Delayed flight compensation in the US: what you are actually owed

In the US, no federal law requires an airline to pay you cash because your flight was delayed. The law gives you a refund if the airline cancels or significantly delays your flight and you decide not to travel, and the large US airlines have promised, in plans DOT can enforce, to cover meals, rebooking and usually a hotel when a delay is their fault. Cash for the delay itself mostly comes from Europe: EU261 and UK261 cover many flights between the US and Europe, including some on US airlines.

This guide separates the three, gives the thresholds for each, covers the 2024 proposal that was withdrawn, and ends with how to claim. It is general information, not legal advice.

Refund, care or compensation: three different things

People say "compensation" for all three, but they come from different places and have different triggers.

One more US case is real law: being bumped from an oversold flight. DOT's Fly Rights guide is blunt about the rest: for domestic itineraries airlines are not required to compensate passengers whose flights are delayed or canceled, and compensation is required on domestic trips only when you are bumped. For international trips, the same page notes you may be able to claim delay-related expenses under Article 19 of the Montreal Convention by filing a claim with the airline.

What US law requires: a refund for a significant delay

The automatic refund rule took effect in October 2024. DOT's refunds page says you are entitled to a refund if the airline cancels your flight, for any reason, or significantly delays or changes it, and you choose not to travel or accept a credit, voucher or other compensation instead. Non-refundable tickets are included.

A "significant change" or "significant delay" is any of these:

The refund is due within 7 business days if you paid by credit card and 20 calendar days for other payment methods, to the original form of payment. If the airline offers you a different flight and you reject it, or simply do not respond and do not fly, the refund must happen without you asking. Airlines may offer travel credits instead, but they must tell you that you are entitled to a refund, and any credits must be valid for at least five years.

The catch is the one most people miss: if you take the delayed flight, or accept the rebooking, there is no refund under DOT rules. The refund is the price of not travelling. Waiting four hours in Denver and then flying gets you nothing under part 260.

Is there a DOT rule for delay compensation?

No. In December 2024 DOT published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking that floated mandatory cash payments for delays and cancellations the airline caused. One option was $200 for a domestic arrival delay of at least three hours, $375 at six hours and $775 at nine; another, modelled on Canada, started at $300. Those were questions for comment, never requirements.

On November 17, 2025, DOT withdrew that notice. Its stated reason is that the 2024 FAA reauthorization directs airlines to set their own reimbursement policies and "does not authorize the Department to require reimbursements or compensations for flight disruptions." So as of November 2026:

• Law: refunds for cancellations and significant delays, tarmac delay limits, bumping compensation.
• Airline commitment: meals, hotels, rebooking and, at a few airlines, vouchers or miles, for disruptions the airline caused.
• Proposed and withdrawn: cash compensation for US delays.

What US airlines commit to: meals, hotels, rebooking

DOT's cancellation and delay dashboard lists each large airline's promises for controllable disruptions, which DOT describes as delays or cancellations caused by the airline: maintenance or crew problems, cabin cleaning, baggage loading, fueling. Weather and air traffic control are not controllable, and the commitments do not apply to them.

On November 10, 2026, the dashboard showed:

These are not regulations, but they are not marketing either: airlines must publish a customer service plan, and DOT says it will hold them to what the plan promises.

Flying to or from Europe: EU261 and UK261

This is where real cash compensation lives for US travellers. Which rules apply depends on where the flight departs and which airline operates it, not which airline sold the ticket. On a codeshare, look at the operating carrier.

Sources: the EU's Your Europe passenger rights page and the UK CAA's delays guidance.

Compensation is due when you arrive three hours or more late and the cause was not an "extraordinary circumstance". Every transatlantic flight is in the top distance band:

Extraordinary circumstances include air traffic management decisions, severe weather and security risks; most technical problems and strikes by the airline's own staff do not qualify, and the airline has to prove its case. Both regimes also require meals and refreshments during long waits and a hotel when the new departure is the next day; the CAA says that care is owed regardless of the reason for the delay, and EU261 has the same structure.

The EU rules are being revised. Regulation (EU) 2026/2202 was published in October 2026 and applies from October 23, 2027. It keeps the three-hour threshold and the €250, €400 and €600 amounts. Until then, the 2004 regulation applies.

How to claim, step by step

1. At the airport, ask what caused the delay. A crew or maintenance problem is controllable; weather or an air traffic program is not. Write down the answer.
2. Ask for what the plan promises. For a controllable delay of three hours or more, ask for a meal voucher; overnight, ask for a hotel and transport. If you are told no, ask for the reason in writing or in the app.
3. Decide whether to fly. If the delay is significant and you would rather not travel, decline the rebooking in writing. The refund then follows automatically. If you fly, keep receipts for anything the airline should have covered.
4. For EU261 or UK261, claim from the operating airline, with the flight number, date, scheduled and actual arrival time, and booking reference.
5. If the airline does not resolve it, complain to DOT. Use DOT's consumer complaint page. DOT requires airlines to acknowledge complaints within 30 days and to answer in writing within 60. For EU or UK claims, the national enforcement body or the UK CAA's complaint routes are the next step.

