Regulation 261/2004 has applied since 17 February 2005. Most of what passengers rely on sits in Articles 3 to 9, plus two decades of Court of Justice case law. An amending regulation was adopted in 2026, but its new rules do not apply yet. This page describes the law that governs a flight today.
Which flights are covered
Article 3 sets two tests.
- Any airline: the flight departs from an airport in an EU Member State. Iceland, Norway and Switzerland apply the same rules.
- EU airlines only: the flight departs from a non-EU country and lands in the EU, unless you already received compensation and assistance in that country.
The outermost regions are inside the scope: the Canary Islands, Madeira, the Azores, Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guiana, Réunion, Mayotte and Saint-Martin. The Faroe Islands are not. Flights from the UK are no longer “EU departures”; see UK261.
You need a confirmed reservation and must check in on time (Art. 3(2)). Free or staff tickets are excluded, frequent flyer tickets are not (Art. 3(3)).
On a single booking with connections, the journey counts as one, so a disruption on a later leg outside the EU is still covered when the trip started in the EU (CJEU, Wegener, C-537/17; České aerolinie, C-502/18).
Compensation amounts (Art. 7)
| Flight | Amount | May be halved if re-routing arrives within |
|---|---|---|
| 1,500 km or less | €250 | 2 hours of the original arrival |
| Within the EU, over 1,500 km | €400 | 3 hours |
| Other flights, 1,500–3,500 km | €400 | 3 hours |
| All other flights | €600 | 4 hours |
Distance is measured by the great circle route to the final destination (Art. 7(1) and 7(4)). Payment is in cash, by bank transfer or cheque.
Watch out
Vouchers need your signed agreement (Art. 7(3)).
When the amount is due
- Denied boarding against your will (Art. 4): compensation is due immediately, along with a choice of refund or re-routing. More in denied boarding.
- Cancellation (Art. 5): due unless you were told at least 14 days before departure, or were offered re-routing inside the narrow windows of Article 5(1)(c). See flight cancellation.
- Long delay: Article 6 itself only grants care. The Court of Justice held that passengers who reach their final destination three hours or more late are owed the same compensation as for a cancellation (CJEU, Sturgeon, C-402/07, confirmed in Nelson, C-581/10). Arrival is the moment a door opens (CJEU, Germanwings, C-452/13). See flight delay and missed connection.
Care, refund and re-routing
Care (Art. 9)
Care is free and does not depend on fault. It covers:
- Meals and refreshments in proportion to the wait.
- Two phone calls or emails.
- A hotel with transfers if you are held overnight.
For delays it starts, under Article 6(1), after:
- 2 hours for flights up to 1,500 km.
- 3 hours for EU flights over 1,500 km and other flights up to 3,500 km.
- 4 hours for the rest.
Refund or re-routing (Art. 8)
This is your choice after a cancellation or denied boarding:
- The ticket price back within seven days.
- Re-routing at the earliest opportunity.
- Re-routing later at your convenience.
After a five-hour delay you may abandon the trip and take the refund (Art. 6(1)(iii)).
Extraordinary circumstances (Art. 5(3))
The airline owes no compensation if it proves the disruption was caused by extraordinary circumstances that could not have been avoided even with all reasonable measures. The burden is on the airline.
- Ordinary technical problems do not qualify (CJEU, Wallentin-Hermann, C-549/07).
- Nor does a strike by the airline’s own staff (CJEU, Airhelp v SAS, C-28/20).
Care is still owed either way (CJEU, McDonagh, C-12/11).
Time limits
Deadline
The Regulation has no limitation period. Each country’s own law decides (CJEU, Cuadrench Moré, C-139/11).
| Country | Time to sue | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Germany | 3 years, counted from the end of the year of the flight | §§ 195 and 199 BGB |
| France | 5 years | Art. 2224 Code civil; Cour de cassation, 10 October 2019, no. 18-20.490 |
| Spain | 5 years | Art. 1964(2) Código Civil |
| Ireland | 6 years | Statute of Limitations 1957, s. 11 |
| Poland | 1 year | Supreme Court resolution III CZP 111/16 |
Enforcement bodies
Each Member State has a national enforcement body (Art. 16). Most do not order payment in individual cases.
Tip
Complain to the body of the country where the incident happened, after the airline has had its chance. The steps are in how to claim.
The 2026 reform
In June 2025 the Council agreed a position that would have raised the delay thresholds to 4 hours (flights up to 3,500 km and intra-EU, €300) and 6 hours (longer flights, €500). The European Parliament rejected that at second reading on 21 January 2026.
A conciliation committee agreed a joint text on 15 June 2026, Parliament approved it on 7 July and the Council on 13 July. It was published on 2 October 2026 as Regulation (EU) 2026/2202 and applies from 23 October 2027.
What it will change, once it applies:
- The three-hour delay right is written into Article 6(4). Amounts stay at €250, €400 and €600.
- A request for compensation must be sent to the airline within nine months of the flight. The airline must pay or give reasons within 30 days (new Art. 7).
- If the airline offers no re-routing within three hours, you may book your own and reclaim up to 400% of the ticket price (new Art. 8(3)).
- An annex lists extraordinary circumstances, and hotel nights in those cases may be capped at three (new Art. 9(6)).
- Airlines may not cancel your return leg because you skipped the outbound one.
Good to know
Until then, the rules above are the ones the calculator uses.