Air Canada EUR 600, GBP 520 or CAD 1,000: which amount applies?
Short answer: the amount follows the legal system, route and final delay. A qualifying long-haul EU261 claim can reach EUR 600, a qualifying UK261 claim can reach GBP 520, and an APPR delay or cancellation claim against a large carrier can reach CAD 1,000. These figures are not interchangeable and should not be stacked for the same inconvenience.
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Check your case in the form
Enter your route, date and type of disruption. We will check whether your case qualifies for a claim under EU 261/2004 or UK261.
What happened to your flight?
Claim up to €600 for a delayed or cancelled flight.
Choose the situation that applies to your flight:
Amounts and official guidance were checked on 19 September 2026.
Compare the bands before choosing a number
| System | Main long-haul amount relevant to Air Canada | Key timing test |
|---|---|---|
| EU261 | EUR 600 | generally at least 4 hours late for the full long-haul amount; EUR 300 can apply at 3 to under 4 hours |
| UK261 | GBP 520 | generally at least 4 hours late for the full long-haul amount; GBP 260 can apply at 3 to under 4 hours |
| APPR, large airline | CAD 1,000 | at least 9 hours late for a controllable, non-safety delay or cancellation |
APPR also provides CAD 400 at 3 to under 6 hours and CAD 700 at 6 to under 9 hours. EU261 contains EUR 250 and EUR 400 distance bands, although most direct Europe-Canada itineraries are in the over-3,500-km category.
EUR 600 starts with a covered European departure
Air Canada can owe EU261 compensation when the protected journey departs the EU, EEA or Switzerland. The direct long-haul distance often reaches the EUR 600 category. The payment still depends on the final delay, cause, cancellation notice or denied-boarding facts.
Examples:
- Lisbon-Toronto on Air Canada, arriving five hours late after a routine operational fault: potentially EUR 600.
- Toronto-Lisbon on Air Canada with the same delay: normally not EU261; assess APPR.
- Toronto-Frankfurt operated by Lufthansa: the EU operator can change the inbound result.
Distance alone never proves entitlement.
GBP 520 requires UK261 coverage
An Air Canada departure from a UK airport can fall within UK261. For long-haul delay, GBP 260 applies to a qualifying three-to-four-hour final delay and GBP 520 to a qualifying delay of four hours or more.
An Air Canada-operated Toronto-London flight normally falls outside UK261 because Air Canada is not a UK or EU carrier. APPR remains relevant. A British Airways-operated inbound flight can be different.
APPR calculates time differently from a simple EUR conversion
Canadian compensation is not the euro amount converted into Canadian dollars. APPR uses its own final-arrival bands and control categories.
| APPR arrival delay | Large-airline payment |
|---|---|
| 3 to under 6 hours | CAD 400 |
| 6 to under 9 hours | CAD 700 |
| 9 hours or more | CAD 1,000 |
The event must be within airline control and not required for safety, with the other regulatory conditions met. A weather event outside control does not become payable merely because the delay reaches nine hours.
Families calculate per eligible passenger
A family of five on one booking is not one compensation unit. Each ticketed passenger who meets the conditions can have an individual statutory amount. The payer and lead booker do not absorb everyone else's entitlement.
Example: five passengers travel Madrid-Toronto on Air Canada and arrive six hours late after a controllable non-extraordinary event. A qualifying EU261 claim can be 5 x EUR 600 = EUR 3,000. Meals and hotel are added only as proven, reasonable expenses. Any APPR payment for the same inconvenience must be disclosed rather than added blindly.
Infants without their own seat require a careful ticket and fare analysis. Do not promise an amount without confirming that the passenger held a qualifying reservation under the applicable regime.
Cancellation and denied boarding use their own calculations
The long-delay table does not replace cancellation notice rules. Under EU or UK rules, notice and replacement-flight timings can reduce or remove fixed compensation. APPR uses control categories and final-arrival delay.
Denied boarding has a distinct Canadian scale: CAD 900 for a delay under six hours, CAD 1,800 for six to under nine hours and CAD 2,400 for nine hours or more when the APPR compensation conditions are met. Do not use the CAD 2,400 figure for an ordinary delay.
The Air Canada denied-boarding guide separates voluntary offers from involuntary bumping.
Ticket price does not set fixed compensation
A discounted ticket, an Aeroplan reward or a low base fare does not automatically reduce the statutory fixed amount. Ticket value matters for reimbursement, downgrade calculations and unused services, which are different remedies.
An expensive Business Class fare does not increase EU261 fixed compensation above the statutory band. It can, however, create a separate downgrade or service claim.
Avoid duplicate recovery
One transatlantic disruption can fall within APPR and EU261 or UK261. That overlap should prompt comparison, not arithmetic addition.
Use this claim structure:
- identify every potentially applicable system;
- calculate each result separately;
- choose the strongest legally supportable fixed claim;
- disclose compensation already received;
- add only distinct refund, care and documented-loss items.
The passenger should not describe a meal receipt as part of the EUR 600 amount. It belongs on a separate expense line.
Currency does not change the legal band
The headline currencies belong to different legal systems; they are not menu options. A traveller cannot choose CAD 1,000 simply because its converted value is higher than EUR 600, or demand both amounts for the same arrival delay. State the route test first, then the statutory band and currency.
If Air Canada pays an accepted amount in another currency, preserve the payment date, exchange rate and bank statement. Challenge a shortfall with transparent arithmetic rather than a live converter screenshot taken weeks later. Card and receiving-bank fees should be itemised separately. A voucher, Aeroplan credit or discount code is not automatically equivalent to the required monetary payment merely because Air Canada assigns it a headline value.
For a family claim, keep one row per passenger, original currency and legal basis. This makes accidental duplication visible and prevents one converted household total from hiding an unpaid passenger.
FAQ
Is EUR 600 automatic for every Air Canada transatlantic delay?
No. EU261 coverage, final delay, cause and other conditions must all be met. A Canada-origin Air Canada flight is normally outside EU261.
When does APPR pay CAD 1,000?
For a large airline, the current maximum delay or cancellation amount requires arrival at least nine hours late and an event within airline control that was not required for safety, plus the remaining conditions.
Can I convert CAD 1,000 into EUR 600 and choose both?
No. They are different statutory awards. Compare them and avoid duplicate recovery for the same inconvenience.
Is compensation paid per booking or per person?
Fixed passenger compensation is generally assessed per eligible passenger, even when one person bought all tickets.
Does Business Class receive more fixed compensation?
No. Cabin price does not increase the fixed delay band, although downgrade and unprovided-service remedies can be separate.
Is CAD 2,400 available for a delayed flight?
That figure belongs to qualifying involuntary denied boarding with a final delay of at least nine hours, not an ordinary APPR delay claim.