What proves a delay: actual gate times

Every threshold above is measured in arrival time at the destination, and the useful number is the actual gate arrival, not the time the wheels touched down. The Bureau of Transportation Statistics' on-time reporting directive defines gate arrival as the moment the pilot sets the parking brake at the gate. A flight that lands 2 hours 50 minutes late and taxis for fifteen minutes arrived more than three hours late.

The distinction between scheduled, estimated and actual times is in scheduled, estimated and actual times. For a claim, keep:

• The original booking confirmation with the scheduled arrival time.
• The airline's delay and rebooking messages, which often state a reason.
• A screenshot of the flight status showing the actual arrival.
• Receipts for meals, hotels and transport.

A worked example

United's Frankfurt to Newark flight is scheduled to arrive at 13:05. A maintenance issue holds it in Frankfurt; it reaches the Newark gate at 16:40, 3 hours 35 minutes late. You flew.

• US refund: none. You travelled, and the delay was under the six-hour international threshold anyway.
• United's plan: the delay was controllable and the wait was over three hours, so a meal voucher was owed. Ask for it, or claim the receipt.
• EU261: the flight departed the EU, so it is covered whoever operates it. Over 3,500 km and between three and four hours late: €300. Had it arrived after 17:05, €600.

The same delay on Newark to Frankfurt on United would be outside EU261 entirely, because it departs the US on a US airline.

How travel apps detect a qualifying delay

Flight data can answer the "how late" half of "was this delay compensable". It cannot answer "why": status feeds carry times and states, not the airline's cause code, so controllable versus weather is for the passenger to ask the airline.

A FlightByte flight snapshot has what the thresholds need:

type Snapshot = {
  departure: { airport: { country?: { code: string } } };
  arrival: { airport: { country?: { code: string } }; delayMinutes?: number | null; times: { actualGate?: { utc: string } } };
  status: { phase: string };
};

// Flags a flight for a "you may be owed something" message. It does not decide eligibility.
export function delayFlags(flight: Snapshot) {
  const domestic = flight.departure.airport.country?.code === "US" && flight.arrival.airport.country?.code === "US";
  const late = flight.arrival.times.actualGate ? flight.arrival.delayMinutes ?? 0 : 0;
  return {
    cancelled: flight.status.phase === "cancelled",
    usSignificantDelay: late >= (domestic ? 180 : 360),
    euUkThreshold: late >= 180, // only meaningful when EU261 or UK261 covers the route and carrier
  };
}

On a subscription, the flight.cancelled event and the arrival.actual.changed change type tell you when to run that check, and route.changed catches the changed-airport case. The full list is in Webhooks → Change types; building a flight delay notification system covers alert thresholds, and what are webhooks the basics.

Checked against DOT, Federal Register, EUR-Lex and UK CAA sources on November 10, 2026. General information, not legal advice.

If you are adding delay alerts to a travel product, the quickstart walks through the first watched flight, and FlightByte for travel apps shows the common setups.

Frequently asked questions

Do US airlines have to pay compensation for a delayed flight?

No. US law requires a refund if the airline cancels or significantly delays your flight and you choose not to travel, but no cash payment for the delay itself. DOT proposed one in December 2024 and withdrew the proposal in November 2025. Large airlines do commit to meals, rebooking and hotels when they caused the delay.

How long does a flight have to be delayed to get a refund?

Your arrival has to be at least 3 hours later than originally scheduled on a domestic itinerary, or at least 6 hours on an international one, and you have to decide not to travel. A cancellation qualifies regardless of length or cause. If you take the delayed flight, no refund is due.

Does a weather delay count?

For the refund, yes: the rule applies regardless of the reason. For the airline's meal and hotel commitments, usually not, because those cover delays within the airline's control. Under EU261 and UK261, severe weather is normally an extraordinary circumstance, so no cash compensation, though meals and a hotel are still owed.

Can I get EU261 compensation on a US airline?

Yes, when the flight departs an EU airport: a United or Delta flight from Paris or Frankfurt to the US is covered. A US airline flying from the US to the EU is not. UK261 works the same way for flights departing the UK.

Where do I file a DOT complaint about a delay?

Contact the airline first, then use DOT's consumer complaint page. Airlines must acknowledge a complaint within 30 days and respond in writing within 60. Include the flight number, date, what the airline committed to and what you received.