Flight delay compensation

Claiming flight delay compensation from Air Canada

Air Canada is licensed in Canada. Here is which rules cover its flights, a claim you can send today without a claims company, and where Air Canada takes it.

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General information, not legal advice. Not a promise of payment. AirwayControl is not affiliated with Air Canada.

Which rules cover Air Canada flights

It depends on where the flight departs and, on the way in, on where the airline is licensed. Air Canada is licensed in Canada. EU 261 and UK 261 cover a flight into Europe or the United Kingdom from elsewhere only on an airline licensed there, so on Air Canada they cover the flights that depart from there. A flight to or from Canada is under Canada's rules.

Departing an airport in the EU, Norway, Iceland or Switzerland, on any airline: EU 2613+ h late at your final destination: you may be owed €250–€600, by distance.
Arriving there from elsewhere on Air Canada: Not EU 261Air Canada is licensed in Canada, outside the countries these rules cover.
Departing the United Kingdom, on any airline: UK 2613+ h late at your final destination: you may be owed £220–£520, by distance.
Arriving in the United Kingdom on Air Canada: Not UK 261Air Canada is licensed in Canada, outside the countries these rules cover.
Departing Türkiye, on any airline: Turkish rules3+ h late at your final destination: you may be owed €100–€600, by distance.
To or from Canada, on any airline: Canadian rules3+ h late at your destination: you may be owed CA$125–CA$1,000, by delay and airline size.

What Canadian rules say beyond the sum

While you wait: From 2 h: food and drink. A hotel if you're stuck overnight.
Refund or rebooking: From 3 h: rebooking, or the fare back if the rebooking doesn't work for you.
Connections: On one booking the 3 h counts at your final destination — a short delay that costs you the connection can still reach it.
When nothing is owed: No compensation if it was outside the airline's control, or required for safety. Outside its control also removes the meals and hotel.
Time limits: Compensation must be claimed within 1 year of the flight. The airline has 30 days to answer.

The lines above are the ones AirwayControl shows for a route under these rules. More in the guide to the Canadian rules.

Where to send a claim to Air Canada

Air Canada takes complaints and claims through its own page. Have the claim below ready and paste it in, or copy the details from it.

The Air Canada page

https://www.aircanada.com/customerrelations

Air Canada says it does not take claims by email. Its own page is the only way in.

If Air Canada says no, or does not answer

Take it to the complaints body in the country you departed from. For a flight under the Canadian rules, start at otc-cta.gc.ca. For one that departed from the EU, Norway, Iceland or Switzerland, the European Commission keeps the list of national bodies; from the United Kingdom, start at caa.co.uk.

Link and address read on the airline's own site and last checked 13 August 2026.

The claim, addressed to Air Canada

This is the claim AirwayControl writes. It names the rules, asks for what they provide and asks Air Canada to give its reasons if it says no. It names no sum, because the airline works that out. Fill in the brackets and send it yourself.

Dear Air Canada,

I am writing about flight [flight number] on [date]. I am claiming the compensation and assistance I am entitled to as a passenger on that flight.

Flight details
Flight number: [flight number]
Date: [date]
Route: [from] to [to]
Scheduled arrival: [time]
Booking reference: [reference]

[What happened: for example, "The flight arrived 3 hours 20 minutes late" or "The flight was cancelled on the day".]

I understand this flight is covered by Canada's Air Passenger Protection Regulations, and I am claiming the compensation and standard of treatment that applies. If you consider the disruption was outside your control or required for safety, please say so and explain why.

Please confirm receipt and let me know the outcome in writing. If you consider that compensation is not due, please tell me the specific reason and the evidence you rely on.

Kind regards,
[your name]

The claim names the Canadian rules. If the table above puts your flight under other rules, change that sentence. Under EU 261, write: “I understand this flight is covered by Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, and I am claiming the compensation and any right to care that applies. If you consider that extraordinary circumstances apply, please set out what they were and what measures you took.” Under UK 261, write: “I understand this flight is covered by the UK version of Regulation 261/2004, and I am claiming the compensation and any right to care that applies. If you consider that extraordinary circumstances apply, please set out what they were and what measures you took.” Under Turkish rules, write: “I understand this flight is covered by the Turkish regulation on air passenger rights (SHY-YOLCU), and I am claiming the compensation and any right to care that applies.”

AirwayControl

Or let the app fill it in.

AirwayControl is a flight tracker for iPhone and Apple Watch. Set your flight before you leave, and it follows the day for you. If the day goes wrong, it already knows the details the claim needs.

It tells you when it matters. A notification when your flight lands three hours late or more.
It knows which rules cover your route. EU 261, UK 261 and the rules of 18 more countries, in plain words.
It fills in the claim. Airline, flight number, date and route come from My Flight.
You send it. From your own email, or through the airline's own claim form with every answer ready to copy.
No fee and no share. AirwayControl never takes a part of what you receive.

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Questions people ask

Where do I send a compensation claim to Air Canada?

Through the Air Canada page at aircanada.com. Write to the airline that operated the flight first; a complaints body comes after.

Does Air Canada take compensation claims by email?

Air Canada says it does not take claims by email. Its own page is the only way in.

Which rules cover Air Canada flights?

Air Canada is licensed in Canada. EU 261 and UK 261 cover a flight into Europe or the United Kingdom from elsewhere only on an airline licensed there, so on Air Canada they cover the flights that depart from there. A flight to or from Canada is under Canada's rules.

Does AirwayControl send the claim to Air Canada?

No. AirwayControl fills in the claim and the answers the Air Canada page asks for, and you send them yourself. AirwayControl never sends or handles a claim for you, and takes no share.

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By airline

Where each airline takes a claim, and which rules cover its flights.

Europe

The Americas

Middle East, Africa and Asia

By country

What the rules of each country say. The main guide covers EU 261.

Europe

The Americas

Asia

General information about air passenger rules, not legal advice and not a promise of payment. Your airline decides; a complaints body decides on appeal. AirwayControl never submits or handles claims: the mail is yours, from your own account. Rules last checked 9 August 2026. Airline links last checked 13 August 2026. AirwayControl is not affiliated with Air Canada.

Official page for the Canadian rules: otc-cta.gc.ca. Sources: Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 and the European Union's own guide to air passenger rights.