Flight Delayed or Cancelled in Saudi Arabia? GACA Compensation and Refund Rules (2026)

Last updated: 12 October 2026

If your flight is delayed or cancelled in Saudi Arabia, GACA’s Passenger Rights Protection Regulations give you clear rights: a full refund with no fees if the delay passes 2 hours, flight delay compensation of about SAR 255 for arriving 3 to 6 hours late and about SAR 765 for more than 6 hours, meals after 3 hours, a hotel after 6 hours, and up to 150% of the unused ticket for a last-minute cancellation. The airline must reply to your complaint within 7 days and pay within 15 days of the incident, and GACA steps in if it does not.

Many expats in Saudi Arabia accept a voucher or a “we are sorry” SMS because they do not know these amounts are written into law. This guide uses the exact articles of the regulation, which has been in force since 20 November 2023, with our own screenshots of the GACA and Saudia pages you need.

Read next: what each warning siren tone means and how to switch on emergency alerts on your phone.

Flights Disrupted by the October 2026 Airport Attacks: What You Are Owed

Attacks on Abha and King Khalid International Airport (Riyadh) between 6 and 8 October disrupted hundreds of flights, and operations resumed on 9 October. On 10 October a new attack hit King Khalid International, and GACA temporarily suspended operations at Riyadh airport pending a full damage assessment. On the evening of 11 October GACA said King Fahd International Airport in Dammam was also targeted, with damage assessment and safety checks under way. On 12 October GACA extended the Riyadh suspension while safety and operational readiness checks are completed, with no reopening date announced. Flights from Jeddah, Dammam and other airports have also been cancelled. See our reports on the Abha and King Khalid airport attacks, the 8 October Riyadh airport attack and the Riyadh airport suspension.

For security events, the regulation lets an airline skip the financial compensation only on the basis of reports approved by GACA (Articles 20 and 28). Your other rights remain:

• A full refund with no deductions if you do not take the alternative flight, or if the disruption lasts more than 3 hours on a domestic flight or 6 hours on an international flight (Article 20).
• Rebooking on an alternative flight at no cost.
• Hourly updates until the situation ends, and support services during the wait (Articles 20 and 28). Ask for meals and a hotel if you are stuck for hours.
• If no GACA-approved report covers your flight, the normal compensation below applies. Claim it and let the airline show the report.

Do not cancel the ticket yourself while the flight is still scheduled. When the airline cancels, you are owed a free alternative flight or a full refund with no fees. If you cancel first, the normal fare rules and fees of your ticket can apply. Check your flight status before you leave for the airport.

Airline by Airline: Saudi Flight Cancellations, Free Changes and Refunds

Status as of 12 October 2026, taken from each airline’s own travel alert where one exists, otherwise from the airline’s statement as reported by Reuters, The National, PTI, Dawn or The Business Standard. This changes daily, so always check the message in your booking. As of 12 October, Saudia, flynas and flyadeal have not published a special waiver, but the GACA rights above still apply to their cancelled flights.

Flying home: which rules apply

• Leaving Saudi Arabia on any airline: the GACA rules on this page apply.
• Flights to or from India: DGCA rules require the airline to offer an alternative flight or a refund when it cancels, but no cash compensation is due for extraordinary circumstances such as security events (PIB summary of the DGCA rules).
• Flights from the EU or UK, or on an EU or UK airline flying there: EU261 and UK261 always give you a refund or rerouting and care (meals, hotel). Cash compensation is not due when the cause is a security risk.
• Travel insurance: ask the airline for a written delay or cancellation certificate and keep every SMS and email.

Which Flights Are Covered

• Every flight departing a Saudi airport, domestic or international, on a Saudi or foreign airline.
• Flights arriving in Saudi Arabia on a Saudi airline (Saudia, flynas, flyadeal, Riyadh Air), unless you were already compensated under the departure country’s rules.
• Baggage complaints on foreign airlines flying into the Kingdom.
• All tickets, including discounted, promotional and award tickets, and the flight part of package tours.

Flight Delay Compensation in Saudi Arabia

Compensation is measured by your actual arrival time compared with the arrival time on your booking, not by how late you took off (Article 10). GACA states amounts in Special Drawing Rights (SDR); GACA’s own leaflet uses about SAR 5.1 per SDR, and the exact rate changes daily.

If you were already in a paid hotel when the delay was announced, the airline pays to extend your stay until the new flight time (Article 10(4)).

Meals, Hotel and Care During a Delay or Cancellation

These are set by Article 17, and paying the cash amount does not release the airline from providing the care. Some airlines offer vouchers instead of cash; the regulation speaks of compensation, so you can ask for cash and escalate to GACA if needed.

