and the airline can defend itself. Check where your flight departed and who operated it. Then write to the airline and name the rule that fits. [US passenger rights](/passenger-rights/united-states) ### Can I claim EU261 from United or Delta for a delayed flight from Europe to the US? Yes. EU261 covers every flight that departs an EU airport, whatever the airline's nationality. A United or Delta flight from Paris, Frankfurt or Amsterdam to the US qualifies. If you reach your destination three hours or more late for a reason within the airline's control, it can owe you up to €600. The departure airport decides EU261's reach, not the airline's home country. A US airline leaving Amsterdam owes you the same as KLM would. The delay counts at your final destination, measured when the doors open. United flies you from Amsterdam to Chicago, about 6,610 km. Your aircraft arrives late, held up by an earlier fault, and you land five hours late. United owes you €600 under Article 7. Land between three and four hours late, and the airline may halve it to €300. Bad weather or air traffic control limits can excuse the airline. It must prove the cause and that it took all reasonable measures. Write to the airline's claims team, cite Articles 3(1)(a) and 7 of Regulation 261/2004, and ask for cash. The airline can pay in vouchers only with your signed agreement. Your deadline depends on the country where you claim: two years in the Netherlands and five in France, for example. The EU approved a reform on 7 July 2026 with a single nine-month deadline. It is expected to apply from the second half of 2027. Until then, the national limits stand. [US passenger rights](/passenger-rights/united-states) ### Can non-EU citizens like Americans or Israelis claim EU261 compensation? Yes. EU261 looks at the flight, not your passport. Article 3 sets its scope by the departure airport and the operating airline. On a qualifying flight, an American, Canadian or Israeli passenger has the same rights as an EU citizen. That includes compensation of €250 to €600 by distance. Article 3 of Regulation 261/2004 never asks about nationality. The test is the flight. A flight that departs an EU airport qualifies on any airline. A flight into the EU qualifies when an EU airline operates it. You also need a confirmed booking and an on-time check-in, unless the airline cancelled. An Israeli passenger flies El Al from Frankfurt to Tel Aviv, about 2,950 km. A technical problem with the aircraft makes the flight land four hours late. The flight left an EU airport, so El Al owes that passenger €400, the same as any German on board. Israel's Aviation Services Law may also reach that flight, because it lands in Israel. That law has its own thresholds and amounts. Do not assume one law's answer carries over to the other. Claim from the operating airline in writing and cite Articles 3 and 7 of Regulation 261/2004. Point out that your nationality plays no part in the scope test. Keep your boarding pass and booking confirmation. [EU261 explained](/passenger-rights/eu261) ### Does EU261 cover a delayed Emirates flight from Dubai to Europe? Not when the flight starts in Dubai. Emirates is not an EU airline, so EU261 does not reach its flights from Dubai into Europe. Nor does UK261 reach its flights into the UK. Emirates flights leaving Europe or the UK do qualify. Booking the return with your outbound changes nothing. Imagine Emirates flies you from London to Dubai, about 5,500 km. A maintenance problem makes you land five hours late, so Emirates owes you £520 under UK261. Your Dubai to London return, also five hours late, earns nothing under UK261. The return counts as a separate flight, even on one ticket. The difference comes from Article 3 of Regulation 261/2004 and of the UK's retained version. Every departure from Europe qualifies. A flight into Europe qualifies only when a European airline operates it. For EU261 that means an EU airline, and for UK261 a UK or EU airline. Emirates is neither, so its flights from Dubai fall outside both. A delayed flight from Dubai is not always a dead end. The Montreal Convention lets you claim losses you can prove, such as a hotel night you paid for and missed. It pays actual damage, not a fixed sum. A trip that began in Europe and connected in Dubai follows another rule, measured at the final destination. Whatever the route, keep receipts and write to Emirates. [Full answer](/faq/uk-israel-canada#does-eu261-cover-a-delayed-emirates-flight-from-dubai-to-europe) ### Does EU261 apply to flights from Switzerland, Norway or Iceland? In general, yes. Norway and Iceland apply EU261 as members of the European Economic Area, and Switzerland applies it through its air transport agreement with the EU. A departure from Oslo, Reykjavík or Zurich counts like an EU departure. Some Swiss airlines have resisted delay claims, so expect pushback. EU261 reaches beyond the 27 EU countries. Flights leaving Norway, Iceland and Switzerland follow the same rules, on any airline. The