Delayed Flight Compensation in Poland: How Much You Get and How to Claim

If your flight from a Polish airport — or to Poland on an EU airline — was delayed by more than three hours, you may be entitled to a fixed sum of EUR 250, EUR 400 or EUR 600 under EU Regulation 261/2004. That is roughly PLN 1,100, PLN 1,750 or PLN 2,700 at the current rate. The amount depends on the length of the flight, not on what the ticket cost, and the airline will not pay it out by itself: you have to claim it. This guide walks through who is entitled to what, how the Polish institutions (the Rzecznik Praw Pasażerów at the Urząd Lotnictwa Cywilnego, the Sąd Rejonowy) fit in, and where the common traps sit.

The question "how does delayed flight compensation actually work?" comes up again and again on Polish travel forums — and the answer is simpler than the airlines like to make it sound. Three things decide it: how late you arrived, how far the flight was due to travel, and why the delay happened. We take them in turn.

Compensation is not a refund — keep them apart

The first thing to pin down, because it is the most common misunderstanding in the whole topic.

Compensation is a fixed flat-rate sum you receive for the inconvenience of a long delay. It is EUR 250 to EUR 600 and has nothing to do with the ticket price.

A refund is something else: it means getting the ticket price back, because you no longer want to (or can) make the trip.

With a delayed flight you usually still travel — you arrive, even if late. A refund is therefore rarely the right framing, and what you can claim is the fixed compensation for the inconvenience. The exception is a very long delay: once it passes five hours you have the right to give up the journey entirely and receive the ticket back instead. More on that further down.

Polish airlines (LOT, Ryanair operating out of Modlin and Kraków, Wizz Air operating out of Katowice and Gdańsk, and the rest) sometimes offer a voucher or a partial refund and present it as if the matter is closed. It is not. Refunding the ticket does not extinguish your right to the fixed compensation — they are two separate rights under EU 261/2004.

The three-hour rule — and why arrival is what counts

For a delay to trigger a right to compensation, you must have arrived at least three hours late at your final destination. This threshold is not spelled out in the 2004 regulation text itself — it was set by the Court of Justice of the European Union in Sturgeon (joined cases C-402/07 and C-432/07, 2009). The Court held that a passenger arriving three or more hours late should be treated on equal footing with a passenger whose flight was cancelled, when it comes to the fixed compensation right.

This is where many travellers misread the rule, so it is worth stating plainly: the three hours are measured at arrival, not at departure. What matters is the difference between the scheduled and actual arrival time at the final destination shown on the booking — that is, the moment the aircraft door opens and you can step off.

What that means in practice. An aircraft can leave Warsaw four hours late and still make up enough time in the air to land only two and a half hours behind schedule. There is then no compensation, however long the wait at the gate felt. And the other way round: an aircraft that departed "only" an hour late but had to circle for landing clearance can still touch down more than three hours late at the final destination — and the right is then triggered.

For connecting itineraries the same logic applies. The CJEU confirmed in Folkerts (C-11/11, 2013) that for a connecting journey on a single booking, what counts is the arrival delay at the final destination, not how late any intermediate leg was. If the Warsaw leg of a Warsaw–Frankfurt–Bangkok ticket runs an hour late but you reach Bangkok five hours behind schedule, your three-hour test is comfortably met. See our companion guide on missed connection compensation in Poland for the connection-specific details.

The amounts: EUR 250, EUR 400 and EUR 600

The size of the compensation is set by the length of the flight. It makes no difference what the ticket cost — a cheap low-cost ticket gives the same amount as a fully flexible business fare.

EUR is the legal unit — the amounts are set in euros under Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004. The złoty figures are approximate and move with the NBP rate, so treat them as guidance, not a precise promise. You will see slightly different conversions in various Polish sources, all calculated at different exchange rates against the same EUR figure.

One nuance for the longest flights. If your over-3,500 km flight is cancelled or heavily delayed but the airline reroutes you so that you still arrive with a more limited delay, the compensation may in some cases be halved to EUR 300. For a plain delay without rerouting, the full EUR 600 applies. For a flight from Warsaw to Singapore that finally arrives five hours late on the original aircraft, the full amount is due.

When the cause decides — extraordinary circumstances

You can have been five hours late on a long flight and still have no right to compensation. The reason is spelled extraordinary circumstances, set out in Article 5(3) of the regulation.

The airline avoids paying the fixed compensation if the delay was caused by something genuinely beyond its control that it could not have prevented even with all reasonable measures. The concept has existed since 2004 but has never been exhaustively defined in the legal text, which has made it an elastic clause that airlines stretch as far as they think they can.

Roughly divided, the picture looks like this:

A common misunderstanding: a technical fault is not automatically an extraordinary circumstance. The CJEU made this point sharply in Wallentin-Hermann (C-549/07, 2008), holding that technical defects belonging to the normal operation of an aircraft fall within the airline's responsibility. The Court reinforced the principle in van der Lans (C-257/14, 2015), ruling that a technical malfunction that comes to light during regular maintenance is not extraordinary either. Writing "technical reasons" in an email is not enough — the airline has to substantiate that a genuinely extraordinary circumstance existed.

