Turkey: flight compensation under SHY-YOLCU

Which flights are covered

SHY-YOLCU was published in the Official Gazette (Resmî Gazete) on 3 December 2011 and applied from 1 January 2012. Its own legal-basis article names EU Regulation 261/2004 as a source, and the structure follows it closely. Under Article 2 it applies to:

• Turkish airlines (such as Turkish Airlines and Pegasus): all scheduled and non-scheduled flights to and from airports in Turkey;
• foreign airlines: only flights departing from airports in Turkey.

You must have a confirmed reservation and check in on time – at the time set by the airline or, if none was set, no later than 45 minutes before the published departure. Free tickets and non-public discounted fares are excluded, but tickets bought with miles or points are covered. The regulation does not affect rights under Turkey's separate package tour rules. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (SHGM, Sivil Havacılık Genel Müdürlüğü) supervises it.

Compensation amounts

Article 8, as amended in December 2024, sets the amounts per passenger:

The amounts are fixed in euros but paid as their Turkish lira equivalent, using the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye's exchange rate. Distance is measured by the great-circle method to the final destination. As under EU261, the amount may be halved if the airline re-routes you and you arrive within 2 hours (up to 1,500 km), 3 hours (1,500–3,500 km) or 4 hours (over 3,500 km) of the original arrival time (Article 8(3) of the 2011 text). Payment is in cash or by bank transfer; vouchers or other services only with your signed agreement. Your rights cannot be waived by contract (Article 16), and the compensation can be deducted from any further damages you claim under other laws (Article 13).

Most UK–Turkey holiday routes – London to Antalya, Dalaman or Istanbul, Manchester to Bodrum – are in the 1,500–3,500 km band, so the international figure that usually matters is €400. Use our distance calculator to check your route.

Delays: the December 2024 change

Before December 2024, SHY-YOLCU gave delayed passengers care and, after 5 hours, a refund option – but no fixed compensation for delay alone. The amending regulation published in Resmî Gazete No 32748 on 10 December 2024, in force the same day, added a new paragraph 3 to Article 7: where flights are delayed for technical and operational reasons and the passenger reaches the planned final destination 3 hours or more late, the operating airline must immediately meet its obligations under Article 8 (compensation) and Article 9 (refund or re-routing).

The new paragraph is limited to "technical and operational" causes. Delays caused by the events listed as extraordinary in the regulation – political instability, weather unsuitable for flight, natural disasters, security risks, unexpected flight safety shortcomings and strikes (Article 4) – are, on the wording, outside it. How Turkish authorities and courts draw the line between an "operational" cause and an extraordinary one is something we have not been able to check.

Note the contrast with UK261 and EU261, where technical faults are normally not extraordinary and do give compensation (technical faults). On the Turkish rule, a technical fault is precisely what triggers the payment.

Cancellation and denied boarding

Cancellation (Article 6) gives compensation unless you were told:

• at least two weeks before departure; or
• between two weeks and seven days before, and offered re-routing leaving no more than 2 hours earlier and arriving no more than 4 hours later; or
• less than seven days before, and offered re-routing leaving no more than 1 hour earlier and arriving no more than 2 hours later.

The airline is exempt if it proves the cancellation was caused by extraordinary circumstances that could not have been avoided even with all reasonable measures, and it bears the burden of proving when it told you. It is also relieved if you gave no or wrong contact details when asked.

Denied boarding (Article 5): the airline must first look for volunteers. If you are refused boarding against your will, it must immediately pay compensation and offer a refund or re-routing and care.

Care, refunds and downgrades

Care is offered when a delay of at least 2 hours (domestic flights and flights under 1,500 km), 3 hours (1,500–3,500 km) or 4 hours (over 3,500 km) is expected, plus two free phone calls, a fax or e-mail (Articles 7 and 10). From 5 hours you can choose a refund within seven days instead of travelling, with a free flight back to your starting point if the trip no longer serves its purpose (Article 9). If you are downgraded, the airline must make a refund that includes 30%, 50% or 75% of the ticket price, by distance, within seven days (Article 11). Airlines must display a notice of these rights in Turkish and English at check-in (Article 15).

