Flight Delayed or Cancelled in France? EU261 Rights at Paris, Nice and Beyond
France has some of Europe's busiest airports and some of its best-known air traffic control strikes. If your flight from Paris, Nice or Lyon is late or cancelled, EU261 sets what the airline must do, and the cause of the disruption decides whether the regulation's fixed amounts come into play.
Main airports and airlines in France
Paris-Charles de Gaulle (CDG) is the hub of Air France, and Paris-Orly (ORY) is a major base for Transavia France and domestic flights. Other big airports are Nice (NCE), Lyon (LYS), Marseille (MRS), Toulouse (TLS), Bordeaux (BOD) and Nantes (NTE). easyJet, Volotea, Corsair and French bee also fly from France. Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg EuroAirport (BSL/MLH) sits on French territory even though it serves Basel.
When EU261 applies to flights in France
EU Regulation 261/2004 (EU261) generally covers you when:
- You depart from an airport in France, on any airline. So a US or Asian airline departing Paris is covered, as well as Air France.
- You fly into France from outside the EU on an airline licensed in the EU. An Air France flight into Paris from New York is covered on that leg.
France's overseas departments, such as Guadeloupe, Martinique and Réunion, are part of the EU. Flights between mainland France and these regions are treated as flights within the EU.
Delays: care, re-routing and refunds
Care starts once the departure is delayed by 2 hours on flights of 1,500 km or less (Paris to Nice, about 690 km), 3 hours on flights within the EU over 1,500 km and other flights of 1,500 to 3,500 km (Paris-Orly to Réunion, about 9,360 km, which counts as a flight within the EU), or 4 hours on longer flights (Paris to New York, about 5,830 km). It means meals and refreshments, two calls or emails, and a hotel plus transfers if you are stuck overnight. At 5 hours of delay you can choose not to travel and ask for a refund of the unused ticket. If the flight is cancelled, you choose between a refund and re-routing.
The fixed amounts in the regulation
The regulation sets fixed amounts per passenger of €250 (1,500 km or less), €400 (within the EU over 1,500 km, or 1,500 to 3,500 km) and €600 (other flights over 3,500 km) for arrivals 3+ hours late, cancellations with under 14 days' notice, and denied boarding. Long-haul amounts can be halved in some cases where you arrive within 4 hours of schedule. Whether any amount applies depends on the cause and the facts.
Extraordinary circumstances and local disruptions
The fixed amounts do not apply when the airline shows extraordinary circumstances, such as severe weather, air traffic control (ATC) restrictions or strikes, or security risks. The EU Court of Justice has generally said routine technical faults and strikes by the airline's own staff do not qualify. Care still applies either way. French ATC strikes are a recurring cause of disruption, and they can affect flights that only cross French airspace, such as Spain to the UK. A French ATC strike in July 2025 disrupted travel for over a million passengers. ATC strikes are generally treated as extraordinary. A strike by the airline's own pilots or cabin crew is different: the EU Court of Justice has generally said that is not extraordinary.
Where to complain in France
Write to the airline first and keep a copy. If that does not resolve it, contact the national enforcement body in the country where the problem happened. France's national enforcement body is the Direction générale de l'aviation civile (DGAC), Mission du Droit des passagers, Bureau des passagers aériens, in Paris. Complaints go through its online passenger rights portal: droits-passagers-aeriens.aviation-civile.gouv.fr.
Coming in 2027: Regulation (EU) 2026/2202 amends EU261. Most changes apply from 23 October 2027, including a general nine-month deadline for compensation requests. Until then, the current rules above apply.
FAQ
My flight was cancelled because of a French ATC strike. Is anything due? The airline must still offer a refund or re-routing and provide meals and a hotel if needed. The fixed amounts usually do not apply because ATC strikes are generally treated as extraordinary.
Is a flight from Paris to Réunion a long-haul flight under EU261? It is long, but it is treated as a flight within the EU, so it falls in the €400 band rather than the €600 band.
Who enforces EU261 in France? The DGAC, through its passenger rights complaint portal.
Related guides
- EU261 guide (en español)
- Flight cancelled: your options
- Missed connection guide
- All Europe flight delay guides
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