Strikes are another grey area airlines like to exploit. The CJEU was direct in Krüsemann (C-195/17, 2018): a wildcat strike by the airline's own crew is part of normal commercial risk and does not qualify as extraordinary. Industrial action involving the carrier's own employees therefore does not, by itself, get the carrier off the hook.

Bird strikes are the other way round. In Pesková (C-315/15, 2017) the Court found that a bird strike can qualify as an extraordinary circumstance, provided the carrier took all reasonable measures afterwards.

Is your trip covered by EU 261?

EU 261 does not apply to every flight in the world. The rules cover your trip if either:

• the flight departed from an airport within the EU (plus Norway, Iceland and Switzerland), regardless of the airline operating it, or
• the flight landed at an airport within the EU and was operated by an airline based in the EU.

A flight Warsaw–London is always covered. A flight Bangkok–Warsaw is covered if it was operated by, say, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa or KLM — but not if a purely Thai carrier flew the whole route.

EU 261 also applies on equal terms to every airline within scope — LOT, Ryanair, Wizz Air, Lufthansa, KLM, easyJet, Eurowings and all the rest. A low-cost carrier carries exactly the same obligations as a network carrier. The compensation depends on flight distance, not on the operator's pricing model.

A delay of five hours or more

For a very long delay an additional right kicks in. Once the delay passes five hours, you have the right to give up the journey entirely. The airline must then refund the full ticket price for the part of the trip you did not make — and, where relevant, for already completed legs that have become pointless because you abandoned the trip.

This is the one situation where a refund genuinely matters in the delay context: you choose not to travel at all. If you go that route, you are also entitled to a return flight to your original point of departure, if you had already begun the journey.

One important point: accepting the refund for the ticket does not extinguish the right to the fixed EUR 250–600 compensation, provided the conditions for it are met. You can be entitled to both.

The duty of care — food, drink and a hotel

Alongside the fixed compensation sits the duty of care under Articles 8 and 9 of the regulation. It is tied to the waiting time, not to the cause — and so it never falls away, not even when the delay was driven by extreme weather or an air-traffic-control strike. The CJEU reinforced this in McDonagh (C-12/11, 2013), the volcanic-ash case, holding that even during an extraordinary event the carrier still owes care.

For a longer wait the airline must offer:

• food and drink in reasonable proportion to the waiting time,
• two phone calls or equivalent electronic contact,
• a hotel and transport there and back if you have to wait overnight.

If the airline offers nothing on the spot at Warsaw Chopin, Kraków Balice, Gdańsk or any other Polish airport — buy reasonable food yourself, book a reasonable hotel yourself, and keep all the receipts. You can reclaim those outlays from the carrier afterwards. "Reasonable" is the working standard: a hot meal and a mid-range hotel near the airport, not a tasting menu and a five-star suite.

Check your delayed flight claim in 2 minutes — up to EUR 600 with no win, no fee

Common tactics airlines use — and how to read them

The compensation is not paid out automatically, and airlines rarely volunteer the subject. A few patterns are worth recognising before you write your first email.

• A voucher instead of cash. An offer of a coupon, miles or points is not the same as the fixed EUR compensation. You have the right to refuse and demand cash.
• "Technical reasons" without detail. A blanket "technical issue" is not proof of an extraordinary circumstance. Ask for a specific, written cause. The Wallentin-Hermann line of CJEU rulings is on your side here.
• Silence and drawn-out handling. A case dragging on is not, in itself, a refusal. If you get no answer or a rejection you do not accept, you can escalate to the Rzecznik Praw Pasażerów at the ULC.
• "You have already received your compensation." A ticket refund or a reimbursed meal expense is not the fixed EU 261 compensation. Keep the categories separate when you write.

How to take the claim further in Poland

The Polish procedure follows a predictable three-stage path.

Stage 1: Written claim to the airline. Send a formal reklamacja in writing to the operating carrier's customer relations address. Include your booking reference, boarding passes, the actual arrival time at the final destination, and a clear demand for the EUR amount under Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004. The airline normally has 30 days to reply under Polish consumer practice.

Stage 2: Rzecznik Praw Pasażerów (RPP) at the ULC. If the airline refuses or goes silent, the Rzecznik Praw Pasażerów — the Passenger Rights Ombudsman operating under the Urząd Lotnictwa Cywilnego (ULC), the Polish Civil Aviation Authority — runs the alternative dispute resolution route for EU 261 claims involving flights from a Polish airport or operated by a Polish carrier. The RPP procedure is free for consumers and most airlines do respect its non-binding settlement proposals.

Stage 3: Sąd Rejonowy. If the RPP route fails, the next step is the civil court. EU 261 claims of this size are heard by the Sąd Rejonowy (District Court). Jurisdiction was confirmed by the CJEU in Rehder (C-204/08, 2009): a passenger may sue at either the airport of departure or the airport of arrival. For a delayed flight from Warsaw to Madrid, you can therefore file with the Sąd Rejonowy with jurisdiction over Warsaw Chopin, even if the dispute concerns the carrier's Spanish base.

