Ever found yourself fuming that in order to ensure you get a seat next to your child on the way to your family holiday, you have to pay extra for a seat for each of you – on top of what’s probably an already hefty ticket price?
You’re not alone. But changes to EU air passenger rights will make this annoyance a thing of the past, as the right for children under the age of 14 to sit next to an accompanying adult free of charge will be protected.
In September 2026, Members of the European Parliament approved changes to rules on air passenger rights that have been protected since 2004. There’s a slate of changes due to come into force, but the parents among the Condé Nast Traveller team were particularly intrigued by the promise that a free adjacent seat will be guaranteed for a child under the age of 14 and the adult accompanying them. That means airlines cannot split up families at seat allocation, and cannot charge you extra to sit together.
Why under the age of 14? For most airlines, children under 14 cannot travel without an accompanying adult on the same flight.
The change means that adding extra fees to allow parents and children to sit together – which can quickly add up as they’re charged per person – will be a thing of the past. The rules come into effect 12 months and 20 days after their publication in the Official Journal of the European Union – around August 2027, just in time for any end-of-summer holidays.
Other rights that will come into practice next August thanks to these include: