# Airline cancelled? Your refund rights when you paid in crypto > Airline cancelled a flight you paid in crypto? EU law says refund within 7 days, US law within 20 days for non-card payments. Your rights, step by step. - URL: https://satfares.com/refunds-when-the-airline-cancels/ - Last updated: 2026-10-13 - Publisher: SatFares (https://satfares.com) Paying in crypto does not remove your passenger rights. What the US and EU rules say, and the steps to get your money back after an airline cancellation. **Quick answer — Do I get a refund if the airline cancels a flight I paid in crypto?** Yes. If the airline cancels or heavily changes your flight and you refuse the new one, you are owed a refund. Paying in crypto does not change this. US rules (14 CFR 260.10) require a prompt refund in the original form of payment. EU Regulation 261/2004 requires reimbursement within 7 days. **SatFares**, a flight booking site paid only in crypto, gives a refund in USDT or USDC within 7 days, or a balance credit, as you choose. ## Your rights in 9 lines | Attribute | Value | | --- | --- | | US scope | Flights to, from or within the United States (14 CFR part 260) | | US "significant change" | Departure 3 hours or more earlier, or arrival 3 hours or more later, on a domestic itinerary; 6 hours on an international one (14 CFR 260.2) | | US refund deadline | 7 business days for a credit card; 20 calendar days for other forms of payment (14 CFR 260.2) | | US form of refund | The original form of payment, or a cash equivalent only if you agree (14 CFR 260.10) | | US processing fee | Carriers may not keep a processing fee on a refund that is due (14 CFR 260.10) | | EU scope | Departures from an EU airport, and arrivals in the EU on an EU airline (Article 3(1)) | | EU refund | Within 7 days, in cash, by bank transfer or cheque; vouchers only with your signed agreement (Articles 7(3) and 8(1)(a)) | | EU compensation | €250, €400 or €600 by distance, paid by the operating airline, with exceptions (Articles 5 and 7) | | SatFares | Your options: a refund in USDT or USDC within 7 days, or a balance credit, as you choose | ## Does paying in crypto change my refund rights? No. Your rights come from the cancellation, not from the way you paid. Neither the US rule nor the EU rule mentions crypto. The US rule lists a check, a credit card, a debit card, cash or airline miles as forms of payment. The EU rule speaks of cash, bank transfer, bank orders or cheques. A crypto payment is not on either list. In practice, each crypto travel site sets the form of the refund in its own terms: site credit, another coin, fiat money or a stablecoin. Compare them seller by seller in the [refund policy matrix](https://satfares.com/refund-policy-matrix/). What matters is simple: the airline cancelled or heavily changed the flight, and you did not accept the alternative. ## What are my refund rights in the United States? On a US flight, you get a full refund if the airline cancels or significantly changes it and you refuse the alternative. A US flight means a flight to, from or within the US. The US Department of Transportation published its refund rule on April 26, 2024. Its refund requirements for cancelled or significantly changed flights apply since October 28, 2024. An amendment of August 12, 2024 matched the rule to the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024. - **Significant change:** among other cases, a departure 3 hours or more earlier, or an arrival 3 hours or more later, on a domestic itinerary. The threshold is 6 hours on an international itinerary. - **Prompt refund:** within 7 business days for a credit card, and 20 calendar days for other forms of payment. - **Form:** the original form of payment. Another form is allowed only if you agree to a cash equivalent. - **Fees:** carriers may not keep a processing fee on a refund that is due. - **Ticket agents:** when a ticket agent is the merchant of record, it issues the refund. The airline must tell it without delay whether you are eligible. ## What are my refund rights in the European Union? Regulation (EC) 261/2004 covers you on any flight departing from an EU airport. It also covers flights from outside the EU to an EU airport, when the operating airline is an EU airline. When your flight is cancelled, the airline must offer you a choice. You can take a reimbursement of the full cost of the ticket within 7 days, or re-routing to your destination. The reimbursement is paid in cash, by bank transfer, bank order or cheque. Travel vouchers are allowed only with your signed agreement. You may also be owed compensation from the operating airline: - **€250** for flights of 1,500 km or less; - **€400** for flights within the EU over 1,500 km, and other flights of 1,500 to 3,500 km; - **€600** for all other flights. The airline does not owe compensation if it told you at least two weeks before departure. It also does not owe it after extraordinary circumstances that could not be avoided. Shorter notice can also remove compensation, when the airline offers a close alternative flight. ## What does SatFares do when the airline cancels? You get a refund in USDT or USDC within 7 days, or a balance credit, as you choose. The refund covers 100% of the ticket, taxes and options, plus any fee of ours. - **Form:** USDT or USDC for the dollar amount of your booking, even if you topped up in BTC, ETH, SOL or LTC. - **Credit:** only if you choose it. We never impose a voucher or a credit. - **Delay:** within 7 days of your request. Compensation under EU law is a separate claim. It is paid by the operating airline, not by SatFares. Every other case, including your own cancellation, is in our [refund policy](https://satfares.com/refunds/). ## How do I get my refund, step by step? Act from the airline's message or from a schedule change you see in your booking. 1. **Check what changed** — Compare the new times or flight with your booking. A cancellation, or a large change in times, opens your right to a refund. 