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Canada flight delay compensation: the APPR amounts, in Canadian dollars

Canada does not use Europe's euro bands. The Air Passenger Protection Regulations pay set amounts only when the delay or cancellation was within the airline's control and not required for safety.

R. Singh

City guide editor

5 min readUpdated 21 Jul 2026
Canada flight delay compensation: the APPR amounts, in Canadian dollars
Canada flight delay compensation: the APPR amounts, in Canadian dollars

Canada flight delay compensation is set in Canadian dollars by the Air Passenger Protection Regulations, not by EU261. It is owed for a delay or cancellation within the airline's control that was not required for safety, when you arrive at the ticketed destination three hours late or more. A delay the airline had to make for safety, or one outside its control, follows different duties. Quoting €600 for a snowstorm in Montreal is how claims go wrong.

Airplane on approach to a runway with mountains in the distance
Canadian amounts are in dollars, and they depend on whether the airline controlled the delay.

Three buckets, not one

The APPR text splits disruptions. Within the airline's control, and not required for safety: rebooking or a refund, standards of treatment, and compensation for inconvenience. Within control but required for safety: rebooking and treatment, without that inconvenience payment. Outside the airline's control, such as weather or an air-traffic instruction: a narrower set of obligations, and no compensation for inconvenience under these sections.

Large airlines, those that carried at least two million passengers in each of the past two calendar years, pay more than small ones. The Canadian Transportation Agency's examples of large carriers include Air Canada, WestJet, Air Transat, Porter, and Flair. An airline's tariff has to say which it is. The list can change. The CTA explains the size test.

Minimum compensation for a controllable delay or cancellation, not required for safety
How late you arriveLarge airlineSmall airline
3 hours to under 6$400$125
6 hours to under 9$700$250
9 hours or more$1,000$500

If you take a refund instead, the minimum is $400 on a large airline and $125 on a small one. You must request compensation from the airline before the first anniversary of the disruption. The airline has 30 days to pay or explain. Those deadlines are in the regulation.

Denied boarding is a higher scale

Overbooking within the airline's control, and not required for safety, uses $900, $1,800, and $2,400, based on whether you arrive under six hours late, six to nine, or nine or more. The carrier is supposed to pay within 48 hours. This scale does not change with airline size.

More on that limit is on AirHelp's Canada rights page.

Does APPR apply to a US airline flying Toronto to New York?

Flights to, from, and within Canada can be covered, including foreign airlines on those routes. Compensation still depends on the control and safety tests, and on airline size.

Tags

Canada flight compensationAPPRAir Canadaflight delay Canada2026

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