Taiwan — Civil Aviation Act and the MOTC mandatory contract terms

The clocks it starts

• Two years for a Montreal Convention claim (Art. 35)This is the limitation period for the Convention claim for proven delay damages on international carriage, not for any national compensation scheme, which may have its own. It is fatal to the Convention claim specifically, and correspondence does not suspend it.Montreal Convention 1999, Art. 35(1) — Art. 35(1)Limitation period

What it entitles you to, beyond money

• The mandatory terms beat the conditions of carriageThis is the point that wins Taiwanese cases. Where the carrier's own conditions of carriage give you less than the announced mandatory terms, the announcement governs and the contrary term has no effect against you. So the answer to "our conditions of carriage say otherwise" is that the Ministry has announced what the contract must contain and the carrier does not get to write around it.
• The carrier must run a complaints procedure, by statuteArt. 47-3 of the Civil Aviation Act requires it and empowers the authority to prescribe how. A carrier that does not respond is breaching a statutory duty separate from whatever it owes you, and that is what the Civil Aeronautics Administration complaint bites on.
• Montreal Convention damages for delay (international carriage)On international carriage between States Parties, Art. 19 of the Montreal Convention makes the carrier liable for the damage the delay actually caused you — the unused hotel night, the missed onward booking, the extra meals and transport — unless it proves it took all measures that could reasonably be required. It is capped at 6,303 SDR per passenger (the figure ICAO set with effect from 28 December 2024) and it requires receipts, not a formula. This claim exists independently of any national scheme, and airlines never mention it. The right is extinguished two years after arrival under Art. 35.Art. 19, Art. 22(1)

Where to take it next

1. 01Written claim to the airlineComplain to the carrier in writing under Art. 47-3 of the Civil Aviation Act, naming the flight and the disruption, and asking which provision of the announced mandatory contract terms it says applies.Claim direct·typically 30 days
2. 02交通部民用航空局 (Civil Aeronautics Administration)The CAA supervises carriers, publishes the mandatory contract terms, and mediates carriage disputes. It is also the body that can give you the current figures.Regulator·typically 90 days·official page
3. 03消費者保護官 / 地方政府消費者服務中心 (Consumer Protection Officers)Every Taiwanese local government has consumer protection officers who mediate disputes and can enforce the mandatory standard-form contract terms. This is the route with the sharpest teeth for a standard-form contract complaint.Regulator·typically 90 days·official page
4. 04小額訴訟 (small claims procedure)Binding on themClaims up to NTD 100,000 are heard in a simplified procedure with a nominal fee. Consumer claims under the Consumer Protection Act can also support punitive damages where the trader acted intentionally.Small claims·typically 180 days