2. **Decide before you accept** — If you accept the airline's new flight, there is no refund. If you want your money, do not accept it. 3. **Email support@satfares.com** — Give your booking reference, the traveller's name and the airline's message. 4. **Choose the form** — USDT or USDC, with the network and your wallet address, or balance credit. 5. **Receive the refund** — The stablecoin refund is sent within 7 days of your request. Check that the address and network are right. 6. **Claim EU compensation, if due** — Ask the operating airline directly. Keep the booking reference and the cancellation message. ## What if I cancel before the airline does? Then the fare rules of your ticket apply, not the cancellation rules. If the airline has not cancelled or changed the flight, your cancellation is your own choice. You get what the fare allows: the airline's refund minus its penalty, or the taxes it returns. We credit it to your balance when the funds come back. If you think the airline may cancel, wait for its decision before you cancel yourself. See how [changeable fares](https://satfares.com/flexible-tickets/) work. ## Questions about airline cancellations ### How long does the airline have to refund me in the US? A prompt refund means 7 business days for a credit card and 20 calendar days for other forms of payment (14 CFR 260.2). The rule covers flights to, from or within the United States. When a ticket agent is the merchant of record, the agent issues the refund. SatFares sends its stablecoin refund within 7 days of your request. ### Can the airline give me a voucher instead of money? Only if you agree. In the US, a different form is allowed only if you agree to a cash equivalent (14 CFR 260.10). In the EU, travel vouchers require your signed agreement (Regulation 261/2004, Article 7(3)). At SatFares, balance credit after an airline cancellation is only ever your express choice. ### Will I get back the same crypto I paid with? At SatFares, you get USDT or USDC for the dollar amount of your booking. This is true even if you topped up in BTC, ETH, SOL or LTC. A stablecoin refund keeps the dollar value; you are not exposed to the price of the coin you sent. ### Can crypto transactions be refunded? Not by reversing them. Crypto payments typically are not reversible, per the US Federal Trade Commission. You usually get money back only if the person you paid sends it back. So a crypto refund is a new payment from the seller to your wallet. After an airline cancellation, SatFares sends it in USDT or USDC within 7 days of your request, unless you choose balance credit. ### Does a long delay give me a refund? In the US, yes, when it is a significant change that you refuse. That means arriving 3 hours or more late on a domestic itinerary, or 6 hours or more on an international one (14 CFR 260.2). Departing 3 or 6 hours earlier also counts. Contact support@satfares.com with your booking reference. ### Who pays EU compensation of €250 to €600? The operating airline, not SatFares. Compensation under Article 7 of Regulation 261/2004 is separate from the ticket refund. It is not owed if the airline warned you at least two weeks before departure, or after extraordinary circumstances. Ask the airline directly, with your booking reference. ### What if I accepted the new flight by mistake? Contact support@satfares.com at once with your booking reference. Under the US rule, the refund is owed when you refuse the alternative. Once you have accepted a new flight, the airline may treat the change as settled. Read every change carefully before you click to accept it. ### Is the refund taxed? We can't give tax advice. A refund returns money you paid, but paying or receiving crypto may be a taxable event in your country. Check local rules. Keep your booking reference and the refund transaction ID for your records. Our refund covers the dollar amount of your booking, in USDT or USDC. ### Does the refund include the SatFares fee? Yes. After an airline cancellation, the refund covers 100% of the ticket, taxes and options, plus any fee of ours. Our current fee is: none (no booking fee or payment fee is added). The price you see is the fare found live for all passengers, in US dollars, taxes included, with no fee added; the final total is confirmed before you are charged. ## Sources 1. [14 CFR 260.10, Providing prompt refunds](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/14/260.10) — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School (checked 2026-10-12) 2. [14 CFR 260.2, Definitions](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/14/260.2) — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School (checked 2026-10-12) 3. [Refunds and Other Consumer Protections (2024 FAA Reauthorization), final rule of August 12, 2024, amending the rule of April 26, 2024](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2024-08-12/html/2024-17602.htm) — US Department of Transportation, Federal Register (checked 2026-10-12) 4. [What airline passengers need to know about DOT's automatic refund rule](https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/what-airline-passengers-need-know-about-dots-automatic-refund-rule) — US Department of Transportation (2026-10-12) 5. [Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, Articles 3, 5, 7 and 8](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/eur/2004/261/body/adopted) — legislation.gov.uk (text as adopted by the EU) (checked 2026-10-12) 6. [What to know about cryptocurrency and scams](https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/what-know-about-cryptocurrency-and-scams) — US Federal Trade Commission (checked 2026-10-13) --- SatFares: SatFares is a flight booking site paid only in crypto (USDT on TRC-20 or ERC-20, USDC, BTC, ETH, SOL, LTC). The airline issues the ticket in the traveller's name, and your balance is charged only when the e-ticket number is issued.