same distance bands set the amount, and the same three-hour test applies to delays. For instance, a Zurich to London flight of about 790 km lands three and a half hours late after a crew shortage. The airline owes you €250 under EU261. A Reykjavík to London flight, about 1,900 km, would pay €400 for the same delay. Under UK261, a flight from London back to Zurich pays £220. Swiss delay claims draw the most disputes. Passengers report Swiss airlines arguing that no delay compensation is due for flights to and from Switzerland. Cancellations and denied boarding cause less argument. On a Swiss delay, expect to push your claim further. Start with the operating airline and cite Articles 6 and 7 of Regulation 261/2004. If it refuses, the national enforcement body in that country can review the complaint. Keep your booking and the arrival time. [Swiss passenger rights](/passenger-rights/swiss) ### Does EU261 apply to Turkish Airlines flights from Istanbul to Europe? Not on a flight that starts in Istanbul. Turkey sits outside the EU, and Turkish Airlines is not an EU airline, so its flights from Istanbul into Europe fall outside EU261. Its flights leaving EU airports qualify, and UK departures fall under UK261. Turkey's own passenger rules are a separate system. Article 3 of Regulation 261/2004 covers every flight from an EU airport, but flights into the EU only on an EU airline. So Turkish Airlines owes EU261 compensation on the way out of Europe, not on the way back. Put it in numbers: Turkish Airlines flies you from Frankfurt to Istanbul, about 1,840 km. A technical problem with the aircraft makes you land three and a half hours late, so the airline owes you €400. Your Istanbul to Frankfurt return on Turkish Airlines lands just as late, and EU261 gives you nothing. Had Lufthansa operated that return, EU261 would apply, because Lufthansa is an EU airline. UK passengers follow the same logic. A London to Istanbul flight, about 2,490 km, pays £350 under UK261 for a three-hour late arrival within the airline's control. On a flight from Istanbul, find out what Turkish rules offer and keep receipts for any costs. The Montreal Convention can cover losses you can prove on an international trip. Claim cash, not miles. Under EU261, the airline needs your signed agreement to pay in vouchers. [Full answer](/faq/uk-israel-canada#does-eu261-apply-to-turkish-airlines-flights-from-istanbul-to-europe) ### How much compensation do I get for a cancelled flight to or from Israel? Israel's Aviation Services Law sets fixed amounts by distance. It pays about ₪1,490 up to 2,000 km, about ₪2,390 for 2,000 to 4,500 km, and about ₪3,580 beyond that. The law ties the figures to the consumer price index, so check the current official amount. A long enough delay counts as a cancellation. The Aviation Services Law covers flights that depart from or arrive in Israel, on Israeli and foreign airlines alike. It has its own rules, separate from EU261's. A delay earns fixed compensation only once the law treats it as a cancellation. The EU three-hour test does not carry over. Distance sets the amount. Imagine the airline cancels your Tel Aviv to New York flight, about 9,120 km, at short notice. If the law does not exempt the reason, the airline owes you about ₪3,580. A Frankfurt to Tel Aviv flight, about 2,950 km, falls in the middle band at about ₪2,390. Indexing moves the numbers, so read the current official figure for your flight date. The exemptions differ from EU case law, too. A reason that excuses an airline under EU261 does not automatically excuse it in Israel, and the reverse holds as well. Write to the operating airline and cite the Aviation Services Law, 5772-2012. You have four years to claim under Israeli law. Keep your booking and any cancellation messages. [Full answer](/faq/uk-israel-canada#how-much-compensation-do-i-get-for-a-cancelled-flight-to-or-from-israe) ### How many hours does a flight have to be delayed before El Al pays compensation under Israeli law? Israel's Aviation Services Law does not use the EU's three-hour rule. It sets its own, longer delay thresholds. Fixed compensation becomes due only once a delay is long enough to count as a cancellation. Read the current statutory text for your flight date before you claim, because EU logic does not carry across. Israeli and European rules are easy to mix up. EU261 pays fixed compensation from a three-hour late arrival. Israel's law instead treats a long enough delay as a cancellation and pays on that basis. A shorter delay can still bring other duties under the law, but not the fixed sum. The flight's direction can change your options. A worked case: El Al flies you from Frankfurt to Tel Aviv, about 2,950 km. A late aircraft, held up by an earlier fault, gets you in four hours late. The flight left an EU airport, so EU261 applies and El Al owes you €400. That holds even if the delay falls short of Israel's threshold. On El Al's Tel Aviv to Frankfurt flight, only Israeli law applies, because El