Flight Cancelled or Delayed? US Airline Refund Rules Explained (2026)

Your flight has been cancelled, or moved by five hours, and the airline is offering a travel credit. Do you have to take it? In the United States, the answer is often no. Since 2024, federal rules from the US Department of Transportation (DOT) have spelled out when airlines must give you your money back, how fast, and even when it must happen automatically.

Quick answer: under 14 CFR Part 260, if a flight to, from or within the US is cancelled or significantly delayed or changed (3+ hours for domestic, 6+ hours for international itineraries) and you choose not to travel or accept a voucher, the airline must give you a full refund, including taxes and fees, even on a nonrefundable ticket. It must pay within 7 business days for credit card purchases and 20 calendar days for other payment methods.

Below we explain what counts as a cancellation or significant change, when refunds are automatic, refunds for bag fees and paid extras, vouchers, and how this compares with the UK and EU. Everything comes from the official text of the regulation.

Who Do the Rules Cover?

The rules cover covered carriers, which means US and foreign airlines running scheduled passenger flights to, from or within the United States. A covered flight includes itineraries with brief stopovers abroad, as long as there is no “break in journey” (generally a deliberate stopover of more than 24 hours). So a European or Asian airline flying you to or from the US must follow these refund rules too.

Refunds are paid by the merchant of record, the company that took your payment, as shown on your card statement. That may be the airline or a travel agent.

What Counts as a Cancellation or Significant Change?

A cancelled flight is a flight that was published in the airline’s reservation system when you bought your ticket but was not operated.

A significantly delayed or changed flight, according to 14 CFR 260.2, is one where, because of the airline’s change or delay:

• you are scheduled to depart 3 or more hours earlier (domestic) or 6 or more hours earlier (international) than originally scheduled;
• you are scheduled to arrive 3 or more hours later (domestic) or 6 or more hours later (international);
• you must depart from or arrive at a different airport;
• your new itinerary has more connections than the original;
• you are downgraded to a lower class of service, such as from business to economy;
• for passengers with disabilities, the new trip uses different connecting airports, or a substitute aircraft lacks accessibility features they need.

When Is the Refund Automatic?

The rule says airlines must give an automatic refund, without waiting for you to ask, when your right to it is clear. Under 14 CFR 260.6, a full refund of the fare, taxes and paid extras is due when:

• the flight is cancelled and the airline offers no alternative flight and no voucher, credit or other compensation;
• you reject the significantly changed flight, the rebooking offered, or any voucher or credit;
• you do not respond to an offer of a changed or alternative flight and it departs without you;
• you do not respond to an offer of a voucher or credit by the date the cancelled flight was due to leave, or the date the changed flight departs.

In other words: if you do not want the new flight or the credit, you are entitled to your money, and you do not need to fight for it.

How Fast Must Airlines Pay?

The deadlines run from the earliest date the refund became due. Refunds must go back to your original form of payment (card, cash, check or even airline miles) unless you agree to a different cash-equivalent form, and airlines may not keep a processing fee, says 14 CFR 260.10.

Vouchers and Travel Credits

Airlines can still offer you a voucher, credit or rebooking as an alternative, and some travelers prefer that. But the choice is yours: if you decline, the refund is due. Before accepting a credit, check its expiry date, whether it is transferable and whether it covers taxes and fees.

Refunds for Bag Fees and Paid Extras

Delayed checked bags

If you paid a checked bag fee and your bag is significantly delayed, you are owed a refund of that fee. The rule defines a significantly delayed bag as one not delivered to you:

• within 12 hours of the last flight’s arrival on domestic itineraries;
• within 15 hours on international itineraries whose nonstop flight between the US and a foreign point is 12 hours or less;
• within 30 hours on international itineraries whose nonstop US leg is longer than 12 hours.

Seats, Wi-Fi, lounges and other extras

Under 14 CFR 260.4, airlines must give a prompt, automatic refund for paid extras you did not receive through no fault of your own. The rule’s examples include advance seat selection, Wi-Fi, in-flight entertainment, meals, seat upgrades and lounge access, for example when a flight is cancelled or the aircraft is swapped. If a service like Wi-Fi fails for the whole flight, the refund duty starts when the airline knows; if it fails only for you, tell the airline, and that notification counts as your refund request.

Worked Examples

These examples apply the definitions in 14 CFR 260.2 to typical trips. Each airline’s own policies, and other rules such as compensation for being bumped from an oversold flight, may give you more.

Airline Notifications

Airlines must tell affected passengers promptly about a cancellation or significant change, including the alternatives to a refund, and must tell passengers who are owed a refund about their right to it, through the channels they subscribe to, such as email, text or app notifications.

US Refund Rules vs UK and EU Compensation

For the UK side, read our guide to flight delay compensation in the UK. If you are flying abroad from the US, you may also find our TSA PreCheck vs Global Entry guide useful.

What to Do if Your Flight Is Cancelled

• Decide quickly: do you want the new flight, a credit, or your money back?
• Do not accept a voucher by accident: read any offer carefully before clicking.
• If you want a refund, decline the alternatives or request it through the airline or travel agent you paid.
• Keep records: booking confirmation, notifications and receipts for paid extras.
• Check your card statement after 7 business days (credit card) or 20 days (other methods).

Key Takeaways

• US rules apply to all airlines flying to, from or within the US.
• Cancelled or significantly changed flights entitle you to a full cash refund if you choose not to travel.
• Significant means 3+ hours (domestic) or 6+ hours (international), a different airport, extra connections or a downgrade.
• Refunds are often automatic and must be paid within 7 business days (cards) or 20 days (other methods).
• Bag fees for significantly delayed bags and fees for extras you did not get must also be refunded.
• Unlike the UK and EU, there is no fixed cash compensation for delays.

Frequently Asked Questions

Featured image: FlyingFuel graphic using a photo of flight information screens at Washington National Airport by G. Edward Johnson, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.