Know all your rights according to European regulations to claim compensation for delayed, cancelled or overbooked flights
ARTICLE 7 EC 261/2004
Exact amounts according to flight distance and type of delay established by EU 261/2004 Regulation
Up to 1,500 km
Short domestic and regional flights
Madrid-Barcelona, Paris-Amsterdam, London-Dublin
3+ hours delay
1,500 - 3,500 km (EU)
Medium flights within the EU
Madrid-London, Rome-Berlin, Barcelona-Warsaw
3+ hours delay
International up to 1,500 km
Short international flights
Madrid-Marrakech, London-Oslo
3+ hours delay
More than 3,500 km
Long intercontinental flights
Madrid-New York, Paris-Tokyo, Barcelona-Buenos Aires
4+ hours delay
Important about delays:
Compensation is calculated based on the ARRIVAL time at the final destination, not the departure time. If your flight leaves 2 hours late but arrives only 30 minutes late, you are not entitled to compensation for delay.
ARTICLE 3 EC 261/2004
Specific conditions for being entitled to compensation and assistance
FULL LEGAL TEXT
Legal analysis of the fundamental articles that define your rights as an air passenger in the European Union.
Regulation EC 261/2004 applies to passengers departing from an airport located in the territory of a Member State, as well as to passengers departing from an airport located in a third country to an airport situated in the territory of a Member State, provided the operating carrier is a Community carrier. The regulation only applies if the passenger has a confirmed booking and checks in on time, except in cases of cancellation.
When an operating air carrier reasonably expects to deny boarding on a flight, it shall first call for volunteers to surrender their reservations in exchange for benefits under conditions to be agreed between the passenger concerned and the operating air carrier. If the number of volunteers is insufficient, the carrier may then deny boarding to passengers against their will, but must compensate them under Article 7 and inform them of their rights.
In case of cancellation of a flight, the passengers concerned shall be offered assistance by the operating air carrier in accordance with Articles 8 and 9; and compensation from the operating air carrier in accordance with Article 7, unless they are informed of the cancellation at least two weeks before the scheduled time of departure; or between two weeks and seven days with an alternative flight departing no more than two hours earlier and arriving less than four hours late; or within seven days with an alternative flight departing no more than one hour earlier and arriving less than two hours late. The carrier must demonstrate extraordinary circumstances to be exempt from paying compensation.
When an operating air carrier reasonably expects a flight to be delayed beyond the scheduled time of departure for two hours or more on journeys up to 1,500 km; three hours or more on intra-Community journeys of more than 1,500 km and on all other journeys between 1,500 and 3,500 km; or four hours or more on journeys not covered above, passengers shall be offered assistance in accordance with Articles 9(1)(a) and 9(2). When the delay exceeds five hours, passengers shall also be offered a refund under Article 8(1)(a).
Passengers shall receive compensation amounting to: EUR 250 for all flights of 1,500 kilometres or less; EUR 400 for all intra-Community flights of more than 1,500 kilometres, and for all other flights between 1,500 and 3,500 kilometres; EUR 600 for all flights not covered above. The distance shall be calculated on the basis of the last destination at which the denial of boarding or cancellation will delay the passenger's arrival. The carrier may reduce compensation by 50% when offering alternative transport and the arrival delay does not exceed the applicable threshold.
Passengers affected by delays, cancellations or denied boarding shall be offered, free of charge: meals and refreshments in a reasonable relation to the waiting time; hotel accommodation where an overnight stay becomes necessary; transport between the airport and the hotel; and two telephone calls, telex or fax messages, or e-mails. These rights apply regardless of whether the delay or cancellation is caused by extraordinary circumstances.
The operating air carrier shall ensure that at check-in a clearly legible notice containing the following text is displayed in a manner clearly visible to passengers: information about their right to request the text on their rights in case of denied boarding, cancellation, or delay of at least two hours. Air carriers that deny boarding or cancel a flight must provide each affected passenger with a written notice setting out the rules for compensation and assistance. This article ensures transparency and effective knowledge of rights.
COURT OF JUSTICE OF THE EU
The rulings of the Court of Justice of the European Union that have expanded and defined the rights of European air passengers.
Joined Cases C-402/07 and C-432/07
“Passengers of delayed flights may be treated like passengers of cancelled flights for the purposes of applying the right to compensation where, due to a delay, they suffer a loss of time of three hours or more compared to the scheduled arrival time at their final destination.”