Al is not an EU airline. Israel's exemptions differ from EU case law as well. Do not copy an EU answer into an Israeli claim. Before you write to El Al, check the current text of the Aviation Services Law, 5772-2012, and the Civil Aviation Authority's guidance. Give your flight, date and arrival time. Israeli law gives you four years to claim. [Full answer](/faq/uk-israel-canada#how-many-hours-does-a-flight-have-to-be-delayed-before-el-al-pays-comp) ### Does EU261 apply to El Al flights between Europe and Tel Aviv? Only on flights that leave Europe. EU261 covers every flight that departs an EU airport, so El Al's Paris to Tel Aviv flight qualifies. El Al's Tel Aviv to Paris flight does not, because El Al is not an EU airline. Israel's Aviation Services Law covers both directions, under its own rules. Two laws can reach the same route. Article 3 of Regulation 261/2004 looks at the departure airport and, for flights into Europe, at the operating airline. Israel's Aviation Services Law, 5772-2012, covers flights that depart from or arrive in Israel, whatever the airline. For instance, El Al flies you from Paris to Tel Aviv, about 3,280 km. An engineering fault on the aircraft makes you land three and a half hours late, so El Al owes you €400 under EU261. On the Tel Aviv to Paris return, EU261 does not apply to El Al. Had Air France operated that return, it would, because Air France is an EU airline. Israeli law applies to all three flights, but only once a delay passes its own, longer threshold. Your passport plays no part in the EU test. An Israeli on El Al from Paris has the same EU rights as a French passenger. Pick the law that fits your flight, and cite it in your letter. [Full answer](/faq/uk-israel-canada#does-eu261-apply-to-el-al-flights-between-europe-and-tel-aviv) ### How do I claim compensation from a foreign airline like United under Israel's Aviation Services Law, and how long do I have? Write to the airline that operated the flight, name the Aviation Services Law, and give the flight, date and what happened. The law covers foreign airlines on flights to and from Israel too. Israeli law gives you four years to claim. The amounts follow the consumer price index, so quote the current official figure. The Aviation Services Law, 5772-2012, applies to flights that depart from or arrive in Israel. It does not ask whether the airline is Israeli. A US or European airline on a Tel Aviv route answers to it just as El Al does. United cancels your Newark to Tel Aviv flight, about 9,140 km, at short notice for a reason the law does not exempt. The flight falls in the top band, so United owes you about ₪3,580. Indexing changes the figure, so check it for your flight date. A long enough delay can count as a cancellation, but under the law's own thresholds, not the EU's three hours. Make the claim in writing. Give your booking reference, flight number, date, route and what the airline told you. Ask to be paid in money, and keep copies of everything you send and receive. You have four years under Israeli law to bring the claim. Leave EU arguments about extraordinary circumstances out of it, because Israel's exemption rules differ. [Full answer](/faq/uk-israel-canada#how-do-i-claim-compensation-from-a-foreign-airline-like-united-under-i) ### How much compensation can I get for a delayed flight in Canada? Under Canada's APPR, a large airline owes CA$400 for a three to six hour late arrival. It owes CA$700 for six to nine hours and CA$1,000 for nine hours or more. That applies only when the delay was within its control and not required for safety. Small airlines pay less. Air Canada flies you from Toronto to Vancouver, and a crew scheduling problem makes you land seven hours late. Crew scheduling sits within the airline's control. As a large carrier, Air Canada owes you CA$700. Land ten hours late, and the figure rises to CA$1,000. That follows from how the Air Passenger Protection Regulations work. They cover flights to, from and within Canada, and they sort every disruption into three groups. A disruption is within the airline's control, within its control but required for safety, or outside its control. Only the first group earns compensation. The amount depends on how late you reach your final destination. Denied boarding pays more. A large airline that bumps you owes CA$900 if you arrive less than six hours late. The figure is CA$1,800 for six to nine hours, and CA$2,400 for nine hours or more. Send your request to the airline within one year. If it refuses, you can complain to the Canadian Transportation Agency. You will find these rules in sections 19 and 20 of the Air Passenger Protection Regulations. [Full answer](/faq/uk-israel-canada#how-much-compensation-can-i-get-for-a-delayed-flight-in-canada) ### Air Canada denied my claim saying the delay was for safety reasons – can I still get compensation? Possibly. Under APPR, a delay within the airline's control but required for safety pays no compensation, so the label matters. You can