What are you owed when your flight is delayed or cancelled in Peru?

The rule that governs: Decisión 619

Decisión 619 of the Andean Community (adopted in Lima on 15 July 2005) harmonises air passenger rights across Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. As Andean Community law, it applies directly, with no need for a Peruvian statute to repeat it. It covers delays, cancellations, interruptions and overbooking.

Who it covers (art. 2). Passengers who start their trip at an airport in one of those four countries; passengers who start in another country on an Andean airline with a destination or stop in one of them; passengers the airline or tour operator transfers at an Andean airport from the flight they were booked on, whatever the reason; and passengers on award or compensation tickets.

Delay (art. 8, paragraph a)

Delay is measured between the scheduled flight time and the «inicio del rodaje para decolar», the start of taxiing for take-off:

The rule doesn’t make meals conditional on accepting a hotel: it gives them from 4 hours. One caveat written into paragraph a): if you voluntarily agree to keep waiting because the flight is expected to leave within a reasonable time, the airline is not bound to the last row.

The 25% compensation (art. 8, paragraph e)

Paragraph e) requires compensation “con una suma mínima equivalente al 25% del valor del trayecto incumplido, pagadera en efectivo o en cualquier otra forma aceptada por el pasajero” — tickets, vouchers, miles — in two cases:

• overbooking, unless there was a direct agreement in which you voluntarily accepted not to fly; and
• a delay over 6 hours for reasons attributable to the airline.

The segment’s value is the net ticket price (excluding taxes, fees and charges, per article 3) multiplied by the share of the affected segment’s distance over the total distance. It is a minimum: the airline may give more, not less.

On a long trip, 25% can be small. On a round trip of about 14,000 km, missing a segment of about 1,140 km on a USD 566 net fare gives a minimum of about USD 11.50, sometimes less than the counter offers. What the rule guarantees is the form: cash if you want it. The paragraph a) assistance is separate.

Connections (paragraph f). The compensation also applies, «en lo pertinente» (as relevant), if you are in transit or connecting and can’t continue because of the airline. Under article 3, a connection is a continuous movement on one ticket with no stopover.

Cancellation (arts. 7 and 8.c)

If the airline cancels for reasons attributable to it, article 7 requires it to give you assistance under paragraph c) of article 8, and boarding on the next flight with space, alternative transport (preferably by air), or a full refund without penalty. Paragraph c) adds a hotel if you must stay overnight and transfers when you were neither refunded nor rebooked the same day, and the delay compensations if there was a wait before the cancellation.

The airline is released if it told you at least 15 days ahead, or with less notice but offering another flight. Nor does it owe the article 8 compensations if the cause was unforeseen circumstances, force majeure or an act of God «debidamente verificadas por la autoridad nacional competente» (duly verified by the national authority).

Overbooking (art. 6)

Before denying boarding, the airline “deberá, en primer lugar, pedir que se presenten pasajeros voluntarios que renuncien a sus reservas a cambio de determinados beneficios”. Volunteers receive what they agree to and, in addition, the assistance in paragraphs a) and e) of article 8, as applicable.

Only if there aren’t enough volunteers can it bump passengers against their will, and then it «deberá compensarles, reembolsarles y asistirles en los términos que se indican en el artículo 8» (must compensate, refund and assist them on the terms of article 8). That includes the airline’s next flight with space on the same date and route, or another airline at its expense (paragraph d), and the 25% minimum (paragraph e). What you are owed while you wait, what to do with the counter voucher and what not to sign is in the overbooking guide.

What the airline must tell you (art. 4(h))

On overbooking, cancellation or delay, the airline must inform you «en la forma más idónea posible, de preferencia escrita» (in the most suitable way, preferably in writing) of your rights, especially compensation and assistance. If it didn’t, put that in your complaint.

They can’t give you less (art. 24)

Airlines, travel agencies and tour operators «no podrán otorgar o imponer condiciones inferiores o contrarios» (may not grant or impose lesser or contrary conditions) to Decisión 619. Our position is that conditions such as paying less in cash than in vouchers, or refusing meals unless you take the hotel, run into this article.

Indecopi has already confirmed as abusive airline terms-and-conditions clauses that allowed changing the trip for reasons other than caso fortuito or fuerza mayor (unforeseeable events or force majeure); we summarise them in the unfair airline terms Indecopi has already sanctioned.

Refunds and priority care

Refunds (art. 11). For causes attributable to the airline, it refunds the unflown part, or the whole ticket if the trip no longer makes sense for your plans, plus a flight back to your starting point. The deadline is five (5) business days.

Priority care (art. 10). People with disabilities or special needs and their companions, and unaccompanied minors, get priority in any denied boarding, interruption, cancellation or delay of any length. Article 3 counts older adults, children under 5 and pregnant women as having special needs.

Transferring or postponing the ticket

Endorsing or transferring (Ley 32325). The Civil Aviation Law, as amended by Ley 32325 (published 9 May 2025), lets the ticket holder endorse or transfer it to someone else up to 24 hours before the flight time, «sin costo alguno» (at no cost), provided the contract conditions stay the same. The airline issues the new ticket in the other person’s name free of charge and must offer digital channels for it. If it refuses, except in force majeure or an act of God, the law says the civil aviation authority sanctions it «de acuerdo con la infracción señalada en el reglamento» (under the infraction set in the regulation), and you can claim damages. As of 11 October 2026 that regulation had not yet been adapted to Ley 32325 (see “Possible changes ahead”). Details in the air ticket endorsement guide.

Postponing (Ley 29571, art. 66.7). For domestic transport, the Consumer Code lets you postpone the service on the same terms with at least 24 hours’ notice, paying only the real cost of issuing the new ticket. Ley 32325 doesn’t cover postponement.

Where to complain

Indecopi is the consumer authority competent for air passenger complaints in Peru. The concrete steps are above. For international flights, the rules of the destination country or of the international convention on your ticket may also apply; we do not cover those here. If you are still at the airport and don’t know who to complain to, see where to complain at a Peruvian airport: airline, airport operator, Indecopi or Ositrán.

Calculate it

The flight compensation calculator tells you what is owed for your situation (delay, cancellation or overbooking) and works out the 25% minimum from the airport codes on your itinerary. For the counter, the passenger rights card puts the articles on one screen.