Impact on passengers
This is the most important ruling on air passenger rights. Before Sturgeon, only cancelled flights triggered compensation. Since 2009, delays of 3+ hours at the final destination generate the same right as cancellations, exponentially increasing the number of passengers entitled to compensation.
Case C-549/07
“A technical problem that came to light during maintenance does not, in itself, constitute an extraordinary circumstance within the meaning of Regulation EC 261/2004, unless the carrier can show it stems from events which, by their nature or origin, are not inherent in the normal exercise of the activity of the air carrier and are beyond the carrier's actual control.”
Impact on passengers
This ruling defined extraordinary circumstances restrictively. Technical problems are generally inherent in the normal exercise of airline operations and do not exempt the carrier from compensating passengers. Only genuinely external circumstances constitute grounds for exemption.
Case C-257/14
“Technical faults of an aircraft, even unexpected ones, do not constitute extraordinary circumstances within the meaning of Regulation EC 261/2004. The maintenance of an aircraft is inherent in the normal exercise of the activity of the air carrier.”
Impact on passengers
Van der Lans confirmed and reinforced the Wallentin-Hermann doctrine applying it specifically to unexpected technical faults. Airlines cannot invoke technical faults as extraordinary circumstances, unless they are the direct consequence of genuinely external causes such as bird strikes or acts of sabotage.
Joined Cases C-581/10 and C-629/10
“Regulation EC 261/2004, as interpreted by the Court in the Sturgeon judgment, is valid in light of the principle of equal treatment. Passengers of delayed flights who suffer a loss of time of three or more hours are entitled to the same compensation as those on cancelled flights.”
Impact on passengers
Nelson definitively confirmed the validity of Regulation EC 261/2004 and the Sturgeon interpretation in the face of airline challenges, closing the debate on whether 3+ hour delays generate compensation and providing legal certainty for both passengers and operators.
ARTICLE 5(3) EC 261/2004
Airlines may be exempt from paying compensation if the delay or cancellation is due to extraordinary circumstances beyond their control.
In these cases, the airline does NOT have to pay compensation, but MUST provide assistance:
In these cases, the airline MUST pay compensation + assistance:
The airline must prove that the cancellation or delay was caused by extraordinary circumstances. It's not enough to simply claim "bad weather" or "technical problem".
They must provide specific evidence: official weather reports, documentation from airport authorities, detailed technical reports, etc.
SPECIAL CASES
Charter flights are fully covered by Regulation EC 261/2004 provided they meet the scope requirements of Article 3. If your charter flight departs from an EU airport or is operated by a European airline to the EU, you have exactly the same rights as on a scheduled flight. When the flight forms part of a package holiday, Regulation EC 261 applies directly against the operating airline, independently of any additional rights you may have against the package organiser under Directive (EU) 2015/2302.
When a delay on the first flight causes you to miss a connection booked under the same reservation, the delay at the final destination determines your entitlement to compensation. If the cumulative delay at the final destination is 3+ hours, you are entitled to compensation calculated on the total distance of the itinerary, not just the delayed leg. On code-share flights, the actual operating carrier, not the marketing carrier, is responsible for EC 261 compensation.
Overbooking is a legal practice but generates clear rights for the passenger when it results in denied boarding. The airline must first seek volunteers willing to give up their seat in exchange for freely negotiated benefits. If you are involuntarily denied boarding, you are entitled to the fixed compensation under Article 7 (EUR 250-600), plus Article 8 (refund or re-routing) and Article 9 (care and assistance).
ARTICLE 9 EC 261/2004
Assistance that the airline must provide you regardless of the circumstances
LIMITATION PERIODS
Regulation EC 261/2004 does not set a uniform limitation period: each Member State applies its own civil or commercial limitation rules. The period runs from the date of the flight or the incident.
In March 2013, the European Commission tabled proposal COM/2013/0130 to revise Regulation EC 261/2004. The proposal aims to clarify the concept of extraordinary circumstances, set more precise delay thresholds — 5 hours for short-haul, 9 hours for long-haul before the refund right activates — regularise the treatment of missed connections, and establish an alternative dispute resolution framework for low-value claims. As of today, the proposal remains under negotiation between the European Parliament and the Council of the EU, meaning the 2004 regulation remains the applicable law. The Commission nevertheless applies it with the expansive interpretation from the CJEU under the Sturgeon doctrine.
COMPARATIVE LAW
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