EU261 · AF
Air France flight compensation
Air France owes €250, €400 or €600 depending on distance when you arrive three hours or more late, or your flight is cancelled at short notice, for a reason within its control. Claim through Air France directly first; if it refuses, the enforcement body of the country you departed from is free, and Air France is a member of the German conciliation body Schlichtung Reise & Verkehr.
Checked against its sources
Typical amounts
€250 · €400 · €600
£220 · £350 · £520 under UK261. On a flight over 3,500 km outside the EU the amount can be halved if you arrive no more than four hours late, Art 7(2)(c).
Regulator
Where you departed
Home regulator: DGAC (France) (competent for flights departing France). Otherwise complain to the body where your flight departed, or for a flight into the EU from outside, the arrival country: see enforcement bodies.
Registered in
France
An EU carrier, so EU261 also covers its flights into the EU from outside, including long-haul arrivals Art 3(1)(b).
Where to send it
- Claim first
- Start from Air France’s passenger rights page and check it for the current claim form; we could not confirm the form’s own address.
- UK flights
- Air France is not on the CAA’s list of airlines in an approved ADR scheme, so on a UK flight the CAA’s Passenger Advice and Complaints Team may help (its view is not binding).
- Germany
- Air France is on the member list of Schlichtung Reise & Verkehr (formerly söp), the German conciliation body, dated 1 July 2026.
- Anywhere else
- The enforcement body of the country you departed from, or for a flight into the EU from outside, the arrival country Art 16. Free to use.
Before you accept a refusal
Our advice, not a description of how Air France handles claims.
- An air traffic control strike is an example of an extraordinary circumstance in recital 14, but the airline still has to show it caused your delay and that it took all reasonable measures, Art 5(3).
- A strike by the airline’s own staff is not an extraordinary circumstance under current law (Airhelp v SAS, C-28/20).
- On long-haul offers, check the arithmetic: the 50% reduction in Art 7(2) applies only where the arrival delay is within the limit for the distance (four hours on flights over 3,500 km).
- The deadline for going to court is set by the country whose courts hear the claim, not by the airline: see time limits by country.
Claim it yourself first
- Write to Air France quoting the article. “I am claiming under Article 7 for a delayed arrival on [flight] on [date].” Free, and you keep the whole amount. Use the template.
- Give them 28 days and diary the deadline.
- Refuse a voucher offered in place of cash.
- Escalate free to the enforcement body of the country you departed from, if they refuse.
- Only then consider a claims service.
Doing it yourself costs nothing and keeps the full amount.
Questions
How much compensation can I claim from Air France?
The amount depends on flight distance, not on the airline or your fare: €250, €400 or €600 under Article 7(1), or £220, £350 or £520 under UK261. Air France flies long-haul, so all three bands occur; on flights over 3,500 km the amount can be halved where the arrival delay is no more than four hours.
How do I claim compensation from Air France?
Claim from Air France directly, starting from its passenger rights page, quoting Article 7 and your flight number, and allow 28 days. If it refuses, escalate free to the enforcement body of the country you departed from.
Which regulator covers Air France?
It depends on where the flight departed, not on the airline. France's DGAC handles flights departing France; for a flight from another EU country, complain to that country's body, and for a flight into the EU from outside, to the arrival country's body (Article 16).