Flight Cancelled: Refund and Compensation

An airline may cancel only for force majeure or safety and security reasons backed by GACA-approved reports (Article 12). If your flight is cancelled you can take an alternative flight, or refuse it and get a full refund including paid extras such as seat selection and baggage fees. If you refuse the alternative, you also get compensation based on how much notice you had:

• Promotional fares are compensated at the highest fare of the booked class, not the discounted price (Article 12(7)).
• If you accept the alternative flight, there is no cancellation compensation, but the delay rules apply to the time difference.
• Airports without daily flights: the airline must offer other transport to your destination or the nearest usable airport, with your consent.

Denied Boarding, Downgrading and Tarmac Delays

Denied boarding (overbooking)

• A free upgrade if seats are available in a higher class.
• Rebooking on the same airline or another airline, with the airline paying any fare difference.
• Or a refund of the unused part plus 200% of its value. No compensation is due if you are offered a flight within 2 hours of the original departure.
• Passengers with disabilities or special needs, unaccompanied minors, families travelling with them and groups cannot be bumped.

Downgrading

If you accept a lower class, you get the whole fare difference back plus another 50% of that difference. If you refuse, you get a refund of the unused part plus 200% of the ticket value (Article 14).

Stuck on the aircraft (tarmac delay)

While you wait on board, the airline must keep toilets, ventilation and air conditioning working and provide food, drinks and a way to contact people. After 3 hours it must offer you the option to leave the aircraft unless security or safety prevents it, and you can then treat the flight as cancelled (Article 11). An unannounced extra stop earns 100 SDR (about SAR 510) per stop (Article 16).

Delayed, Lost or Damaged Baggage

Report the problem at the airline’s baggage desk before you leave the airport and keep the reference number. Each bag counts as a separate piece, and you can declare valuables before check-in to raise the limit. Mobility aids travel free; if a wheelchair does not arrive on your flight, the airline must give you a replacement immediately or pay 100 SDR.

When the Airline Does Not Have to Pay Compensation

The regulation uses the term force majeure: an exceptional event beyond the airline’s control that could not be expected or avoided (Article 20). Even then:

• The exemption needs reports approved by GACA.
• Technical faults, operational problems, scheduling and crew issues never count as force majeure.
• You still get hourly updates, support, and a full refund with no deductions if the event lasts more than 3 hours (domestic) or 6 hours (international).
• Delays for security or safety reasons are exempt from financial compensation only, not from support services (Article 28).

How to Claim From the Airline (Saudia, flynas, flyadeal)

Always claim from the airline first. Under GACA’s complaint rules the airline must give you a reference number, resolve the complaint within 7 days, and pay refunds and compensation within 15 days of the incident to your original payment method (Article 21). Keep your boarding pass, ticket, booking reference and every SMS or email about the delay.

Saudia refund request

1. Saudia cancelled or changed your flight: open the Saudia virtual agent on saudia.com or the app and choose Refund request and status, then Request a new refund, then the Request a refund tab.
2. Other refunds: cancel any boarding pass, then go to refund.saudiairlines.com and enter your 13-digit ticket number (starting 065-) and last name. The portal warns that fees are deducted where applicable and that all refundable tickets in the booking are submitted together.
3. Saudia refund status: use Check Status on the same portal, and Update IBAN if Saudia asks for your bank details.

A refund for a delay of more than 2 hours or a cancellation by the airline must be without deductions. If fees are taken, quote Articles 10(7) and 12(5) and escalate to GACA.

flyadeal

When flyadeal cancels or reschedules, it sends an SMS or email link to rebook free of charge, keep the amount as credit, or request a refund to your original payment method. It has a separate compensation form in its help centre. flyadeal offers vouchers when care is not provided; you can ask for the cash amounts set by the regulation instead.

flynas

Use the Request refund link on the flynas help page, which opens its self-service portal, or Manage my Booking for your own cancellations. flynas links its compensation policy directly to the GACA regulation, so the amounts on this page apply.

How to File a GACA Complaint

1. Complain to the airline within 60 days of the incident and note the reference number and date.
2. Wait up to 7 days for a written answer.
3. No answer, or not satisfied? Go to gaca.gov.sa/en/complaints and choose Complaint Against Airlines.
4. Enter the flight number, date, route, ticket number, booking reference, the airline complaint number and date, what happened and what you are asking for. Attach receipts.
5. Track it with GACA’s Complaint Ticket Tracking e-service, or quote your GACA reference on any channel.

GACA accepts a complete complaint within 24 hours and forwards it to the airline, which must answer within 14 days or the complaint is treated as valid. GACA says processing takes about 15 business days. If you still are not satisfied you can object through GACA, and you can go to court for losses beyond the fixed compensation (Article 26).

Which Saudi Airline Gets the Most Complaints?

GACA’s complaints index for August 2026 (2,402 complaints against airlines) ranked the national carriers by complaints per 100,000 passengers:

The most common complaint topics were flights, then baggage, then tickets. A short complaint that cites the article number and the SDR amount gets a faster answer than a long story. Travelling soon? Check the latest GACA passenger document rules before you fly.

Frequently Asked Questions