Flight compensation amounts: €250, €400 or €600 explained

Article 7 of Regulation (EC) 261/2004 sets a three-tier compensation system based on flight distance. The amounts have not changed since 2004 (no indexation) and remain the same regardless of the cause: delay 3h+, cancellation, denied boarding. Here's how to calculate exactly what you are entitled to.

The three tiers

How distance is calculated

The Regulation uses the great-circle distance (or "orthodromic" distance) — the shortest distance on a sphere between two points. Not the actual flown route, not the road distance.

You can check the distance on free websites like gcmap.com or distancecalculator.net.

For connecting flights (single ticket)

Per the Folkerts ruling (CJEU, C-11/11), the distance is calculated from the initial departure to the final destination, not leg by leg. Example: Bremen → Paris CDG → São Paulo on a single booking = distance Bremen-São Paulo (~9,800 km) = €600.

Quirky case: intra-EU above 1,500 km

Article 7(1)(b) creates a flat €400 amount for any intra-EU flight above 1,500 km, regardless of actual distance. So Lisbon to Helsinki (~3,500 km) = €400, not €600.

Worked examples

Example 1 — short-haul delay

Air France Paris-Madrid (1,054 km), arriving 4 hours late: €250 per passenger.

Example 2 — medium-haul cancellation

Brussels Airlines Brussels-Athens (2,098 km), cancelled 5 days before departure with rerouting arriving 5 hours late: €400 per passenger.

Example 3 — long-haul delay

Air France Paris-Lagos (4,810 km), arriving 6 hours late: €600 per passenger.

Example 4 — connecting with non-EU final destination

Lufthansa Frankfurt-Addis Ababa-Kampala (5,250 km end-to-end on single ticket), arriving 4 hours late at Entebbe: €600 per passenger (Wegener + Folkerts).

Example 5 — denied boarding

KLM Amsterdam-New York (5,852 km), denied boarding for overbooking: €600 per passenger + refund or rerouting at your choice.

The 50% reduction (only for cancellation with rerouting)

Article 7(2) allows the airline to reduce compensation by 50% if it provides rerouting with arrival within:

• 2 hours for flights up to 1,500 km
• 3 hours for flights between 1,500-3,500 km (or any intra-EU above 1,500 km)
• 4 hours for flights above 3,500 km

This reduction only applies to cancellation with rerouting. It does NOT apply to:

• Sturgeon delays (3h+ delays trigger full compensation)
• Denied boarding for overbooking
• Cancellation without rerouting

Per passenger, not per booking

Each passenger on the ticket is entitled to their own compensation, including children with their own paid seat.

Infants under 2 without their own seat (often booked at 10% of fare, carried on parent's lap) are excluded.

Payment: cash, not vouchers

Article 7(3) requires payment in cash, by electronic bank transfer, bank order or cheque, or, with the passenger's signed agreement, in travel vouchers. The airline cannot impose vouchers without your explicit, written consent.

If you accepted a voucher under pressure at the airport, you can still demand cash conversion — read our article on refusing vouchers and demanding cash.

This compensation is on top of refund or rerouting

Important: the €250/€400/€600 amount is in addition to your right under Article 8 to refund OR rerouting. You don't choose between compensation and refund — you get both.

Example: cancelled Paris-Dakar flight, you choose refund:

• Refund of ticket price (e.g. €750)
• + €600 compensation per passenger
• + Care during waiting (meals, hotel if needed)

Currency: euros, even outside the eurozone

Article 7 sets amounts in euros. For passengers in non-eurozone EU countries (UK before Brexit, Sweden, Denmark, Poland…), payment is made in euros or converted at official exchange rate on the payment date.

Common airline tactics to reduce compensation (and how to resist)

For a personalised assessment, use our simulator.

Related articles

• Complete EC 261 regulation summary
• Compensation per passenger
• Cancelled flight up to €600
• Refuse the voucher, demand cash