Ryanair Delay or Cancellation? Claim Your Money Back

Probably, if you landed 3 or more hours late and the cause was within Ryanair's control.

• Cancellations notified under 14 days ahead also qualify.
• Denied boarding on an oversold flight qualifies.
• Almost every route departs an EU, EEA or UK airport.
• The reason given at the gate often differs from the one on file.

Between 250 and 600 EUR per passenger, or 220 to 520 GBP on UK departures.

• Up to 1,500 km pays 250 EUR.
• 1,500 to 3,500 km pays 400 EUR.
• The 600 EUR band rarely applies on short-haul.
• Everyone on the booking is paid separately, children included.

Yes, more completely than for most carriers.

• Ryanair is an Irish airline, so it is an EU carrier.
• Every EU or EEA departure is covered.
• Arrivals into the EU from Morocco or Albania are covered too.
• UK departures fall under UK261 instead, in pounds.

Ryanair publishes its own EU261 claim form and criteria.

Not if you want cash, and not as a settlement of your compensation.

• Wallet balances transfer to your card in 5 working days on request.
• EU261 gives you the right to cash, not credit.
• Accepting credit does not waive a compensation claim.
• Ask in writing for the original payment method.

Usually years, because the deadline comes from national law, not EU261.

• Ireland and England and Wales allow 6 years.
• Spain, France and Scotland allow around 5.
• Germany, Portugal and Austria allow 3.
• Italy and the Netherlands are the tightest, around 2.

You can still claim compensation directly from Ryanair; only the fare refund is routed differently.

• Compensation is the operating airline's obligation, always.
• Refunds flow back through the original booking channel.
• Ryanair needs a customer verification form for OTA bookings.
• Expect weeks rather than days on those refunds.

Escalate. A first denial is standard practice, not a final answer.

• Keep the denial letter and the exact reason cited.
• Escalation to the enforcement body is free.
• Irish-departure claims go to Ireland's aviation regulator.
• UK-departure claims go to an ADR body or the CAA.

Regulator routes: Ireland (aviationreg.ie) and UK CAA complaints.

Not for flights that have already happened.

• Parliament and the Council reached political agreement on 15 June 2026.
• The 3-hour threshold and the 250 to 600 EUR scale were retained.
• Formal adoption is expected in 2026, applying from 2027.
• Current EU261 rules remain fully in force until then.

You pay nothing upfront and 30% only on money actually recovered.

• No recovery means no fee at all.
• The same rate covers refunds, compensation and expense claims.
• It undercuts the 35% to 50% charged by the biggest claim firms.
• Appeals and escalations are included, not billed separately.

Bulk and B2B processing is available via For Business.

Historic Tel Aviv flights can still be worth checking, even though Ryanair is not currently serving the route.

• Ryanair says service restarts only once Ben Gurion slots are confirmed.
• Israel's Aviation Services Law uses an 8-hour delay threshold.
• Conflict-driven airspace closures are normally extraordinary.
• Refunds and duty of care survive even where cash compensation does not.

Those are usually where the forgotten money is, and the same scan covers them.

• EU261 pays up to 600 EUR on any EU or EEA departure, any airline.
• UK261 pays up to 520 GBP on UK departures.
• Canada's APPR pays up to CAD 1,000 for controllable delays.
• US DOT rules require cash refunds for cancelled or changed flights.

Check a single route with the Compensation Calculator, or let Autopilot scan up to 3 years of flight history in one pass.