If an airline refuses to allow you to board a flight for which you have a confirmed booking, this constitutes ‘’denied boarding’’. You can submit a complaint about this to the airline. If you are unable to reach a resolution with them, you can notify the Civil Aviation Authority the Netherlands (CAA NL), part of the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT). CAA NL ensures that airlines in the Netherlands comply with passenger rights as laid out by the European Union (EU).

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Denied boarding

These are 2 examples of situations that fall under "denied boarding":

  • If you arrived on time for check-in or boarding and you were then told that you could not board, for example, because your flight was overbooked, this is considered denied boarding.
  • If you are at risk of missing your connection due to a delay, your flight will often be rebooked before landing. If you still arrive on time for your original connecting flight, you are entitled to board that flight. If the airline refuses, this constitutes denied boarding.

If you are booking connecting flights through a travel agency or ticket seller rather than through the airline, pay close attention to the transfer times. If you miss your connecting flight because you have too little transfer time, this is not considered denied boarding.

Please note: there are situations in which the airline may refuse to allow you to board. For example, if you have a serious contagious disease or if you do not have the correct travel documents. This is considered denied boarding, but you are not entitled to any compensation.

What to do if you are denied boarding

If you have you been denied boarding, arrange the following:

  • Collect evidence, such as a photo of a screen clearly showing the status of the flight, which also shows the time and date of the photo.
  • If you are denied boarding against your will, the airline must compensate you immediately. If the airline does not do so, ask for a written commitment to compensate you.
  • You are entitled to rebooking onto another flight. You are also entitled to assistance, such as food, drink and a place to stay, with transport, if necessary. The airline must offer this to you. If the airline does not do so, ask for it yourself.

Submit your complaint to the airline first

Always submit your complaint about denied boarding to the airline first. The airline must respond within 2 months.

If you are unable to reach an agreement with the airline or you have not received a response to your complaint after 2 months, you can notify CAA NL.

Notify CAA NL

You can notify CAA NL of a breach of air passenger rights if:

  • Your flight departed from the Netherlands.
  • You flew to the Netherlands with an airline established in the EU and you departed from outside the EU.

You notify CAA NL using the online form Report a complaint about air passenger rights. You can do this up to 1 year after the flight.

Go to form

After submitting your notification

CAA NL will investigate your notification. CAA NL will then decide on your notification.

The outcome may be:

  • CAA NL agrees that your air passenger rights have been breached. CAA NL will then take enforcement action to prevent this breach from happening again. You may be entitled to compensation. However, CAA NL cannot force an airline to pay compensation. In the Netherlands, only the kantonrechter (subdistrict court) can do this.
  • CAA NL decides that your air passenger rights have not been breached. In this case, the airline has not breached the rules. Or it cannot be proven that the airline has breached the rules.

This decision is final. You cannot lodge an objection, nor can you appeal.

If your air passenger rights have not been breached

CAA NL will decide that your air passenger rights have not been breached if you are not allowed to board for one of the following reasons:

  • For safety or health reasons. For example, you are under the influence of alcohol or drugs, you behave inappropriately or you have a contagious disease.

  • You do not have the correct travel documents. For example, you do not have the correct visa or the name on your ticket is different from the name in your passport.

  • CAA NL cannot prove who is right.