The 2026 EU261 reform: the 3-hour threshold survives, but not everything stays the same
10 July 2026
The European Parliament and the Council of the EU have agreed the first major overhaul of the flight delay compensation regulation in 20 years. Here is what changes and what does not.
On 15 June 2026 the European Parliament and the Council of the EU reached a political agreement on the first comprehensive revision of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 since it was adopted. For passengers, one question mattered most: would the 3-hour delay threshold for compensation survive, or would it be pushed to 4 hours, as airlines and part of the Council had been pushing for?
The 3-hour threshold held
The compromise favours passengers: the 3-hour threshold and the €250 / €400 / €600 compensation grid remain unchanged. The Council had spent several years pushing to raise the threshold to 4 hours, which would have removed compensation entirely for a large share of delays that fall in the 3–4 hour range. Parliament held a firm line against raising the threshold, and the final agreement kept its position on this point.
In practice this means: if your flight arrived 3 or more hours late, entitlement is still calculated exactly as shown in the calculator on this site — there is no change to how compensation is worked out right now, and none until the reform actually enters into force.
What is changing
The reform package covers more than the threshold: it also touches mandatory free cabin baggage allowance, clearer rules for missed connections booked as separate tickets, and clarified procedures for mass-disruption events. Exact wording will only be confirmed once the final legal text is published — this site will update its guides as soon as the official text is available.
When it takes effect
Formal adoption by Parliament and Council is expected in the second half of 2026, followed by publication in the Official Journal of the EU. A transition period is then expected before the new rules apply to flights, with entry into force anticipated in 2027. Until then, the current version of the regulation governs — and it is the current version this site's calculator applies.
Why this is worth checking now
The limitation period for filing a claim on a past delay is unrelated to the reform timeline — it runs from the flight date and ranges from 2 to 6 years depending on jurisdiction. If you had a delayed or cancelled flight in recent years that you never checked, the reform discussion is a good prompt to do it: the rules that applied on that date will not change retroactively.
The fee is deducted only from the compensation recovered. No payout — no fee.