Flight delay compensation in the EU: how to claim €250 to €600 in 2026

If your flight in Europe landed three hours late, was cancelled at short notice or left without you because it was overbooked, the airline probably owes you money. Under the EU’s air passenger rights rules, known as EU261, the amount is €250, €400 or €600 per passenger, depending on the distance. That is often more than the ticket cost.

Most people never claim their flight delay compensation. Airlines rarely volunteer the payment, the rules look complicated, and claim agencies advertise so heavily that many travellers assume they need one. You don’t. This guide explains who qualifies for flight delay compensation, how to claim it yourself, when an airline can legitimately refuse, and what the 2026 reform of the rules changes.

The short version

• You can claim €250 to €600 if your flight arrived at least three hours late, was cancelled less than 14 days before departure, or you were denied boarding.
• The flight must depart from an EU airport (any airline) or arrive in the EU on an EU airline. Iceland, Norway and Switzerland apply the same rules.
• The airline does not have to pay if the disruption was caused by extraordinary circumstances, such as severe weather or an air traffic control restriction. Most technical faults and strikes by the airline’s own staff do not count.
• You can claim directly from the airline for free. Agencies usually keep a large share of the payout.
• A reform agreed in 2026 keeps the three-hour rule and the same amounts, but it will not apply until around the second half of 2027.

Who is covered by EU261

The regulation, formally Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, covers two kinds of journey:

• flights departing from an airport in the EU, whatever the airline;
• flights arriving in the EU from outside, but only if the airline is based in the EU.

So a Lufthansa flight from New York to Frankfurt is covered, and so is a Delta flight from Frankfurt to New York. A Delta flight from New York to Frankfurt is not, because it arrives from outside the EU on a non-EU airline. Iceland, Norway and Switzerland apply the rules too.

The United Kingdom left EU261 when it left the EU and now has its own copy, often called UK261, with compensation of £220, £350 or £520. A flight from London to Madrid on an EU airline such as Iberia is covered by EU261, because it arrives in the EU on an EU carrier. The same flight on British Airways falls under the UK rules instead.

To qualify you need a confirmed booking, and you must have checked in on time. Where the airline sets no check-in deadline, the rules use 45 minutes before the published departure time. Passengers travelling free of charge, or on a reduced fare that is not available to the public, are excluded.

How much flight delay compensation you can claim

The amount depends on the distance of the flight, measured in a straight line between the departure airport and your final destination:

• **€250** for flights of 1,500 km or less;
• **€400** for flights within the EU of more than 1,500 km, and for other flights of 1,500 to 3,500 km;
• **€600** for all other flights, such as long-haul routes from the EU to Asia or North America.

Some examples: Berlin to Rome is about 1,180 km, so €250. Madrid to Helsinki is about 2,950 km and stays inside the EU, so €400. Frankfurt to New York is more than 6,000 km, so €600.

The money is per passenger, not per booking. A family of four on a delayed flight from Paris to Tenerife can claim four times €400.

There is one reduction to know about. If your flight was cancelled or you were denied boarding, and the airline rerouted you so that you arrived no more than two, three or four hours late (for the three distance bands respectively), it may cut the compensation by half.

If your journey had connections on a single booking, what matters is the delay at your final destination. A 40-minute delay on the first leg that makes you miss a connection and arrive four hours late qualifies in full.

Delays: how the EU261 three-hour rule works

The original text of EU261 only promised compensation for cancellations and denied boarding. In 2009 the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that passengers who reach their destination three hours or more late suffer the same loss and should be compensated in the same way. That ruling, in a case called Sturgeon, is why delays are covered today.

Three details trip people up:

• The delay is measured at **arrival**, not departure. A flight that leaves four hours late but makes up time and lands two hours and 50 minutes late does not qualify.
• Arrival means the moment at least one aircraft door opens and passengers can get off, not when the wheels touch the runway. The Court confirmed this in 2014. Twenty minutes waiting on the taxiway for a gate can make the difference.
• The whole journey on one booking counts. Separate tickets bought on your own are treated as separate journeys.

It is worth noting your actual arrival time yourself. A photo of your phone clock as the doors open is simple evidence if the airline’s records differ.

Cancellations and denied boarding under EU261

If the airline cancels your flight, you can always choose between a full refund, paid within seven days, and rerouting to your destination at the earliest opportunity or at a later date that suits you.

Whether you also get compensation depends on how much notice you were given:

• **14 days or more:** no compensation.
• **7 to 13 days:** compensation, unless the airline offered a new flight departing no more than two hours earlier and arriving less than four hours later than planned.
• **Less than 7 days:** compensation, unless the new flight departs no more than one hour earlier and arrives less than two hours later.

Denied boarding usually means overbooking. The airline must first ask for volunteers who give up their seats in exchange for benefits they agree with the airline. If you are refused boarding against your will, you are owed compensation straight away, plus the same choice of refund or rerouting.

One point that surprises people: a voucher is not payment. The airline can only compensate you with travel vouchers if you agree in writing. If a gate agent offers a voucher, you are free to say no and ask for money.

When the airline does not have to pay

An airline can refuse flight delay compensation if the disruption was caused by extraordinary circumstances that could not have been avoided even if it had taken all reasonable measures. The burden of proof is on the airline, not on you.

Events that usually count as extraordinary:

• severe weather that makes flying unsafe;
• air traffic control restrictions and strikes by air traffic controllers or airport staff;
• security risks and political instability;
• bird strikes, which the Court of Justice has treated as extraordinary;
• a problem of this kind on the aircraft’s previous flight that directly caused your delay.

Events that usually do not count:

• most technical faults found during normal operation or maintenance;
• strikes by the airline’s own pilots or cabin crew, which the Court of Justice has said are part of an airline’s normal activity;
• crew shortages and scheduling problems.

