EU flight compensation claims face nine-month deadline under new rules

New EU passenger-rights rules will cut the time to claim compensation for delayed or cancelled flights to nine months starting 23 October 2027. The change could affect millions of travelers, including British holidaymakers on EU routes, and may put older claims at risk if passengers wait too long.

Why it matters: - EU passengers who are owed compensation for disrupted flights will have far less time to file a claim. - A claim that can now be made years after travel will expire after nine months under the new regime. - The change could affect families, long-haul travelers and anyone with older unresolved flight disruptions. - UK travelers are also affected on many EU routes because EU261 still applies to flights covered by the regulation.

What happened: - The European Union has confirmed a new nine-month deadline for compensation claims tied to delayed, cancelled or overbooked flights. - The amending law, Regulation (EU) 2026/2202, was published in the Official Journal on 2 October 2026 and entered into force on 22 October 2026. - Most of the new provisions, including the claim deadline, will apply from 23 October 2027. - AirTravelClaim.com is urging passengers with unresolved disruption from recent years to act before the new deadline takes effect.

The details: - EU Regulation 261/2004 currently gives passengers up to €600 in compensation for eligible disruption and does not set its own filing deadline. - National law now sets the time limit, which varies by country. - Current deadlines include two years in the Netherlands, three in Germany, five in France and Spain, and six years in Ireland and in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. - Under the reform, passengers will generally have nine months from the flight date to claim. - Compensation amounts stay at €250, €400 or €600 per passenger, depending on flight distance. - The compensation trigger remains a delay of three or more hours, a short-notice cancellation or denied boarding. - Airlines will also have to decide on a claim within 30 days. - A family of four on a long-haul flight delayed by more than four hours could be owed up to €2,400. - AirTravelClaim.com says many eligible passengers never claim. - Steve Reid, Passenger Advocate at AirTravelClaim.com, said most travelers do not claim immediately after landing and may miss money they are owed if they wait under the new rules. - AirTravelClaim.com includes company contact details and social media links in its release.

Between the lines: - The biggest shift is procedural, not financial: compensation amounts remain unchanged, but the filing window shrinks sharply. - That shorter window could favor airlines by reducing the number of older claims that reach them. - The treatment of flights taken before 23 October 2027 is not spelled out clearly in the regulation, creating potential room for dispute. - The European Consumer Centre in Italy says current rules and national deadlines should apply to disruptions up to 22 October 2027. - Legal commentators cited in the release say the text does not make that transition fully clear, and airlines may test the issue. - Reid warned that passengers should not gamble on how airlines or courts will handle older claims once the new rules apply.

What's next: - Passengers with possible claims should file before 23 October 2027 if they want to stay within the current regime. - British travelers should check whether their journey falls under EU261, UK261 or both before assuming a claim is time-barred. - Flights departing from an EU airport remain covered by EU261 regardless of airline. - Flights into the EU on an EU airline also remain covered. - UK261 is unchanged for flights departing the UK, with claims generally allowed up to six years after the flight, or five years in Scotland. - Additional 2027 changes include automatic refunds within seven days for cancelled flights, a new right to self-book replacement travel in some cases, free small personal items and a codified list of extraordinary circumstances. - AirTravelClaim.com advises travelers to search old emails, note flight details, keep receipts and not accept an airline’s first explanation as final.

The bottom line: - Travelers with old EU flight disruptions should act now, because the clock to claim compensation is about to get much shorter.