A new proposal passed by EU lawmakers on June 24 aims to end surprise fees for small carry-on bags, a common frustration for budget airline passengers. If approved by EU member states, the new rule would let travellers bring one small cabin bag and a personal item onboard without paying extra, starting as early as July 2025, as per a report by BBC News.<\/p>\n
The rule applies across all EU flights, including low-cost carriers, and allows a cabin bag up to 7kg in weight and 100cm in size, plus a personal item like a laptop bag or purse that fits under the seat.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis vote marks an important step toward fairer and more transparent travel,\u201d said Matteo Ricci, Vice-Chair of the EU Committee on Transport and Tourism in a press statement. \u201cIt introduces concrete measures such as the clear definition of free hand luggage \u2026 a fundamental right to avoid unjustified extra costs.\u201d
\nUntil now, budget airlines like Ryanair and Wizz Air often charged extra for hand baggage, depending on its size and weight. In 2024, Spain\u2019s Consumer Rights Ministry fined five carriers \u20ac179 million for what it called \u201cabusive practices,\u201d which helped push forward the EU\u2019s latest passenger rights proposal.<\/p>\n
The carry-on regulation is part of broader changes meant to protect travellers. Lawmakers have also voted to ban seat selection charges for children under 12 and called for greater clarity in flight pricing, requiring ticket platforms to display the full cost upfront. Additional protections could apply to passengers who miss connecting transport services like buses due to delayed flights, if all legs were booked together.<\/p>\n
According to the BBC News report, airlines have voiced opposition to the changes, warning that the cost of free carry-on baggage might be absorbed into overall ticket prices. \u201cForcing a mandatory trolley bag strips passengers of that choice and obliges them to pay for services they may not want or need,\u201d said Ourania Georgoutsakou, Managing Director of Airlines For Europe.
\nIf enacted, the law will apply to all flights across and connected to the EU, potentially reshaping the air travel experience for millions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A new proposal passed by EU lawmakers on June 24 aims to end surprise fees for small carry-on bags, a common frustration for budget airline passengers. If approved by EU member states, the new rule would let travellers bring one small cabin bag and a personal item onboard without paying extra, starting as early as …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":22981,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpscppro_dont_share_socialmedia":null,"_wpscppro_custom_social_share_image":0,"_facebook_share_type":"default","_twitter_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type":"default","_pinterest_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type_page":"","_instagram_share_type":"default","_medium_share_type":"default","_threads_share_type":"","_google_business_share_type":"","_selected_social_profile":null,"_wpsp_enable_custom_social_template":false,"_wpsp_social_scheduling":{"enabled":false,"datetime":null,"platforms":[],"status":"template_only","dateOption":"today","timeOption":"now","customDays":"","customHours":"","customDate":"","customTime":"","schedulingType":"absolute"},"_wpsp_active_default_template":true},"categories":[96,98,102],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22980","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-aviation-world","category-companies","category-featured-en"],"yoast_head":"\n