Guides · Rights
Airline Lost My Bag: Montreal Convention Limits, PIR and Claims
Airline lost your bag? File a PIR at the airport, send a written claim within 7 days, and know the Montreal Convention's 1,519 SDR limit and the US $3,800…
If the airline lost your bag, file a Property Irregularity Report (PIR) at the airline's baggage desk before you leave the airport. Keep every receipt. To be safe, send the airline a written claim within 7 days, even if you already filed a PIR. On international trips, the Montreal Convention makes the airline liable for up to 1,519 Special Drawing Rights per passenger, roughly $2,000. On US domestic flights, the minimum is higher, currently $3,800 per passenger. The two kinds of trip also have different claim deadlines, which this guide explains. Most claims settle well below either ceiling, so how you document and word your claim matters.
First step: file the PIR before you leave the airport
A PIR is the airline's official record that your bag didn't arrive. It goes into WorldTracer, a shared tracing system that most airlines use. When you file, you get a reference number. It usually looks like this: three letters for the airport, two for the airline, then five digits, such as LAXAA12345. That number is your case. Every phone call, online tracking check and claim form will ask for it.
The best place to file is the baggage service office in the arrivals hall, while you're still at the airport. A bag reported missing at the carousel is the easiest kind of claim to prove. Before you leave the desk:
- Get a printed or emailed copy of the PIR, not just the number.
- Check that the bag description is right: color, brand, size, and anything distinctive like a ribbon or strap.
- Give a delivery address and phone number where you will actually be for the next few days.
- Ask what the airline will pay for essentials while you wait, and write down the answer.
If you only find the problem later, you still have a claim. This happens when you open the bag at home and find something broken or missing. Report it to the airline in writing as soon as you notice. On international trips, the Montreal Convention gives you 7 days from getting the bag to report damage, and 21 days from the bag reaching you to report a delay. On US domestic flights, those treaty windows don't apply. The deadlines come from the airline's contract of carriage, which is its legal terms of travel, usually linked at the bottom of its website. Those deadlines can be shorter, so check them and don't wait.
Many airlines also let you file a PIR online or by phone. That is better than nothing, but it leaves you with a weaker record than a report made at the airport, so follow it up in writing.
If you're flying in for a cruise, tell the agent and give the ship and port details. Ships sail on schedule, and a late bag may never catch up with you. This is one of the strongest reasons to fly in the day before a cruise.
Delayed, damaged or lost: the deadlines on international trips
The Montreal Convention is the treaty that covers most international flights. For damaged and delayed bags, it sets firm deadlines. If you don't complain in writing within those windows, you can lose your claim entirely. For a bag that is lost outright, the treaty sets no fixed complaint window, but airlines have their own forms and dates.
Airlines also differ on whether a PIR counts as your formal written complaint. Don't gamble on it. Send a written claim within 7 days, whatever happened to your bag and wherever you flew. On international trips, that one habit covers you under every treaty deadline below.
| Situation | What it means | Written claim deadline (Montreal Convention) |
|---|---|---|
| Damaged bag | Bag arrived broken, torn or with contents damaged | Within 7 days of receiving it |
| Delayed bag | Bag turned up late | Within 21 days of it being delivered to you |
| Lost bag | Airline admits loss, or bag still missing after 21 days | No fixed treaty window. Still send written notice within 7 days, then follow the airline's own forms and dates |
| Going to court | Airline refuses or underpays | Within 2 years of arrival |
These deadlines are Montreal Convention rules, so they apply to international trips. On a US domestic flight, check your airline's contract of carriage for its deadlines to file a claim, to treat a bag as lost, and to sue. Those can differ from the treaty and may be shorter. Sending your written claim within 7 days is still the right habit. Just don't assume the other windows in this table protect you.
On international trips, the 21-day mark is the key moment. Once a bag has been missing for 21 days, the treaty lets you treat it as lost and claim for its full contents, whether or not the airline agrees. Many airlines declare a bag lost sooner and send you a contents form. Fill it out in detail.
Email counts as a written claim. Keep a copy that shows the date.
How much you can claim: the Montreal Convention limit
The Montreal Convention caps the airline's liability for checked baggage at 1,519 Special Drawing Rights (SDR) per passenger. That cap covers loss, damage and delay combined. It was raised from 1,288 SDR in a scheduled review that took effect at the end of 2024.
An SDR is a basket currency set by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Its dollar value changes daily. Through 2025 it sat at roughly $1.35. At that rate, 1,519 SDR × $1.35 comes to about $2,050 per passenger. Check the current rate on the IMF website before you file.
Three things to understand about that number:
- It is a ceiling, not a payout. You must prove what you lost. The airline pays the depreciated value, not the cost of buying new. A four-year-old coat is worth less than a new one.
- It is per passenger, not per bag. Two travelers who shared one suitcase can usually each claim against their own limit, as long as both can show their belongings were inside.