challenge it. Ask the airline in writing for the specific cause. If you disagree with how it classed the delay, complain to the Canadian Transportation Agency. The airline's label is the whole case. Canada's rules put each disruption in one of three groups. It sits within the airline's control, within its control but required for safety, or outside its control. Only the first earns compensation. Your Air Canada flight reaches its final destination ten hours late. If the cause sat within the airline's control and safety did not require it, Air Canada owes you CA$1,000. If the airline shows that safety required the delay, it owes you no compensation. It still owes you rebooking, or a refund when the new flight no longer meets your needs. Passengers have pushed back on these labels. News reports describe Air Canada classing staff shortages as safety issues, and passenger advocates disputing that. Tribunals have asked airlines for the evidence behind the label. Reply to the refusal and request exactly what happened, and why safety required it. Cite sections 19 and 20 of the Air Passenger Protection Regulations. Keep your boarding pass and arrival time. The compensation request must go in within one year, and the Agency's complaint process runs separately. [Full answer](/faq/uk-israel-canada#air-canada-denied-my-claim-saying-the-delay-was-for-safety-reasons-can) ### How do I claim APPR compensation from an airline in Canada, and what is the deadline? Send a written compensation request to the airline within one year of the disruption. Give your booking, flight number and real arrival time. If the airline refuses or does not answer, you can complain to the Canadian Transportation Agency. That complaint process runs separately from your request to the airline. Section 19 of the Air Passenger Protection Regulations sets the amounts and a one-year limit for asking the airline for compensation. Start with the airline, not the regulator. Use its claim form or write to it, and keep a copy. Your request should name the flight, the date and your final destination, with your scheduled and real arrival times. A worked case: your WestJet flight from Calgary to Toronto reaches Toronto six and a half hours late. The cause lay within the airline's control. As a large carrier, WestJet owes you CA$700. Quote that figure and ask for payment in money. If the airline refuses, have it explain the cause in writing. You can then file a complaint with the Canadian Transportation Agency. Some passengers also take APPR claims to a provincial small-claims body, such as British Columbia's Civil Resolution Tribunal. Keep every email, boarding pass and receipt. Whichever route you take, you will need them to show what happened and when. [Full answer](/faq/uk-israel-canada#how-do-i-claim-appr-compensation-from-an-airline-in-canada-and-what-is) ### My Air Canada flight from Europe was delayed – do I claim under EU261 or APPR? Both rules can reach that flight. EU261 covers every flight leaving an EU airport, on any airline, and APPR covers flights to Canada. Compare them first. On a long flight from Europe landing five hours late, EU261 pays €600, while APPR pays CA$400. The excuses each rule accepts also differ. An Air Canada flight from Frankfurt to Toronto meets both tests. EU261 looks at the departure airport. APPR looks at whether the flight goes to, from or within Canada. That route covers about 6,340 km. A routine technical fault makes you land five hours late. Under EU261, a routine technical problem generally counts as the airline's own issue, so Air Canada owes you €600. Under APPR, the same delay pays CA$400 if it sat within the airline's control and safety did not require it. APPR may class a mechanical fault as required for safety, which pays nothing. The deadlines differ too. APPR gives you one year to ask the airline. Under EU261 the national limit applies, such as three years in Germany, ending on 31 December. The EU approved a reform on 7 July 2026 that sets a single nine-month deadline, expected from the second half of 2027. Until then, the national limits stand. Pick the stronger claim and name the rule in your letter: Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004, or section 19 of the APPR. Do not expect the airline to pay you twice for one delay. [Full answer](/faq/uk-israel-canada#my-air-canada-flight-from-europe-was-delayed-do-i-claim-under-eu261-or) ### Can I get compensation under the Montreal Convention for a delayed flight? Yes, but only for losses you can prove. The Montreal Convention does not pay a fixed sum like EU261. It lets you claim damage the delay caused, such as a lost hotel night or extra meals. A limit set in Special Drawing Rights caps the claim. The airline escapes liability if it took all reasonable measures. A non-EU airline flies you from Bangkok to Frankfurt, about 9,000 km, and you land ten hours late. EU261 does not apply, because the flight started outside the EU on a non-EU airline. You missed a prepaid hotel night