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How long do I have to request Canadian delay or cancellation compensation, and when must the airline respond?

For minimum delay or cancellation compensation under APPR section 19, send the request to the carrier before the first anniversary of the disruption. The carrier then has thirty days after receiving it to pay or explain why compensation is not payable. That is not the same clock as a refund, denied-boarding payment or court proceeding.

Traveler organizing trip records and next steps after a flight disruption

What this answer depends on

  • Travel within the applicable APPR scope, including the ticketed journey and the event-specific conditions. The consolidated source displays current-through 2026-07-21; check for later changes.
  • A request for the minimum compensation in section 19(1) or 19(2) must be filed with the carrier before the first anniversary of the day of the delay or cancellation.
  • Within 30 days after receiving that request, the carrier must provide compensation or an explanation of why it is not payable. The rule does not make every timely request eligible.
  • APPR refunds have a separate 30-day obligation-based deadline, while qualifying denied-boarding compensation has a separate payment rule of no later than 48 hours after the denial.

Important exceptions

  • The anniversary rule is specific to the identified section 19 compensation requests. It is not a universal Canadian limitation period for every travel loss. Timely filing cannot cure an ineligible cause, itinerary or arrival delay. Current law should be rechecked because the source consolidation predates the research day.

What to do next

  1. Use the airline’s designated written claim route and identify the disrupted flight, passenger, ticketed final destination and actual arrival. State that the request is for APPR delay or cancellation compensation.

  2. Submit well before the anniversary and preserve a dated copy and submission acknowledgment. Do not depend on an unsent draft or an unrelated service chat to establish receipt.

  3. Keep the compensation request separate from expense and refund submissions, while cross-referencing case numbers. This makes it possible to identify which response and deadline belong to which remedy.

  4. After a refusal or missing response, assemble the claim and proof of receipt for the appropriate escalation route. Check any separate dispute-resolution or court deadline rather than assuming the airline filing period covers everything.

  5. Have the disruption date, original ticket, actual final arrival, cause and notice evidence, requested remedy, complete submission, receipt acknowledgment and any response.

More booking questions

Does the thirty-day response rule guarantee payment?

No. The carrier may provide a reasoned explanation that compensation is not payable.

Checked againstAir Passenger Protection Regulations, SOR/2019-150

Is a ticket refund request automatically a delay-compensation claim?

Do not assume so. Identify the compensation remedy expressly and preserve proof of that request.

Checked againstAir Passenger Protection Regulations, SOR/2019-150

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