Passenger rights

TAP Air Portugal has defined procedures to manage flights with prolonged delays on the runway. According to the APPR, a prolonged delay on the runway describes a flight that experiences a runway delay after the aircraft doors have closed prior to departure or after the flight has landed.

1. Standard of care – In the case of flights with prolonged delays on the runway, TAP will provide affected passengers with: access to functional bathrooms; the possibility of communicating with people outside the aircraft, if feasible; adequate food and drinks; medical care as quickly as possible; and adequate ventilation / cooling / heating of the aircraft.

   a. These standards may be waived if the pilot in command of the aircraft determines that there are safety considerations that prevent the provision of these services.

2. Disembarkation – In regard to flights that encounter runway delays of more than three hours in Canadian territory, TAP will provide passengers with the opportunity to disembark, except in the following circumstances:

   a. The pilot in charge believes, on the basis of reasonableness, that take-off will take place within a maximum of three hours and forty-five minutes of the start of the prolonged runway delay;
   b. Existence of reasons related to security, customs and air traffic control that prohibit disembarkation.

If your checked baggage is delayed or damaged and you're still at the airport, please go to the Baggage Service Office to inform TAP Air Portugal. Alternatively, in the case of delayed baggage, you can visit the page problems with baggage to report that your baggage has not arrived at its destination, and in the case of damaged baggage you can file a claim on the page requests and complaints. In cases of lost or damaged checked bags, TAP will reimburse you for the amount you paid to check the bag, if applicable.

In the event of damage to your baggage, you must submit your complaint within seven (7) days of receiving the baggage. In the event of a delay in the delivery of your baggage, you must submit your complaint within twenty-one (21) days of the date on which the baggage was placed at your disposal. If you do not submit a complaint within these deadlines, we will not be able to compensate you. If your flight was not operated by TAP Air Portugal, please contact the airline that operated your flight. Reimbursement for necessary expenses will be based upon acceptable proof of claim.

After you report your bag as delayed, we will begin an immediate search for your bag. If we're unable to find your bag after 21 days, we deem your bag lost and will compensate you. For international travel to and from Canada the Montreal Convention applies. Liability for lost, delayed, or damaged baggage is limited to 1.519 SDR per passenger.

Before we deny boarding to any passenger, we ask volunteers to give up their seats in exchange for compensation or benefits as agreed. In the event that you voluntarily give up your seat, you will be entitled to use the services described in section C of this Notice and to a change of itinerary or a refund, as stipulated in section B of this Notice.

If there are not enough volunteers, TAP will not remove any passenger already on board from the plane. TAP will also not refuse boarding to unaccompanied minors; passengers with disabilities and the animals specially trained to accompany them or act as travel assistants; family members traveling together; and passengers who have already been denied boarding.

Passengers who are involuntarily denied boarding are entitled to a change of itinerary as set out in section B and to use the services set out in section C, both below. Furthermore, passengers who are involuntarily denied boarding for reasons under the control of TAP Air Portugal and which are not mandatory for safety reasons are entitled to compensation based on the length of the delay in relation to the arrival time indicated on the original ticket:

Compensation payable under this section may be paid in the form of a prepaid card, bank transfer or, with your written agreement, in the form of a travel voucher. Compensation in the form of a prepaid card will be issued prior to your new departure time or within forty-eight hours of the denied boarding incident. If you wish to be payed by bank transfer or in the form of a travel voucher, contact TAP using the online form.

Under the APPR, TAP will provide the following compensation depending on its level of control over the flight disruption (flight delays / cancellations).

1. In the event of disruptions to flights that are under the control of TAP Air Portugal - TAP provides the compensation defined in section A below, the change of itinerary under section B below and the provision of services defined in section C below.
2. In the event of disruptions to flights that are under the control of TAP Air Portugal but necessary for safety reasons - TAP will arrange the change of itinerary defined in section B below and the provision of services defined in section C below.
3. In the event of disruptions to flights that are beyond the control of TAP Air Portugal: TAP will arrange for the change of itinerary defined in section B below.

A . Compensation

We will pay any compensation due in the form of a bank transfer or, with your written agreement, in the form of a travel voucher or miles. If paid in the form of a travel voucher or miles, the compensation amount will be 10 % higher than the amount stipulated in the APPR.
You will not be entitled to the compensation set out in the APPR if you have opted to receive compensation for the same event under rights made available to you by a different passenger rights protection system.

