Israeli Aviation Services Law
Israel's Aviation Services Law gives passengers ₪1,530, ₪2,450 or ₪3,670 by distance when a flight is cancelled, or when departure is delayed or brought forward by more than eight hours. The airline must pay within forty-five days of a written demand.
Check your own flight against the Aviation Services Law →Who it covers
- Flights departing from Israel or arriving in it, including flights with a stopover, on any carrier — that is how section 1 of the law defines a flight.
- A flight from Tel Aviv to an EU airport operated by an EU carrier is covered by this law and by EU261 at the same time. Claim under whichever pays more.
- The law is widely known as the Tibi Law, after the member of the Knesset who moved it.
What it pays
| Distance or situation | Per passenger |
|---|---|
| Up to 2,000 km | ₪1,530 |
| 2,000–4,500 km | ₪2,450 |
| Over 4,500 km | ₪3,670 |
What triggers it
Delay or early departure
Compensation becomes payable when departure is delayed, or brought forward, by more than eight hours — a longer threshold than Europe's three.
Cancellation
Compensation is due where the cancellation was notified less than fourteen days before departure.
Denied boarding
Treated as a cancellation for the passenger refused carriage.
Duty of care — separate from compensation
Assistance services — food and drink, communications, and accommodation with transport where needed — start after two hours. From five hours you may instead demand your money back or a replacement ticket. These are separate from the compensation and are owed whatever the cause.
The refusals airlines send, and what answers them
“The delay was under the threshold”
The clock runs on the actual difference from the scheduled time. Ask for the scheduled and actual times in writing, and note that a cancellation notified within fourteen days carries compensation regardless of how long any delay lasted.
Silence past forty-five days
Section 3 requires the compensation to be paid within forty-five days of your written demand, and a fare refund within twenty-one. Silence past that point is itself worth putting in your escalation letter, alongside a complaint to the Consumer Protection and Fair Trade Authority.
A voucher instead of money
Compensation under this law is a monetary entitlement. You are not obliged to take credit with the airline in place of it.
“It was a protected strike”
Section 6(e) exempts a cancellation caused by a protected strike or lockout — one declared lawfully under Israeli labour law. This is where Israeli and European law part company: under EU261 a strike by the airline's own staff never excuses it (Krüsemann v TUIfly, C-195/17). The airline must prove the strike was protected, sanctions that were never properly declared are not, and the exemption covers compensation only — refund, re-routing and care are still owed. On a flight EU261 also reaches, such as one departing an EU airport, claim under EU261.
“We cancelled to avoid Shabbat”
Section 6(e) also exempts a cancellation made to avoid desecrating Shabbat or a holiday — again from the compensation alone. The refund or replacement ticket, and the care, remain owed.
Enforcement
Section 11 lets a court award exemplary damages — with no need to prove any loss, and on top of the fixed compensation — where the airline knowingly withheld what the law requires. The cap in the text is ₪10,000 per passenger, and like every amount in the law it is CPI-linked under section 13, so about ₪12,200 today; it is why small-claims awards against airlines can reach tens of thousands of shekels. The Civil Aviation Authority of Israel oversees the law, and the Consumer Protection and Fair Trade Authority handles complaints against airlines. Small claims court is a realistic route in Israel for this size of claim and needs no lawyer.
How long you have
Four years from the day the right arose. Section 19 of the law sets its own period, shorter than Israel's general seven. The forty-five-day payment deadline runs from your written demand, not from the flight.
Questions
How much does the Aviation Services Law pay?
₪1,530 for up to 2,000 km; ₪2,450 for 2,000–4,500 km; ₪3,670 for over 4,500 km.
How long do I have to claim?
Four years from the day the right arose. Section 19 of the law sets its own period, shorter than Israel's general seven. The forty-five-day payment deadline runs from your written demand, not from the flight.
Who enforces it?
Section 11 lets a court award exemplary damages — with no need to prove any loss, and on top of the fixed compensation — where the airline knowingly withheld what the law requires. The cap in the text is ₪10,000 per passenger, and like every amount in the law it is CPI-linked under section 13, so about ₪12,200 today; it is why small-claims awards against airlines can reach tens of thousands of shekels. The Civil Aviation Authority of Israel oversees the law, and the Consumer Protection and Fair Trade Authority handles complaints against airlines. Small claims court is a realistic route in Israel for this size of claim and needs no lawyer.
Primary sources
Read the law itself rather than anyone's summary of it, this one included. Every link below was checked on 12 September 2026.
- Full text of the law — Nevo legal database
- The law as published in the official statute book — Knesset (PDF)
- Aviation Services Law and its regulations — Civil Aviation Authority of Israel
By situation, rather than by statute
If you would rather start from what happened than from which law applies: my flight was cancelled · they are blaming a strike · they are blaming a technical fault · I was denied boarding · I am stuck at the airport · I missed my connection · they moved me to a lower class · my bag did not arrive · they say it was extraordinary · should I use a claim company?
Worked examples on real routes
Where this law and another both reach the same flight, and which pays more:
The other statutes
- EU261 compensation — EU261
- UK261 compensation — UK261
- US DOT flight delay rules — US DOT rules
- Canada APPR compensation — the APPR
- Montreal Convention 1999 — the Montreal Convention
- Russia Air Code Article 120 — Article 120 of the Air Code
- SHY passenger rights, Turkey — the SHY-Passenger Regulation
- India DGCA rules — the DGCA CAR
- ANAC Resolution 400, Brazil — ANAC Resolution 400
- Thailand CAAT rules — the CAAT passenger rules
- Indonesia PM 89/2015 — Ministerial Regulation PM 89
- Saudi GACA passenger rights — the GACA customer protection rules