If your flight to or from Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport (BUD) was delayed, cancelled, or you were denied boarding, you may be entitled to cash compensation under EU Regulation 261/2004 ("EU261") - on top of a refund or rebooking. This guide covers exactly how much you can claim, when airlines are exempt, and how to actually get paid.
Do you qualify for EU261 compensation?
EU261 applies to your flight if:
- You departed from Budapest Airport (BUD) on any airline, regardless of nationality, or
- You arrived at Budapest Airport on an EU-based airline flying in from outside the EU, or
- You flew between two EU airports on an EU carrier.
You're covered if your flight was delayed by 3 hours or more at arrival, cancelled with less than 14 days' notice, or you were denied boarding due to overbooking. It doesn't matter whether you booked direct, through an agent, or as part of a package - the right belongs to the passenger.
How much compensation can you claim?
Compensation is fixed by distance of the originally booked flight, not by how delayed you were, as long as you cleared the 3-hour threshold:
| Flight distance | Compensation | Example route from Budapest |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 1,500 km | €250 | Vienna, Berlin, Milan, Warsaw |
| 1,500-3,500 km (or any intra-EU flight over 1,500 km) | €400 | London, Paris, Madrid, Athens |
| Over 3,500 km | €600 | New York, Dubai, Bangkok |
If the airline manages to rebook you on a replacement flight that arrives with only a small extra delay compared to your original schedule, the compensation can be reduced by 50% for the two longer distance bands - but the €250 tier for short flights is not reducible below the full amount once the 3-hour bar is cleared.
When airlines don't have to pay: "extraordinary circumstances"
Airlines are exempt from paying compensation (though they still owe you meals, hotel accommodation and rebooking) when the disruption is caused by circumstances genuinely outside their control:
- Severe weather - Budapest's winter fog, snow and freezing rain regularly force runway closures and de-icing delays at BUD.
- Air traffic control restrictions and European airspace congestion.
- Security threats, sabotage, or acts of terrorism.
- Strikes by airport ground staff, ATC, or security personnel (not the airline's own crew).
- Bird strikes and similar safety-critical events.
What is NOT extraordinary: technical faults with the aircraft, crew shortages, crew running out of duty hours, or the airline's own strikes. Courts have repeatedly ruled these are part of an airline's normal business risk, and it still owes you compensation for them. If an airline blames your delay on a vague "technical issue," that's exactly the kind of claim worth pursuing.
Denied boarding: if you were bumped from an overbooked flight
Airlines at Budapest Airport occasionally oversell flights and ask for volunteers to give up their seat in exchange for benefits (cash, vouchers, a later flight). If you volunteer, you're only entitled to whatever the airline offers you, so check it's fair before agreeing. If you're bumped against your will, you're entitled to the same €250/€400/€600 compensation as a cancellation, plus a choice between a full refund or rerouting to your destination, plus meals and, if needed, overnight accommodation while you wait.
What airlines owe you regardless of compensation: "the right to care"
Even when a delay or cancellation is an extraordinary circumstance and no cash compensation is due, the airline still has to look after you if the wait is long enough - typically meals and refreshments proportionate to the wait, two free phone calls or emails, and hotel accommodation plus transport to and from it if you're stuck overnight at BUD. This applies whether the problem is a snowstorm, an ATC strike, or a technical fault. Airlines sometimes try to skip this obligation during major winter disruptions when Budapest Airport temporarily halts operations - you're entitled to ask for it regardless of the cause.
The Wizz Air exception in Budapest
Wizz Air is a Hungarian low-cost carrier headquartered at Budapest Airport and one of the busiest operators on the airlines list at BUD. EU261 applies to Wizz Air flights exactly like any other EU carrier - but if you're flying Wizz Air, note the shorter claim window covered below.
How to file a claim
- Keep your evidence. Boarding pass, booking confirmation, and any written notice of delay or cancellation from the airline or shown on the departures board or arrivals board.
- Write to the airline first. Use the airline's official claim form or customer service email, citing EU Regulation 261/2004, your flight number, date, and the delay/cancellation reason. Airlines have a legal duty to respond.
- Escalate if refused. If the airline denies your claim or ignores it, Hungary's national enforcement body for air passenger rights is the consumer protection authority (Nemzeti Fogyasztóvédelmi Hatóság), based at H-1054 Budapest, Alkotmány utca 5. You can also use the European Commission's online air passenger rights complaint form.
- Consider a claims company if you'd rather not chase it yourself - most work on a no-win-no-fee basis, taking a percentage (often 25-35%) of the payout.
Note that if your disruption happens mid-journey and you decide to leave the airport during a layover instead of waiting, this doesn't affect your EU261 rights - the compensation claim is separate from what you do while you wait.
How long do you have to claim?
In Hungary, the general limitation period for EU261 claims is 5 years from the date of the flight - one of the longer windows in the EU. The one exception: claims against Wizz Air are subject to a shorter 2-year deadline under its own terms. A broader EU reform agreed in June 2026 would cut the claim window to just 9 months across all airlines, but that change isn't expected to take effect until 2027 at the earliest - for flights disrupted now, the longer current deadlines still apply.
What else changed in the June 2026 EU passenger rights reform?
The compensation amounts (€250/€400/€600) and the 3-hour delay threshold are staying the same. The main upcoming changes, once in force, will be: a right to self-rebook and claim back up to 400% of your ticket price if the airline doesn't offer an alternative within 3 hours of a cancellation; a requirement for airlines to proactively tell you about your compensation rights within 96 hours of a disruption; and a free personal item plus cabin bag on every fare. None of this is active yet - it's worth bookmarking this page and checking back as the 2027 rollout approaches.
For more on getting around once you land, see our full Budapest Airport travel guide.