Background

Passenger rights include accessibility and assistance, access to information, compensation, contract fulfilment during disruptions and effective complaint handling. These rights apply to 13 billion trips annually, yet awareness remains low and disruptions such as delays, cancellations, overbooking and lost luggage are common. Clearer, more consistent rules and effective enforcement are therefore essential to ensure passengers can understand and exercise their rights.

European Commission proposal

On 29 November 2023, the European Commission published its legislative proposal as part of a passenger mobility package. It aims to strengthen enforcement of passenger rights across all transport modes by improving national authorities' monitoring tools and complaint handling. It would also clarify and simplify airline ticket reimbursement, particularly for bookings through intermediaries, and improve information‑sharing and passenger information. The proposal would amend five existing EU regulations, and introduce measures such as common reimbursement and compensation forms, risk‑based enforcement, service quality standards, and stronger cooperation between authorities.

European Parliament and Council positions

The Council's 2024 December general approach aimed to improve legal clarity and coherence with the rules on multimodal journeys. It defines 'recognised assistance dog' and simplifies reimbursement and compensation procedures, reduces administrative burdens by removing certain monitoring and cooperation provisions, and clarifies airline ticket reimbursement through intermediaries in line with case law.

The report of the Committee on Transport and Tourism, adopted in June 2025, proposed clearer rules for tickets purchased through intermediaries, including transparent pricing, fee‑free refunds and assistance with alternatives during disruption; more accessible complaint handling through advance information, a common European form and automatic compensation in certain cases; stronger and more harmonised enforcement by independent national enforcement bodies (NEBs), with enhanced powers to investigate, gather information, cooperate across borders and impose penalties; and clearer definitions of key rights.

Interinstitutional negotiations concluded with a provisional agreement on 15 July 2026, endorsed by the TRAN committee on 2 September 2026. It strengthens rights to information, compensation, reimbursement and complaint handling, introduces a common EU form for air, sea and bus travel while retaining the existing rail form, and clarifies air‑ticket intermediaries' obligations, including fee disclosure and reimbursement within 14 days in certain cases. It also strengthens protections for passengers with disabilities or reduced mobility, gives enforcement bodies stronger proactive investigation powers, and aligns complaint deadlines for sea and bus/coach passengers with the three‑month period applicable to rail.