Passenger rights may soon face a twist. The European Union is rethinking Regulation 261—a rule most travelers have depended on. At the moment, you must have at least a three-hour flight delay to claim compensation, but Poland, now steering the Council, is suggesting that this limit jump to five hours. Generally speaking, this idea would mean a fundamental shift when airlines must pay up.
This change isn’t just a bureaucratic tweak—it could hurt everyday travelers. Experts emphasize that the current three-hour rule actually encourages airlines to be on time. If the deadline were stretched to five hours, airlines might dodge penalties for those long delays, and passengers would very likely end up dealing with more hassles.
EU261 has been in play since 2005, giving passengers both compensation and support when flights run into trouble—whether due to delays, missed boarding, or outright cancellations. There was talk of reviewing these rules back in 2013, but no common solution was reached then. The subject has popped up again under renewed pressure from airline groups keen on easing dispute burdens.
The figures are striking: roughly 2% of flights hit a flight delay exceeding three hours last year, resulting in payouts topping 2 billion euros. In most cases, industry experts say that if this law is tweaked to require a five-hour delay for compensation, about 85% of travelers might find themselves cut off from these protections.
Just so it’s clear, the EU261 rule applies to any flight leaving from an EU airport, regardless of the airline’s home base, and to flights arriving at EU airports when an EU airline is at the controls. It doesn’t cover direct non-EU flights into Europe or flights that merely stopover. The regulation covers all EU members plus Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland, while the UK maintains similar standards under UK261 law.