How SHY-YOLCU interacts with UK261 and EU261

UK261 covers flights departing the UK on any airline and flights into the UK on UK or EU airlines; EU261 covers flights departing the EU and flights into the EU on EU airlines. Putting the rules side by side:

Where both apply, you should not expect to be compensated twice. On flights into the UK or EU, UK261 and EU261 exclude passengers who received benefits or compensation and were given assistance in the non-European country (Article 3(1)). The practical differences: UK261 pays in pounds and treats technical faults as the airline's responsibility; SHY-YOLCU pays euro amounts in lira and, for delays, applies only to technical and operational causes. Turkey is also a party to the Montreal Convention, which covers baggage and proven losses on international flights.

Where to complain

1. The airline: write to the operating airline's customer relations, citing SHY-YOLCU (and UK261 or EU261 if they also apply), with your booking, boarding pass and the delay at arrival.
2. SHGM: the Directorate General of Civil Aviation supervises airlines under the regulation (Article 20). The Turkish transport ministry has said that passenger-rights applications are now handled through an SHGM digital system that forwards them to the airline; we could not confirm the current address on SHGM's own website.
3. Courts: Article 19 preserves your right to go to court. If you accepted less than you were owed without being properly informed, Article 16(2) lets you still claim the difference.
4. For a UK261 claim on the same flight, see how to claim and ADR schemes.

What we could not verify

• Consolidated text. We read the original 2011 text and the 2024 amending regulation in the Official Gazette, but not a consolidated version, so we cannot rule out other amendments between 2012 and 2024 or after December 2024.
• Exchange-rate date. The 2011 text converted at the Central Bank rate on the ticket purchase date; the 2024 amendment rewrote Article 8(1), and the online text we could read was partly garbled on the reference date. Ask the airline which rate it used.
• Time limits. SHY-YOLCU sets no deadline for claims; Turkish limitation rules were not checked.
• SHGM complaint channel (see above) and how "technical and operational reasons" is applied in practice.

Frequently asked questions

Does UK261 cover my flight from Istanbul or Antalya to London?

Only if a UK or EU airline operates it – for example Jet2, TUI Airways, easyJet or British Airways. On Turkish Airlines or Pegasus, UK261 does not apply in that direction, but Turkey's SHY-YOLCU regulation does, because it covers Turkish airlines' flights to and from Turkish airports.

How much is Turkish flight delay compensation?

Since the amendment published on 10 December 2024, a passenger who reaches the final destination 3 hours or more late because of technical or operational reasons is owed the same amounts as for a cancellation: €100 on domestic flights and €250, €400 or €600 on international flights by distance, paid as the Turkish lira equivalent.

Can I claim under both SHY-YOLCU and UK261?

Both can apply to the same flight – for example London to Istanbul on Turkish Airlines. You should not expect to be paid twice for the same delay; UK261 excludes passengers on inbound flights who have already received compensation and assistance in the non-European country. State clearly which rules you rely on.

General information, not legal advice; we are not lawyers. Translations of Turkish legal texts are our own. We are an independent guide and an affiliate partner of AirHelp – see our affiliate disclosure.

Sources

1. Havayolu ile Seyahat Eden Yolcuların Haklarına Dair Yönetmelik (SHY-YOLCU), Resmî Gazete No 28131, 3 December 2011 – Resmî Gazete (Official Gazette of the Republic of Türkiye)
2. SHY-YOLCU amending regulation, Resmî Gazete No 32748, 10 December 2024 – Resmî Gazete (Official Gazette of the Republic of Türkiye)
3. Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 – UK version, Article 3 (scope) – legislation.gov.uk
4. Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 – Article 3 (scope) – EUR-Lex
5. Montreal Convention 1999 – list of parties – ICAO

We check every rule against the sources above. Spotted an error? Tell us – see our editorial policy.