With LATAM, the first question is not “how late was I” but “where did the flight take off”. LATAM is a group of South American airlines, none of them licensed in the EU, so European compensation applies in one direction only.
Which rules cover a LATAM flight
LATAM Airlines Group is based in Chile and operates through group companies, among them LATAM Airlines Brasil and the LATAM airlines of Peru, Colombia and Ecuador. The departure country matters more than the group company.
| Your flight departs from | Rules | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| An EU or EEA airport | EU261 (Art. 3(1)(a)) | €250–€600, care, rerouting or refund |
| A UK airport | UK261 | £220–£520, care, rerouting or refund |
| Brazil, domestic or international | ANAC Resolution 400 and the Consumer Defence Code | Assistance, rerouting or refund; damages case by case |
| The United States | US DOT rules | Refund if cancelled; denied boarding compensation |
| Another country | Local law and the Montreal Convention | Proven damage from delay, up to the Convention limit |
Watch out
A LATAM flight into Europe is not covered by EU261, because Art. 3(1)(b) only reaches flights operated by EU carriers.
A codeshare changes this: a seat sold by LATAM on a flight operated by Iberia or another EU airline follows that airline’s rules (Art. 3(5)).
Flights leaving the EU or the UK
LATAM’s European departures are long-haul, so they fall in the top band:
| Situation | EU departure | UK departure |
|---|---|---|
| Arrival 3 or more hours late, or cancellation with under 14 days’ notice | €600 | £520 |
| Rerouted and arrived less than 4 hours after the original time | €300 | £260 |
The three-hour rule comes from the Court of Justice (Sturgeon, C-402/07) and the 50% reduction from Art. 7(2).
LATAM pays nothing if it proves extraordinary circumstances (Art. 5(3)). Care and rerouting are owed anyway.
Flights in or from Brazil
ANAC Resolution 400 does not set a fixed sum for delay. It gives you:
- Assistance by waiting time (Art. 27): food after 2 hours, and accommodation with transfers after 4 hours when an overnight stay is needed. Until 25 October 2026 the article also requires means of communication after 1 hour.
- A choice of rerouting, a full refund or transport by another means when the delay exceeds 4 hours, the flight is cancelled or you are denied boarding (Art. 21).
- Immediate compensation for involuntary denied boarding: 250 SDR on domestic flights and 500 SDR on international ones (Art. 24).
Compensation for the harm itself comes from the Consumer Defence Code (Law 8.078/1990, Art. 14) and is decided by the courts case by case. For flights within Brazil, see delayed flight in Brazil, cancelled flight in Brazil, overbooking in Brazil and baggage on a domestic flight.
Good to know
Resolution 813 of 23 September 2026 amends Resolution 400 from 26 October 2026.
It:
- Replaces the 1-hour communication item with a duty to keep you informed through digital channels (Art. 20).
- Lets the airline reimburse proven expenses within 7 days when it cannot provide assistance directly (Art. 27-B).
- States that the airline is not liable for damages caused by force majeure (Art. 25-B).
Assistance is still owed in those cases.
Where to file
LATAM takes requests and claims through its Help Center. Open Create a case, choose the category, describe what happened and give your e-mail address.
What LATAM says about the process:
- If you bought through a travel agency, changes and refunds must be handled with the agency.
- To follow up, use “Do you want to review a case?” at the top of the Help Center and enter your e-mail.
- Cases are handled in English, Spanish or Portuguese.
Tip
Give the booking code, flight number and date, and receipts for anything you paid for. State the legal basis for your route in the first lines; our claim letter has the wording.
If LATAM refuses
- Brazil. Register the complaint on Anac Passageiro. If that does not resolve it, the Juizado Especial Cível hears consumer claims.
- EU departures. Complain to the enforcement body of the departure country, such as AESA in Spain or the LBA in Germany. The how to claim guide explains each step.
- UK departures. LATAM is not on the Civil Aviation Authority’s list of airlines signed up to an ADR body, so the CAA’s passenger team is the next step.
- United States. File a complaint with the Department of Transportation.
The rights calculator tells you which regime applies to your route.