Flying to Kathmandu via Doha, Dubai or Delhi? When EU261 still pays you
One booking from an EU airport is covered all the way to Kathmandu, even on a Gulf airline’s leg, and is usually worth €600. The flight home is not.
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If you fly to Kathmandu from an EU airport on one booking, EU flight-delay rules cover the whole journey, even when the delay happens on a non-EU airline’s leg from Doha, Dubai, Istanbul or Delhi. The EU’s Court of Justice settled that in 2018, and because compensation is based on the distance from your first airport to Kathmandu, a long delay at the final destination is usually worth €600. The return is the weak side: a flight home from Kathmandu on a non-EU airline is not covered by EU rules at all. The UK’s version works the same way, with £520 as the top amount.
- Book the whole journey on one ticket. One booking from an EU airport is protected end to end; two separate tickets are not.
- Count the delay at Kathmandu. What matters is how late you reach your final destination, not which leg was late.
- The flight home is different. Kathmandu to Europe on a Gulf, Turkish or Indian airline is outside EU261.
- Care is owed regardless. Meals and a hotel during a long wait apply even when cash compensation does not.
When EU261 covers a flight to Kathmandu
Whenever the journey starts at an EU airport and is booked as one reservation. EU Regulation 261/2004 applies to every flight departing from an EU airport, whatever the airline. In Wegener v Royal Air Maroc (case C-537/17, 2018) the Court of Justice ruled that a journey booked together, from an EU airport to a non-EU destination with a change of plane outside the EU, is one connecting flight, and the regulation covers all of it. So a single booking from Paris to Kathmandu via Doha, or Frankfurt to Kathmandu via Istanbul, is protected even on the leg that never touches the EU.
| Your journey | EU261 or UK261? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| EU airport to Kathmandu, one booking, any airline | Yes, whole journey | Departs the EU; Wegener (2018) |
| UK airport to Kathmandu, one booking, any airline | Yes, under UK261 | Departs the UK |
| EU airline to the Gulf, partner airline on to Kathmandu, one booking | Yes; the EU airline pays | České aerolinie (2019) |
| Two separate tickets, connecting yourself | Only the leg leaving the EU or UK | Not one booking |
| Kathmandu to Europe on a non-EU airline | No | Not departing the EU; airline not EU |
How much you can claim
Usually €600, because the distance is measured from your first airport to Kathmandu. In Bossen (case C-559/16, 2017) the court ruled that compensation is based on the straight-line distance between the first departure airport and the final destination, not the leg that went wrong. Every European airport is more than 3,500 kilometres from Kathmandu, which puts any eligible claim in the top band. The money is owed for a cancellation announced late, for denied boarding, and for arriving at Kathmandu three hours or more late. On flights over 3,500 kilometres, the airline may halve it if it rerouted you and you arrived no more than four hours late.
| Flight distance | EU261 | UK261 |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 1,500 km | €250 | £220 |
| 1,500–3,500 km (or intra-EU over 1,500 km) | €400 | £350 |
| Over 3,500 km, which includes every Europe–Kathmandu journey | €600 | £520 |
When a code-share partner causes the delay
The European airline that flew the first leg pays, and recovers the money from its partner itself. In České aerolinie (case C-502/18, 2019), passengers booked Prague to Bangkok via Abu Dhabi on one reservation with the Czech airline; the second leg, flown by its partner Etihad, arrived more than eight hours late. The court ruled that the Czech airline owed the compensation, and could claim it back from Etihad. Address your claim to the airline that flew you out of Europe.
The flight home is the gap
A flight from Kathmandu back to Europe on a non-EU airline is not covered by EU261 or UK261. The rules protect flights arriving in the EU or UK only when an EU or UK airline operates them, and no EU airline flies to Kathmandu as far as we know. For the journey home, your protection is the airline’s own conditions of carriage and the Montreal Convention, which lets you claim proven costs caused by a delay, up to a limit. That is why the buffer day matters most on the way home, when a missed onward connection is also your own risk if you booked it separately. How rebooking works in each case is in our guide to getting rebooked after a cancellation.
No cash is owed for extraordinary circumstances such as air traffic control strikes or storms, though care still is. A strike by the airline’s own staff usually does not count as extraordinary. We explain the difference in easyJet’s Italy strike and the French crew strike.
What to do if your Kathmandu flight goes wrong
Keep the evidence and claim from the airline that flew you out of Europe. Screenshot the delay or cancellation notice with its stated reason, note your actual arrival time at Kathmandu, and keep receipts for meals and hotels. Claim directly with the airline first; claims companies take a share of the money. If you are on your way to a trek, tell your operator straight away: we move a client’s start date when a flight is late, which is far cheaper than a missed day. Our compensation guide covers the US and Canadian rules too, and every flight-rights guide is collected in our flight rights guide.
Our Annapurna Base Camp trek is nine days at $920 USD solo, with permits, a government-registered guide, a porter, teahouses and meals. A buffer day in Kathmandu protects all of it.
See the Annapurna Base Camp trekFrequently asked questions
Does EU261 apply to flights to Nepal?
Yes, if the journey starts at an EU airport and is booked as one reservation, whatever the airline. The EU’s Court of Justice ruled in 2018 (case C-537/17) that such a journey is covered as a whole, including legs outside the EU.
Does EU261 apply to my flight home from Kathmandu?
Only if an EU airline operates it. A flight from Kathmandu to Europe on a Gulf, Turkish or Indian airline is not covered by EU261 or UK261.
How much compensation for a delayed flight to Kathmandu?
Usually €600 under EU261 or £520 under UK261, because the distance from any European airport to Kathmandu is over 3,500 kilometres. It can be halved if you were rerouted and arrived no more than four hours late.
Who pays if the partner airline caused the delay?
The EU airline that operated the first leg, under the 2019 České aerolinie ruling. It can recover the cost from its partner.
Am I covered if I booked two separate tickets?
Only for the flight that departed the EU or UK. A missed connection on a separate ticket is your own risk, which is why we recommend one booking or a long buffer.
Keep reading
EU, UK and US rules side by side.
When the airline must rebook you elsewhere.
Which cards get you in, and the hours.
Routes, visas and what to hand over on arrival.
Sources: Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, articles 3, 5, 6 and 7; Court of Justice of the EU, Wegener v Royal Air Maroc, case C-537/17, 31 May 2018; Bossen, case C-559/16, 7 September 2017; České aerolinie v Gaue, case C-502/18, 11 July 2019; UK Civil Aviation Authority, delays and cancellations guidance; all read on 2 October 2026. This is general information, not legal advice.
Photos via Pexels: Sattya P Joshi (cover), Æmyr Sahli, Borys Zaitsev, Cihan Çimen, Volker Meyer, K.
Written by
Anjali ShresthaPokhara-based, NMA-certified trekking guides. We’ve led 5,000+ treks across the Annapurna and Everest regions since 1998 — every word here comes from the trail. More from this author →
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