If an airline cancels your flight in India, DGCA’s passenger rules say it must offer you an alternate flight or a refund, as acceptable to you. The choice is yours, not the airline’s. Refund if your plans have changed or the alternative does not suit you. Rebook if you still need to travel. Keep every message and receipt either way.
Updated November 2026 · HappyFares
A cancellation message arrives and the airline’s first offer is often a new flight or a credit. This guide helps you decide, step by step, rather than listing every rule.
What does the DGCA say the airline must offer?
The relevant rule is DGCA’s Civil Aviation Requirement, Section 3, Series M, Part IV, which covers denied boarding, cancellations and delays. In the version on the DGCA website (Rev. 4, effective 15 February 2023), the airline must inform you of a cancellation at least two weeks before departure and arrange an alternate flight or a refund as acceptable to you. If you are told less than two weeks before, and up to 24 hours before departure, the airline must offer an alternate flight or refund the ticket, again as acceptable to you.
The same CAR says the refund itself is made under CAR Section 3, Series M, Part II. Rules can be revised, so check dgca.gov.in for the current text.
Should you take the refund or the rebooking?
Ask yourself three questions.
- Do you still need to travel on this route? If the trip is fixed, such as a wedding, exam or meeting, an alternate flight keeps it alive. If the plan has moved or collapsed, take the refund.
- Is the alternate flight acceptable? The rule says “as acceptable to the passenger”. A flight many hours later, a different airport, or one that wrecks your connection can be refused, and you can ask for the refund instead.
- Could you find something better yourself? If the airline’s alternative is poor, a refund lets you rebook on another airline. Check fares first, since last-minute prices can be higher than your original ticket.
One practical point: do not accept a credit or voucher unless you want one. The rule speaks of an alternate flight or a refund of the ticket, and the choice is yours.
When is extra compensation due?
Compensation is a separate question from the refund. If you were not informed as the CAR requires, the airline must give you an acceptable alternate flight or compensation on top of the full ticket refund. The CAR sets the amount by block time, which is the time from when the aircraft first moves for take-off until it stops at the other end:
- Rs 5,000 or the booked one-way basic fare plus airline fuel charge, whichever is less, for flights with block time up to and including one hour.
- Rs 7,500 or the same fare measure, whichever is less, for block time above one hour and up to two hours.
- Rs 10,000 or the same fare measure, whichever is less, for block time above two hours.
Two caveats. No compensation is payable if the airline gave notice as required, or if the cancellation is due to extraordinary circumstances beyond its control, such as those listed in the CAR (for example natural disaster, strikes, or air traffic control and weather causes). Also, no financial compensation is payable if you did not give adequate contact details when booking, so make sure your phone number and email are correct on every ticket.
What should you do in the first hour?
- Read the cancellation message and note the time it arrived. How much notice you received decides what you are owed, so a timestamp is useful evidence.
- Check your options in the airline’s app or website, and contact the airline directly.
- Decide between refund and rebooking using the questions above, and say so in writing.
- If you are already at the airport, the CAR provides for facilities while you wait, as set out in its paragraph 3.8.1. Ask the airline staff.
- If the airline will not help, you can raise a complaint through the government’s AirSewa portal.
What records should you keep?
Keep the original booking confirmation, the cancellation email or SMS with its timestamp, screenshots of any alternate flights you were offered, and any reply you send or receive. Note the date and time of calls and the agent’s name. If you were refunded, keep the refund confirmation and compare the amount against your ticket. If the amount is short, these records are what you will quote.
If you booked through a travel site, contact the airline and the booking channel, and keep both sets of records.
Common Questions
Can the airline force me to accept a rebooking?
Not under the CAR text. It says the alternate flight or refund must be acceptable to you.
How long does a refund take?
The CAR points to Part II for refund rules, and I could not verify a specific number of days from the official text here. Ask the airline for its refund timeline in writing and keep it.
Is cancellation compensation automatic?
It depends on notice and cause. The CAR ties it to how you were informed, and excludes extraordinary circumstances beyond the airline’s control.
What if I was told less than 24 hours before?
The CAR’s compensation provision applies where you were not informed as required. The amounts are set by block time, as listed above.
Do the rules apply to cancelled connecting flights?
The CAR includes passengers who missed a connecting flight booked on the same ticket number because of non-compliant notice. Read paragraph 3.3.2 or ask the airline.
Where do I complain if the airline does not respond?
You can use the AirSewa portal run by the government for grievances. Keep your records ready.
Need a new flight fast? Search and compare flights on HappyFares, set a price alert, or ask Meera, our AI assistant. Domestic bookings carry zero convenience fee, and you can add travel insurance at booking.
Rules and fees change, so verify current specifics with the airline or DGCA before you travel.