Prescription period. Polish law gives you an unusually generous window. Under Article 118 of the Kodeks cywilny, the general prescription period for monetary claims is 6 years for claims arising after 9 July 2018 and 10 years for older claims (subject to the year-end rounding rule). The CJEU confirmed in Cuadrench Moré (C-139/11, 2013) that national prescription periods govern EU 261 claims, which means Polish passengers have one of the longest claim windows in the EU. A 2022 delay can still be acted on in 2026 without trouble — though, in practice, claim early while documentation is fresh.

If you would rather skip the paperwork, a passenger-rights service can pursue the claim for you on a commission basis. See our overview of EU 261 air passenger rights for the broader picture, and the Polish-language original at Odszkodowanie za opóźniony lot .

This is not legal advice

This page draws on the consolidated text of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 and the CJEU rulings cited above — it is informational and does not constitute legal advice for your individual case. For binding advice, contact the Rzecznik Praw Pasażerów at the Urząd Lotnictwa Cywilnego (ULC), or consult a Polish adwokat or radca prawny specialising in air passenger law.

Frequently asked questions

How does delayed flight compensation actually work?

EU 261 gives a fixed flat-rate sum — EUR 250, EUR 400 or EUR 600 — when you arrive at least three hours late at the final destination and the cause sat within the airline's control. The amount depends on the length of the flight, not on the ticket price. The compensation is not paid out automatically; you must claim it from the carrier, and if it refuses you escalate to the Rzecznik Praw Pasażerów at the ULC.

How many hours of delay are needed for compensation in Poland?

At least three hours, measured at arrival at your final destination. What counts is the difference between scheduled and actual arrival time at the gate — not how late the aircraft pushed back. If you arrived two hours and fifty minutes late, there is no right to the fixed compensation under the Sturgeon line of CJEU case law. At three hours the right is triggered.

Do I get compensation if the delay was caused by the weather?

Normally not. Extreme weather counts as an extraordinary circumstance beyond the airline's control, and the fixed compensation falls away. The duty of care — food, drink, and a hotel where needed — still applies even for a weather delay, as the CJEU confirmed in McDonagh (C-12/11). If the delay was instead caused by a technical fault or a missing crew, that sits with the airline and compensation can be due.

How long after the delay can I claim compensation in Poland?

Polish civil law gives you one of the most generous windows in the EU. Under Article 118 of the Kodeks cywilny, the general prescription period for monetary claims is currently 6 years for claims that arose after 9 July 2018 and 10 years for older claims, with the year-end rounding rule. The CJEU confirmed in Cuadrench Moré (C-139/11) that national prescription periods apply to EU 261 claims, so you have far longer to act than passengers in many neighbouring countries.

Does it matter that I flew a low-cost airline like Ryanair or Wizz Air?

No. EU 261 applies on equal terms to every airline within scope — low-cost, network and charter. The size of the compensation depends on flight distance, not on the ticket price. A delayed PLN 200 Wizz Air ticket from Katowice can yield EUR 400 in compensation on exactly the same terms as an expensive LOT business ticket on the same route.

What if the airline refuses and the Rzecznik Praw Pasażerów cannot resolve it?

If the airline rejects the claim and the RPP procedure does not produce a binding outcome, the next step is the Sąd Rejonowy (District Court) with jurisdiction over either the airport of departure or the airport of final destination, following the CJEU ruling in Rehder (C-204/08). For most Polish passengers that means filing in Warsaw, Kraków, Gdańsk or Katowice depending on where the journey began. A specialised claims agent can also handle this for you on a no-win-no-fee basis.

Sources and further reading

• Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 — consolidated text on EUR-Lex
• Court of Justice of the EU — Sturgeon and Others, joined cases C-402/07 and C-432/07 (the three-hour rule, delay measured at arrival)
• Court of Justice of the EU — Wallentin-Hermann (C-549/07, 2008): technical defects are not extraordinary circumstances
• Court of Justice of the EU — van der Lans (C-257/14, 2015): malfunction during routine maintenance is not extraordinary
• Court of Justice of the EU — Krüsemann (C-195/17, 2018): wildcat crew strike is not extraordinary
• Court of Justice of the EU — Folkerts (C-11/11, 2013): delay measured at the final destination on connecting journeys
• Court of Justice of the EU — Rehder (C-204/08, 2009): jurisdiction at the airport of departure or arrival
• Court of Justice of the EU — Cuadrench Moré (C-139/11, 2013): national prescription periods govern EU 261 claims
• Court of Justice of the EU — McDonagh (C-12/11, 2013): duty of care persists even in extraordinary circumstances
• Urząd Lotnictwa Cywilnego (ULC) — Rzecznik Praw Pasażerów: the Polish supervisory authority and ADR body for air passenger rights
• Kodeks cywilny art. 118 — Polish civil law prescription periods

Last reviewed: 2 June 2026.