How to file a CTA complaint about a flight, and how long it takes

Updated October 1, 2026 · Checked against the Canada Transportation Act as current to September 21, 2026 · By LandedLate

You can file a complaint with the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) online, for free and without a lawyer, once 30 days have passed since your written claim to the airline without it being resolved. Then expect a long wait. The agency says it may take more than 24 months before an officer reviews your complaint, and about 98,000 complaints were waiting, as reported on September 24, 2026. Once an officer starts, a binding decision is due within 90 days, and the officer can order the airline to pay what the rules require, such as $400 to $1,000 for a delay or cancellation within its control. If the airline says the cause was outside its control or required for safety, the law presumes it wasn't, unless the airline proves otherwise (Canada Transportation Act, section 85.07(2)). This is the process in force on October 1, 2026.

Before you file: the airline gets 30 days

Claim from the airline in writing. Your claim must reach the airline before the first anniversary of the delay or cancellation (APPR section 19(3)). The airline then has 30 days to pay or explain why not (section 19(4)).
Keep proof. An email, the airline's claim-form confirmation, a saved chat, or a social media message with the airline's reply all count as written contact. A phone call, or your own account of one, doesn't.
File once 30 days have passed since your written request without a resolution, whether the airline refused or never answered (Canada Transportation Act, section 85.04(1)(d)).

A refusal isn't always the end of it at the airline either. A reply that asks for the evidence behind its reason can settle a claim long before the queue would. The flight check writes that reply for free, or prepares your complaint if you'd rather go straight to the agency.

What to have ready

Your written claim to the airline and its written answer, if it sent one
Your ticket, booking confirmation or invoice, and the 6-character booking reference
The full itinerary: dates, times and airports for every flight in the trip
Receipts for meals, hotels or transport you paid for, and your boarding pass
If you were bumped: what the airline offered you, in writing

The complaint form takes about 20 minutes and can't be saved partway. Attach everything at once, because the agency says you can't add documents after you submit, and anything not in English or French must be translated.

What happens after you submit

The agency's complaint process (process page modified March 30, 2026; day counts from its complaint-process guideline)
Step	When	What happens
You submit the form	Day you file	Your complaint joins the queue. The official clock hasn't started.
Start notice	Day 0; can be more than 24 months after filing	An officer takes the case. The 90 days for a decision start now.
Airline answers, you reply	Airline 14 days, you 4 days	You see the airline's answer in the agency's online portal and can respond.
Eligibility check	Within 30 days of the start notice	The officer confirms you contacted the airline first, waited 30 days, and are asking for compensation, a refund or expenses.
Mediation (optional)	Starts within 30 days, lasts up to 20 days	If you and the airline settle, the complaint is closed.
Decision	Within 90 days of the start notice	A binding decision on whether the airline met its obligations and what it must pay.

Check where your complaint stands with the agency's Case Status Tool, by case number or by your last name and email.

How long it takes

Most of the wait comes before an officer starts. The agency says it may take more than 24 months before your complaint is reviewed. In its own figures, the average from submission to closure over the past two years was 715 days, and once an officer starts, a decision comes in 39 days on average.

March 202584,398
February 2026about 92,500
March 2026about 95,000
May 2026more than 97,000
Sept. 2026 (reported)about 98,000

Complaints waiting at the agency, as reported: March 2025, Canadian Transportation Agency, year-end count; February 2026, the agency, quoted by BNN Bloomberg; March 2026, CBC News; May 2026, Transport Canada; Sept. 2026 (reported), The Canadian Press, September 24.

The queue grew by roughly 14,000 complaints in 18 months. The agency received a record 5,685 complaints in January 2026, and says it can't estimate the wait for a new complaint.

Who has to prove what, and how often passengers win

The airline carries the burden. When a complaint turns on whether a disruption was within the airline's control, required for safety, or outside its control, it is presumed to be within its control and not required for safety, unless the airline proves the contrary (section 85.07(2)).
About half of decisions go to the passenger. In the agency's figures, officers decided 7,008 of 13,760 complaints (50.9%) in the passenger's favour. The figures count decisions issued, not complaints that were withdrawn or settled.
Decisions are binding. The officer can order compensation, a refund or your expenses. Either side can challenge a decision by judicial review in the Federal Court.

Other routes

Air Canada's arbitration pilot (by invitation only). In April 2026 Air Canada said it would offer 500 randomly selected passengers with pending agency complaints a third-party arbitrator. The result would bind Air Canada but not the passenger, and the agency told CBC News passengers could turn it down and keep their place in the queue.
A provincial small-claims body, instead of the agency. Some passengers take APPR claims there. British Columbia's Civil Resolution Tribunal, for example, ordered WestJet to pay $400 under section 19(1)(a)(i) (Davidson v. WestJet, 2024 BCCRT 907). Tribunal and court fees apply.

What may change

According to the bill's own summary, Bill C-31 would move responsibility for air travel complaints from the agency to the Minister of Transport, let the government have complaints resolved by third parties, remove mandatory confidentiality, and raise the maximum penalty for corporations. On October 1, 2026 it was still at committee in the House of Commons, with no royal assent, so the process on this page is the one in force. Separately, in July 2026 an Ontario court ruled that the confidentiality rule can cover only mediation, not the outcome, and suspended its order for 90 days from July 8 (Air Passenger Rights v. Attorney General of Canada, 2026 ONSC 3983). The APPR changes tracker follows both.

Write my claim or complaint

Free. LandedLate takes no share of what the airline pays you.

Questions

Is it free to file a complaint with the Canadian Transportation Agency?

Yes. The agency's own FAQ says submitting an air travel complaint does not cost anything, and you don't need a lawyer. The $790 complaints fee in the news is a proposed charge on airlines, not passengers, and had not been put in place as of March 2026. A friend, family member or representative can file it for you if you name them on the form.

Do I have to contact the airline first?

Yes. You must ask the airline in writing and give it 30 days to resolve it (Canada Transportation Act, section 85.04(1)(d)). Email, the airline's online claim form, a saved chat or a social media message with a reply all count. A phone call doesn't count, and neither does a recording or your own account of one.

Is there a deadline to complain to the CTA?

Neither the Canada Transportation Act nor the agency's pages set a separate deadline for complaining to the agency. The deadline that matters comes earlier. Your claim must reach the airline before the first anniversary of the delay or cancellation (APPR section 19(3)).

How do I check the status of my CTA complaint?

Use the agency's Case Status Tool and search by your case number, or by your last name and the email you filed with. Once an officer takes your case, you also get a start notice by email and access to the agency's Complaints Portal.

What if the airline ignores the decision?

The decision is binding on both sides, and the airline must comply within the time it sets. An order can be filed with the agency and is then enforceable as if it were an order of the agency (section 85.07(3)). Either side can challenge a decision by judicial review in the Federal Court.

Can I add documents after I submit?

No. The agency says you can't add information or documents once the complaint is submitted, so attach everything the first time. Documents in other languages must be translated into English or French.

Sources

General information, not legal advice.