The Air Passenger Protection Regulations (SOR/2019-150) are federal rules made under the Canada Transportation Act and enforced by the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA). They set out what an airline must do when your flight is delayed, cancelled, or overbooked, when you are held on the tarmac, or when your baggage is lost or damaged. The APPR applies to every flight to, from, or within Canada, on any airline, including connecting flights.

If the disruption is within the airline's control, including when the airline says it was required for safety, and you wait two hours past your scheduled departure (after being told less than 12 hours in advance), the airline must give you food, drink, and a way to communicate, free of charge. If you are delayed overnight, it must arrange a hotel and transportation to and from it. For a delay of three hours or more, or for a cancellation, you are also entitled to rebooking or a refund. AirsideAid shows which of these apply to your situation.

Yes. The airline must tell you the reason, and it falls into one of three categories: within the airline's control, within its control but required for safety, or outside its control. Standards of treatment and compensation apply when the disruption is within the airline's control. For safety-related disruptions you still get treatment but no compensation for inconvenience. When the cause is outside the airline's control, you are still owed rebooking or a refund, but not meals or hotels.

When a delay or cancellation is within the airline's control and not required for safety, you were told about it 14 days or less before departure, and you arrive three or more hours late, large airlines must pay $400 (3 to 6 hours late), $700 (6 to 9 hours), or $1,000 (9 or more hours). Small airlines pay $125, $250, or $500. This is separate from the meals and hotel you are owed at the airport. You must claim from the airline within one year, and it has 30 days to respond. Our Flight Delay Compensation Calculator can estimate your amount.

Before bumping anyone, the airline must first ask for volunteers, and it cannot deny boarding to a passenger who has already boarded unless it is required for safety. If you are involuntarily denied boarding for a reason within the airline's control and not required for safety, such as overbooking, you are owed $900, $1,800, or $2,400 depending on how late you arrive at your destination, paid within 48 hours, along with standards of treatment and rebooking or a refund.

During any tarmac delay the airline must provide working washrooms, proper ventilation, food and drink, and a way to communicate with people outside the aircraft. If the delay on the tarmac reaches three hours and there is no imminent prospect of take-off, the airline must give you the chance to leave the aircraft, as long as it is safe to do so.

If your baggage is lost, delayed, or damaged, an airline can be liable for up to approximately $2,350 per passenger. That limit comes from the Montreal Convention for international travel, and the APPR applies a similar limit to travel within Canada. The airline must also refund any baggage fees you paid. Report the problem to the airline as soon as possible and keep your receipts. Our Baggage Compensation Calculator can help you estimate what you are owed.

No. AirsideAid is a guidance tool that tells you what the airline must do for you right now, such as providing meals, a hotel, rebooking, or a refund. Compensation for inconvenience is a separate, fixed payment you claim from the airline within one year of the disruption. AirsideAid is provided for educational and reference purposes only and is not legal advice.