The federal government believes compensation should not be granted until a delay of at least four or six hours— these provisions appear in the current legislative proposal . Berlin believes the current rules (three and five hours) should be maintained. The statement stated that the government opposes "weakening the level of consumer protection" and advocates for "a balanced compromise between the interests of passengers, airlines, and the travel industry," reports German travel industry website Reise vor-9.

The permissible delay of the aircraft cannot exceed three hours.

In formulating their request, the Greens cited ongoing discussions on the reform at the EU level. On June 5, the EU Council of Transport Ministers reached a political agreement on changes to the regulation. The draft stipulates that compensation will only be available for delays of four to six hours. The amount of compensation will also be redefined.

According to the current European Union regulation, passengers can claim compensation after a flight delay of just three hours: €250 for flights of up to 1,500 kilometres, €400 for flights between 1,500 and 3,500 kilometres (including within the European Union) and €600 for flights of more than 3,500 kilometres.

The German government on compensation for air passengers: yes, but

The federal government acknowledges the need to change the regulations—especially in the context of increasing digitalization—but advocates maintaining the three-hour threshold, which, in its opinion, has proven effective in practice. Regarding compensation amounts, politicians emphasize the need to standardize payments to €300. This would mean an increase in benefits for passengers on short-haul flights while simultaneously reducing them on medium- and long-haul routes. Such a change, it is argued, would relieve European carriers in areas where they compete with non-EU operators, and the system itself would be easier to implement and understand for all stakeholders.