AirlinesSeptember 18, 2026 2 min read
Compensation for delayed flights: what regulation requires in Europe, the US and Latin America
Three regions, three different logics and ever shorter deadlines. A practical summary for operations and customer service teams.
Key takeaways
- Europe sets fixed amounts of 250 to 600 euros by distance; the US requires automatic refunds within short deadlines.
- In Latin America each country has its own rules, and compensation is usually on request.
- Automating the rule, the payout and the evidence is how you comply at every station at once.
When a flight is delayed or cancelled, the airline does not just face an operational problem: it has an obligation to every passenger. The catch is that this obligation changes depending on where the itinerary starts or ends, and it must be met faster and faster.
Europe: fixed amounts and set deadlines
Regulation (EC) 261/2004 sets compensation between 250 and 600 euros per passenger, depending on flight distance, from 3-hour delays or cancellations. The passenger claims, but the airline must explain how and pay within short deadlines. The reform approved for 2027 keeps the pressure on response times.
United States: automatic refunds
Under the Department of Transportation's 14 CFR Part 260 rule, refunds no longer depend on the passenger asking. After a cancellation or significant change (3 hours domestic, 6 international), the airline must refund on its own: within 7 business days for card payments and 20 calendar days otherwise.
Is your airline still compensating by hand?See IWAIT for airlinesLatin America: scattered and on request
In the region each country sets its own rules, and in most of them compensation is handled case by case, at the passenger鈥檚 request. Airlines operating in several countries must manage different criteria, amounts and deadlines at each station.
What it means for operations
- Apply the right rule based on the itinerary, not the station where the passenger is.
- Pay within the legal window, to the original form of payment when required.
- Keep the evidence of every decision to prove compliance to the regulator.
Doing this by hand at every station is slow and error-prone. That is why more airlines automate the decision and the payout: the rule in force applies itself, the passenger is compensated in minutes and the audit trail is ready for any review.
