Flight compensation in Spain

Rules and amounts

Regulation 261/2004 applies to every departure from Madrid, Barcelona, Palma, Málaga, Alicante, the Canary Islands and other Spanish airports, and to inbound flights on EU airlines (Iberia, Air Europa, Vueling, Ryanair, easyJet Europe…). Amounts: €250 / €400 / €600. Mainland–Canary Islands flights exceed 1,500 km and pay €400; Balearic and most mainland routes pay €250.

Departures, arrivals and who is covered

• Departing Spain: every airline is covered — Ryanair, Wizz Air and easyJet as much as Iberia — and AESA is the competent body whatever the airline’s nationality.
• Arriving in Spain from outside Europe: only EU/EEA-licensed airlines are covered. Iberia from Mexico City or Air Europa from Bogotá, yes; Aeroméxico, Avianca, American or Emirates into Madrid, no — their return legs are governed by the Montreal Convention and their own conditions.
• From the UK to Spain: UK261 (£220–£520) on any airline, with the CAA and the UK ADR schemes; from Spain to the UK: EU261 on any airline, with AESA. The two directions of the same holiday are governed by different regimes.

AESA: enforcement body and binding dispute resolution

The Agencia Estatal de Seguridad Aérea is Spain’s national enforcement body under Article 16. Since 2023 it is also accredited as an alternative dispute-resolution entity for air passenger rights: for flights departing Spain (and inbound EU-carrier flights), AESA examines the claim and issues a decision that binds the airline — the only enforcement body in Europe whose decision has that effect. The procedure is free and runs through AESA’s electronic office. Conditions: you must first have claimed from the airline in writing and either received a refusal or waited one month without an answer; you must file within a year of that claim; the claim must be about Regulation 261/2004 rights (compensation, refund, re-routing, care) or the rights of passengers with reduced mobility. AESA asks the airline for its version and evidence and decides within 90 days of the complete file (extendable); the airline has one month to comply, and if it does not you can ask the competent court to enforce the decision. The decision does not bind you — you keep every civil action against the airline — and there is no cap on the amount.

Courts

Claims can also be brought before the Juzgado de lo Mercantil (commercial court): the juicio verbal procedure applies to claims up to €15,000 since the April 2025 reform of the Civil Procedure Act, and below €2,000 no lawyer or procurador is required (Article 31 LEC). Since 3 April 2025 a civil claim must also show that an out-of-court settlement was attempted first (a medio adecuado de solución de controversias under Organic Law 1/2025) — the documented claim to the airline and the AESA procedure are the natural way to meet it. The limitation period for contractual claims is 5 years (Article 1964 Civil Code).

Carrier-dependent cases in Spain

• Ryanair is the largest carrier at many Spanish airports and flies under Irish and Maltese licences; for a departure from Spain that changes nothing — AESA is competent and its decision binds Ryanair. Ryanair’s own claim form is the only channel it accepts.
• Vueling, Iberia, Iberia Express and Air Europa are Spanish carriers: AESA is competent for their departures from Spain and for their inbound flights from outside Europe.
• easyJet flights from Spain are usually operated by easyJet Europe (Austrian licence), sometimes easyJet UK; both are covered on departure, and the entity matters only for arrivals from outside Europe.
• Group handling: a strike by Iberia Airport Services or another group ground-handling company is not extraordinary for the group’s airlines.

Spanish specifics

• Strikes by AENA airport staff, security screeners or ENAIRE air-traffic controllers are external and can be extraordinary for the flights they actually held; strikes by the airline’s own crew or its group companies are not.
• Airlines must pay compensation in cash or by bank transfer — vouchers only with your written agreement, and AESA decisions enforce this.
• Spain’s outermost region (the Canary Islands) counts as EU territory: mainland–Canaries is an intra-EU flight, capped at €400 even beyond 3,500 km.

Practical workflow for a Spanish departure

1. Claim in writing from the operating airline, quoting the flight, the delay or the cancellation notice and the amount per passenger; keep the reference.
2. After a refusal or one month of silence, file with AESA online with the claim, the airline’s answer, the booking and boarding passes.
3. AESA’s decision binds the airline. If the airline does not pay, or AESA finds against you and you disagree, the Juzgado de lo Mercantil remains open within the 5-year period.

The AESA claim guide walks through the filing itself — the forms, the electronic logins, the documents, the 90-day decision and how it is enforced.