- You can raise it in advance. Some airlines let you make a "special declaration of interest" at check-in. You pay a fee for higher coverage. Few people do, but it's worth asking about if you must check something valuable.
US domestic flights are not covered by the Montreal Convention. Instead, the Department of Transportation (DOT) sets a separate minimum limit. It is currently $3,800 per passenger, which is higher than the Montreal figure. The DOT reviews it for inflation from time to time, so confirm the current amount on the DOT's aviation consumer protection pages before you file.
Outside the US, domestic and regional flights have their own rules. EU and UK airlines generally apply the Montreal limits to all their flights, including domestic ones. Canada applies them to domestic flights through its passenger protection rules. Other countries vary, so check the national aviation regulator if your trip didn't involve the US.
What to claim for, and how to prove it
Interim expenses while the bag is delayed. Reasonable costs for things you genuinely need count: toiletries, a change of clothes, a phone charger, and sometimes rental of essentials like a stroller. Airlines push back on anything that looks like a shopping trip. Buy modestly, keep the receipts, and keep purchases in proportion to the length of your trip and the delay.
Contents of a lost bag. List every item with its approximate purchase date and price. Receipts help, but most people don't keep receipts for socks. Bank or card statements, order confirmation emails and photos of you wearing or using items all count as evidence. The best habit is a quick photo of the open suitcase before you zip it.
Damage. Photograph the bag before you leave the airport. Keep the damaged bag until the claim is settled, because the airline may ask to inspect it. Expect pushback on scuffs, broken wheels or torn straps. Many airlines treat these as normal wear and exclude them.
Your bag fee. On US flights, airlines must refund the checked-bag fee when a bag is significantly late. Under current DOT rules, that means more than 12 hours after a domestic flight lands. For international flights, it's 15 to 30 hours, depending on the flight's length. The refund is meant to be automatic. In practice, a mishandled-bag report is your proof that the bag was late, and many airlines will ask for it. If the refund doesn't appear, request it in writing and quote your PIR number. The same set of DOT rules also requires automatic refunds when flights are cancelled or significantly changed. That side is covered in our guide to the US automatic flight refund rule.
Valuables. Airline contracts often list items they won't cover, such as jewelry, cash, electronics and medication. On international trips, those exclusions may not hold up. The Montreal Convention stops airlines from contracting out of the treaty limit. Still, it's an argument you'd rather not have to make. Keep valuables in your carry-on.
Claim checklist
Put these in every written claim, whether it's an email, a letter or the airline's online form:
- Your PIR reference number
- Your flight numbers, travel date and ticket number (13 digits, found on your e-ticket receipt)
- Your name, address, phone number and email
- What happened: bag delayed, damaged or lost, and the date you got it back if it arrived
- An itemized list: each item, approximate purchase date, price paid, and the evidence you have for it
- Receipts for any interim purchases
- The currency you're claiming in and the total amount you're asking for
- On international trips, a line citing the Montreal Convention, for example: "I am claiming compensation under the Montreal Convention for my checked baggage."
- How you want to be paid
If the airline lowballs you
First offers are often low, particularly for items without receipts. Reply in writing. Point to your evidence, cite the Montreal Convention by name on international trips, and state the amount you consider fair.
Your options if that fails:
- Travel insurance or credit card coverage. Either may pay what the airline won't, usually after the airline has paid its share. See our services page for information on travel insurance.
- A government complaint. For US carriers, or any flight to or from the US, file with the DOT. Airlines are expected to respond to DOT complaints, which often shakes loose a better offer.
- Small claims court. It is inexpensive and doesn't require a lawyer. On international trips, file within the Montreal Convention's two-year limit. On US domestic flights, check the airline's contract of carriage for its deadline to sue, which may be shorter, and file well before it runs out.
If the lost bag came with a cancelled or badly delayed flight, you may have separate claims for that too. See your rights when a flight is cancelled or badly delayed.
Frequently asked questions
How long does an airline have to find my bag?
There is no deadline for the search itself. On international trips, the Montreal Convention lets you treat the bag as lost after 21 days and claim its full value. On US domestic flights, the airline's contract of carriage sets when a bag counts as lost, so check it. Most delayed bags are found and delivered within a day or two. Either way, send your written claim within 7 days so you're covered.
Which airline do I claim from if I had connections?
On a single ticket, the Montreal Convention lets you claim from the first airline, the last airline, or the airline that actually lost or damaged the bag. The last airline is usually the easiest, because it takes the PIR at your arrival airport. On separate tickets, claim from the airline that actually lost or damaged the bag. If you can't tell which one that was, claim from the last airline, and expect more back-and-forth.
Is 1,519 SDR the most I can ever get?
On international trips under the Montreal Convention, it generally is, unless you made a special declaration of interest at check-in. The limit can also be lifted if the airline caused the loss deliberately or recklessly, but that is rare and hard to prove. US domestic flights have a separate, higher minimum, currently $3,800 per passenger. Travel insurance or card coverage can top up what the airline pays.
