EU261 protects you based on where your flight departs from and, for flights from outside the EU, on which airline operates it, not on your nationality or where you live. A US, Canadian or Australian passenger leaving an EU airport is covered in the same way as an EU citizen. This guide sets out who and what is covered, and the exceptions.
Last updated: 5 October 2026.
Article 3(1) of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 applies the Regulation to:
So a flight from Frankfurt to New York is covered on any airline, while a flight from New York to Frankfurt is covered only if it is operated by an EU airline. Your nationality is irrelevant. The Commission's guidelines make the same point: what counts is the route and the operating airline.
According to the Commission's guidelines:
If a journey with several flights was booked as a single unit, the flights are considered together. To decide whether EU261 applies, the Court looks at the place of initial departure and the final destination, whatever the stopovers (Case C-537/17, Wegener). A journey that starts and ends outside the EU, with a stopover in the EU, is not covered (Case C-451/20, Airhelp). A return trip is not one flight: a return from outside the EU on a non-EU airline is not covered by Article 3(1)(a), even if both legs were booked together (Case C-173/07, Emirates Airlines). See our guide on connecting flights.
For flights from a non-EU country to the EU on an EU airline, EU261 does not apply if you received both benefits or compensation and assistance in that country. The word "and" matters: if you received only one of the two, you can still claim the other. The Court also held that you cannot be deprived of EU261 protection just because you received some compensation locally. The airline should show that what you received is equivalent in purpose and conditions to what EU261 provides (Case C-257/14, van der Lans; Case C-367/20, KLM).
It depends on the flight, not on nationality. A flight departing from an EU airport is covered on any airline. The UK has its own version of the rules for flights departing from UK airports.
No. A flight from a non-EU country to the EU is covered only if the operating airline is licensed in an EU country. The same US passenger flying from Europe to the US is covered on any airline.
Yes. They are part of the EU, and the Commission's guidelines list them among the territories where the Regulation applies.
Yes, through the EU-Swiss air transport agreement. Iceland and Norway are covered through the European Economic Area.
This guide is general information based on the sources above, not legal advice.
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