The EU has concluded negotiations on air passenger rights. A landmark agreement

The Council of the EU and the European Parliament have reached a compromise on the reform of air passenger rights. The agreement covers both compensation for flight delays and the expansion of travelers’ rights.

A breakthrough after 12 years of talks

The agreement was reached after more than a week of nearly non-stop negotiations. The final round of talks began on June 3, although the reform of air passenger rights had been under discussion in the EU for over 12 years. The parties had until June 15 to reach an agreement.

On Friday, June 12, member states announced that they had agreed on the final text of the agreement. The European Parliament is set to announce its content on Monday, and on the same day, both sides are expected to sign the official document.

Among other things, a consensus was reached on the so-called negotiation triangle. It covered the three most contentious issues:

• when compensation is due for a delayed flight,
• how much the compensation for a flight should be,
• and what the formalities for filing a claim should look like.

Compensation amounts will remain unchanged

The EP advocated maintaining the current regulations: compensation after a delay of at least three hours and a minimum amount of 300 euros. In contrast, the EU Council proposed extending the time thresholds (from 4 to as much as 6 hours) and reducing the maximum compensation amounts. Depending on the length of the route, these would be €300 or €500 instead of the current maximum of €600.

Under the negotiated agreement, passengers will, as before, be entitled to compensation in the event of a flight delay of three hours or more. The amount will range from 250 to 600 euros depending on the length of the route.

Compromise on compensation claims

One of the points of contention was the issue of submitting compensation claims. Currently, passengers must find the appropriate form on the carrier’s website themselves.

The European Parliament proposed that, in the event of a flight disruption, the documents be automatically generated by the airlines. This would certainly increase awareness among travelers, but also raise costs for carriers.

Ultimately, the parties reached a compromise. Airlines will not be required to automatically fill out the forms, but in the event of a delay, they must provide passengers with clear information on the compensation claim procedure.

Passengers will gain new rights

Negotiators also managed to reach an agreement on expanding passenger rights with approximately 30 new provisions. Among them are, among other things, the carrier’s obligation to make free changes to reservations up to 48 hours before departure.

Also new are provisions regulating how long an airline can “keep” passengers on the plane in the event of a flight delay. After a maximum of two hours, the carrier must transport passengers back to the airport.

In addition, it has been established that no additional fees will be charged for assigning a child a seat next to a parent. Protection for people with disabilities and pregnant women has also been expanded. In the event of overbooking, they cannot be denied boarding. Furthermore, the airport will be held liable if people with disabilities and pregnant women miss their flight due to a lack of adequate assistance.

When will the changes take effect?

The new regulations are set to take effect within 12 months of their adoption. This means that passengers can expect the first changes in mid-2027.