and bought two meals. With receipts, you can claim those costs under the Montreal Convention. You cannot claim a fixed €600 on top. The Montreal Convention is a treaty that covers most international flights. Article 19 makes the airline liable for damage caused by delay. Article 22 caps that liability in Special Drawing Rights, an IMF unit of account. You must show what you lost and that the delay caused it. The airline has a defence. It avoids liability if it proves it took all reasonable measures to avoid the damage, or that it could not. You also have to keep your losses reasonable. Collect receipts and send the airline a list of your costs. If it refuses, you must start a court action within two years, counted under Article 35. Your claim rests on Articles 19, 22 and 35 of the Montreal Convention 1999. [Montreal Convention](/passenger-rights/montreal-convention) ### Does EU261 apply to an EU airline flying between two countries outside the EU? No, not on its own. EU261 covers flights departing the EU, and flights into the EU on an EU airline. A flight that both departs and lands outside the EU falls under neither, even when an EU airline operates it. The exception is a leg that is part of one booking that started in the EU. Article 3(1) of Regulation 261/2004 has two branches. One covers every departure from an EU airport. The other covers arrivals at an EU airport from abroad, when an EU carrier operates the flight. An EU airline's flight between two foreign airports meets neither, so the airline's nationality alone does not bring EU261 in. Take a separate ticket from Bogotá to Lima, about 1,888 km, on an EU airline. It lands five hours late after a maintenance problem. EU261 gives no fixed sum, because the flight never touches the EU. Local passenger rules or the Montreal Convention may still help with costs you can prove. A single booking from Europe changes the picture. Suppose you booked Madrid to Lima via Bogotá as one reservation, with the same EU airline on both legs. The delay and the distance are then assessed at the final destination. Madrid to Lima is about 9,526 km, so arriving in Lima four hours late gives €600 per passenger. Check your booking confirmation first. If both flights share one booking reference and the trip began in the EU, claim from the operating airline under EU261. If you bought the foreign leg on its own, look to the passenger rules of the country you flew from. [Full answer](/faq/uk-israel-canada#does-eu261-apply-to-an-eu-airline-flying-between-two-countries-outside) ### Is a delayed flight from Belfast covered by UK261 or EU261? UK261. Belfast's airports are in the UK. Every flight departing Belfast falls under the UK rules, whatever the airline, with compensation in pounds. EU261 comes in for the flight back from an EU airport. If you cross the border and fly from Dublin, EU261 covers that departure instead. The UK's retained version of Regulation 261/2004 covers passengers departing from any UK airport. Northern Ireland is part of the UK for this purpose. Belfast International and Belfast City count just like London or Manchester. The amounts are £220, £350 and £520 by distance. Take Belfast International to Malaga, about 2,004 km. The flight lands four hours late after a fault found during the pre-flight checks. The airline owes £350 per passenger under UK261. Coming home, Malaga to Belfast departs an EU airport, so EU261 applies and the same delay is worth €400. Plenty of people in Northern Ireland fly from Dublin instead. Dublin to Malaga is about 1,867 km and departs an EU airport. A three-hour late arrival in Malaga gives €400 under EU261, again on any airline. Claim from the airline that operated the flight. If it refuses a claim under the UK rules, the UK Civil Aviation Authority's guidance explains what you can do next. Expect to be paid once for one flight, so do not file under both regimes for the same disruption. [UK261 explained](/passenger-rights/uk261) ## How are these flight compensation questions answered? Each answer opens with the answer, then the condition that matters. The law comes from [Regulation (EC) No 261/2004](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2004/261/oj) and the judgments of the Court of Justice, named where they decide the point. The claim deadlines are the national limitation periods, which our [claim deadline checker](/claim-deadline) applies to a date. The rules will change. The European Parliament approved a reform of EU261 on 7 July 2026, expected to apply from the second half of 2027. Until it applies, the current rules stand. None of this is legal advice for your own case. To see whether your flight qualifies, [check it with our tool](/claim): it reads the flight's record and gives a first answer in a minute. The [EU261 guide](/passenger-rights/eu261) explains the law in more depth. ## Sources - Regulation (EC) No 261/2004: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2004/261/oj Read the page at https://flightcompensations.com/faq