Guide · updated 12 November 2026
Air Serbia delay or cancellation: compensation up to €600
Most Air Serbia flights are covered by the same rules as in the EU: €250, €400 or €600 per passenger for a cancellation, denied boarding or a delay of three hours or more. What matters most is claiming within 90 days.
Which rules apply on which flight
| Air Serbia flight | Rules |
|---|---|
| From the EU to Belgrade (Paris to Belgrade) | Regulation (EC) 261/2004 |
| From Belgrade or Niš, anywhere (Belgrade to Zurich, Belgrade to New York) | Serbian law, which adopted Regulation 261/2004 |
| From outside Europe to Belgrade (New York to Belgrade) | Serbian law, because a Serbian airline operates the flight |
Serbia’s Law on Obligations and the Basics of Property Relations in Air Transport (Official Gazette RS Nos 87/2011 and 66/2015) adopted the EU rules with the same amounts. Serbia’s Civil Aviation Directorate states that it covers all flights departing Serbia, and flights arriving in Serbia from outside Europe when an airline from a European Common Aviation Area country, such as Air Serbia, operates them. It doesn’t apply if you already received compensation or assistance for that flight in the country of departure.
How much
€250 for flights up to 1,500 km (Belgrade to Vienna, Belgrade to Zurich), €400 for 1,500 to 3,500 km (Belgrade to Barcelona, Belgrade to Madrid) and €600 for longer flights (Belgrade to New York, Belgrade to Tianjin), per passenger. Work out yours in the calculator.
Delays of three hours or more
Neither the EU regulation nor Serbian law mentions delay compensation in so many words. The right comes from the EU Court’s Sturgeon ruling (C-402/07), and Serbia’s Civil Aviation Directorate says airlines should bear that case law in mind in Serbia too. If Air Serbia refuses a delay claim by pointing only to the wording of the law, we answer and keep going.
Connecting in Belgrade
If you flew from the EU through Belgrade on one booking, for example Vienna to Belgrade to Tivat, EU rules cover the whole journey and the delay at the final destination counts. The EU Court has held this even when a non-EU airline operates the onward leg outside the EU (C-436/21). Compensation is based on the distance from the first departure to the final destination.
The 90-day deadline
The complaint to Air Serbia is due within 90 days of the flight. If the airline doesn’t resolve it within 60 days of receiving the complete documents, a complaint can go to Serbia’s Civil Aviation Directorate. The Directorate doesn’t award compensation, but it can take action against the airline; for the compensation itself, the last step is court. So don’t wait: send us your flight as soon as you’re back.
How we file the claim
Air Serbia has a claims form in Serbian or English that a company can use on a passenger’s behalf, with a power of attorney. For adult passengers the form sometimes also asks for consent certified by a notary. If that happens, we send you the document and explain exactly what to have certified.
Costs higher than the compensation
If the delay cost you more, such as a lost hotel night or a new flight, the Montreal Convention makes the airline liable for that actual loss on international flights too, up to 6,303 Special Drawing Rights per passenger. You need receipts, and the fixed compensation may be deducted from that amount.
Luggage
The Montreal Convention and the same deadlines apply: see the luggage guide.
This is general information, not legal advice for your specific case. We check every claim individually.