1. If your flight is cancelled or delayed by three (3) hours or more for reasons beyond TAP's control, TAP will make available to you:

   a. Change of itinerary, under comparable transport conditions, to your final destination, as soon as possible or within 48 hours after the end of the event that gave rise to the delay, cancellation or denied boarding. If the alternative travel arrangements are in a higher class of service, TAP will not require compensation for the difference. If the alternative travel arrangements are in a lower class of service, TAP will reimburse you for the difference.
   b. If the revised booking involves departure from a different airport, TAP will pay for transportation to the new airport.

2. If your flight is cancelled or delayed by three (3) hours or more for reasons under TAP's control, but this is necessary for safety reasons, TAP will:

   a. Change your itinerary, under comparable transport conditions, to your final destination, as soon as possible or within forty-eight hours after the end of the event that gave rise to the delay, cancellation or denied boarding. If the alternative travel arrangements are in a higher class of service, TAP will not require compensation for the difference. If the alternative travel arrangements are in a lower class of service, TAP will reimburse you for the difference.
   b. Pay for transportation to the new airport if the revised booking involves departure from a different airport.
   c. If requested, we will cancel the booking and issue a refund for any unused portions of the ticket.

3. If your flight is cancelled or delayed by three hours or more for reasons under TAP's control, TAP will:

   a. Change your itinerary, under comparable transport conditions, to your final destination, as soon as possible or within forty-eight hours after the end of the event that gave rise to the delay, cancellation or denied boarding. If the alternative travel arrangements are in a higher class of service, TAP will not require compensation for the difference. If the alternative travel arrangements are in a lower class of service, TAP will reimburse you for the difference.
   b. Pay for transportation to the new airport if the revised booking involves departure from a different airport.
   c. If requested, we will cancel the booking and issue a refund for any unused portions of the ticket. If a refund is requested because alternative travel arrangements do not meet your needs, TAP will provide a minimum compensation of 400 canadian dollars.
   d. If your flight is delayed by more than three hours, or if it is cancelled, TAP will provide compensation as follows:
   — If the arrival of the passenger's flight at the destination indicated on the original ticket is delayed by three hours or more but less than six hours: 400 canadian dollars.
   — If the arrival of the passenger's flight at the destination indicated on the original ticket is delayed by six hours or more but less than nine hours: 700 canadian dollars.
   — If the arrival of the passenger's flight at the destination indicated on the original ticket is delayed by nine hours or more: 1.000 canadian dollars.
   — The passenger must submit a claim for compensation within one year after the date of the delayed or cancelled flight. We will send you the compensation in question within thirty days of receiving your compensation request, or we will inform you of the reasons why your flight cannot be subject to compensation.

4. Refunds: TAP will issue a refund (i) of the amount related to the difference, if the travel arrangements are booked in a lower class of service and (ii) of the cost related to additional services that the passenger did not receive on his/her alternative flight, or if the passenger had to pay again for such services. Refunds will be issued in the form of payment originally used to purchase your ticket or, with your written agreement, in the form of a travel voucher.

   — Refund requests can be submitted here.

   Services

   If you are denied boarding, if your flight is cancelled or if your flight is delayed by two hours or more from the scheduled departure time:

   1. And if the scheduled departure time of your new flight (if applicable) is on the same day as the departure date of your original ticket, we offer you the following, free of charge:
      Meals and drinks in reasonable proportion to the waiting time; and
      Acesso a meios de comunicação.
   2. We will also offer you, at no additional cost:
      Accommodation in a hotel, in cases where a stay of one or more nights or an additional stay beyond the one desired by you becomes necessary; and Transport between the airport and the place of accommodation (hotel or other). We may limit or decline your right to these services if the provision of these services causes additional delays.

TAP Air Portugal makes every effort to allocate seats to children under 14 years old that are in close proximity to an accompanying adult member of their family. Passengers can choose their seats via the TAP website or through a travel agency. In the event that seats are not pre-selected, TAP will make every effort to obtain nearby seats for families or groups covered by the same booking, in the class for which the booking was made, a few days before the departure of the flight. That being said, available seats may be limited at that time, so your family or group may need to be separated. Although we make every effort to assign seats that are close to each other to family members, we cannot guarantee the chosen seats, and they may be subject to changes, including in the event of a change of aircraft. On the day of departure, TAP works with passengers to ensure that children under the age of fourteen travel in seats close to their family members, legal guardians or tutors. If the ticket for a child in your group is included in a different booking and you would like your seats to be close together, you should call the TAP Air Portugal Call Center (1-800-903-7914). We will do our best to find you close seats.