If an airline blames “operational reasons” or “technical issues” without detail, ask it in writing to name the cause. Vague explanations are one of the most common reasons claims get rejected, and one of the easiest to challenge.

Your right to care while you wait

Separate from compensation, the airline must look after you during a long wait, and this applies even when the cause is extraordinary, such as a storm or a volcanic ash cloud. Under the current rules you are entitled to meals and refreshments in proportion to the wait once your departure is delayed by at least two hours on flights up to 1,500 km, three hours on medium-length flights, and four hours on long-haul flights.

You are also entitled to two phone calls or emails, and, if you have to stay overnight, a hotel and transport between the airport and the hotel. If the delay reaches five hours and you decide not to travel, you can ask for a refund of the ticket instead.

If the airline does not provide any of this, buy what you reasonably need and keep every receipt. You can claim the costs back later. Reasonable is the key word: a sandwich and a drink will be refunded, a three-course dinner with wine may not be.

How to claim flight delay compensation yourself

1. Keep your booking confirmation and boarding pass, and write down the scheduled and actual arrival times.
2. Ask staff at the airport what caused the disruption and note what they say. A photo of the departures board helps too.
3. Go to the airline’s website and find its EU261 or delay compensation form. If there is none, write to its customer relations address.
4. State the flight number, date, route, delay and the amount you are claiming, and refer to Regulation (EC) No 261/2004. Include your bank details and copies of your documents.
5. If the airline refuses or does not answer within about six to eight weeks, complain to the national enforcement body in the country where the disruption happened, or to an approved alternative dispute resolution body if the airline belongs to one.
6. As a last step you can go to court. For claims against an airline based in another EU country, the European Small Claims Procedure handles cases up to €5,000 mostly in writing.

Time limits for claims are set by national law and vary a lot. In Germany the limit is three years, counted from the end of the year of the flight; in France it is five years. Older flights may still be worth claiming, so check the rules in the country where you would bring the case.

Claim agencies do the same work on your behalf, which helps if you have no time or the airline is difficult. They typically keep around a quarter to more than a third of the payout. For a straightforward case, a well-documented claim sent directly to the airline often works just as well and costs nothing.

The European Commission’s Your Europe guide to air passenger rights lists the national enforcement bodies and includes a standard complaint form.

What the 2026 reform of air passenger rights changes

After 13 years of negotiation, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU reached a deal on 15 June 2026 to update EU261. Parliament approved it on 7 July 2026 by 646 votes to 12, and the Council gave its final approval on 13 July. The new rules apply 12 months after they enter into force, which puts them in the second half of 2027.

The earlier fear that the three-hour threshold would rise to four or more hours did not come true. According to the Council’s summary of the agreement, the main changes are:

• **Same thresholds and amounts.** Compensation still starts at three hours, with the same €250, €400 and €600 bands, and cancellations less than 14 days before departure still qualify.
• **Easier claims.** When a delay could qualify, the airline must contact you electronically within 96 hours of arrival with your rights and instructions for claiming. It must acknowledge a claim immediately and pay or explain its refusal within 30 days.
• **Clearer care rules.** Refreshments every two hours of waiting, a meal after three hours and then every five hours (up to three a day), internet access and two phone calls.
• **Faster rerouting.** After a cancellation, the airline must offer a new route within three hours, which can include another airline or other transport. If it does not, you can book your own and claim back up to 400% of the original ticket price.
• **No more “no-show” cancellations.** Airlines can no longer cancel your return flight because you did not take the outbound one.
• **Fairer fare displays.** Prices including a hand baggage allowance must be shown by default before booking starts, so fares are easier to compare.
• **Families and passengers with reduced mobility** can sit with the people accompanying them at no extra cost, and passengers with reduced mobility gain new rights to assistance and to replacement of lost or damaged mobility equipment.
• **Extraordinary circumstances** get a written, non-exhaustive list, and the airline still has to prove that the event directly caused the disruption.

Until the reform applies, the current EU261 rules remain in force exactly as described above. A delay today is claimed under today’s rules.

Flight delay compensation mistakes that cost travellers money

• Accepting a voucher at the gate without realising you could ask for cash.
• Measuring the delay from the departure time instead of the arrival time.
• Accepting a vague “technical issue” or “operational reasons” as a final answer.
• Throwing away boarding passes and receipts before the claim is settled.
• Assuming a non-EU airline flying into the EU is covered, or that a UK flight on a British airline falls under EU261.
• Giving up after the first refusal. Many claims succeed at the second attempt or through the national enforcement body.

Frequently asked questions

Does EU261 apply to flights to and from the UK?

A flight from an EU airport to the UK is covered on any airline. A flight from the UK to the EU is covered by EU261 only if the airline is based in the EU; otherwise the UK’s own rules apply, with compensation of £220 to £520.

Can I claim for a flight from a few years ago?

Often, yes. The deadline depends on national law, from about one year in some countries to five years in France. Collect what evidence you still have and check the limit in the relevant country.

Do strikes count as extraordinary circumstances?

It depends on who is striking. A strike by air traffic controllers or airport staff usually counts. A strike by the airline’s own pilots or cabin crew usually does not, so compensation is still due.

Is compensation paid per person?

Yes. Every passenger on the booking can claim the full amount, including children with their own seat. Passengers travelling free of charge are excluded.

Will the new rules apply to my flight next month?

No. The reform only applies from around the second half of 2027. Until then, flight delay compensation is claimed under the current version of EU261.

If you are planning a trip to Europe from outside the EU, the new border checks are the other change worth knowing about. Our guide to ETIAS and the Entry/Exit System explains what to expect at the border.