What actually gets you paid after a lost bag? Open a report at the airport before you leave the terminal, then follow it with a written claim that includes receipts and a contents inventory.

The airport paperwork starts the search, and the written claim is how you ask for money.

An airline on a U.S. domestic itinerary cannot limit baggage liability to less than $4,700 per passenger, even if its own policy sounds tighter. You'll still have to prove the loss. That $4,700 figure is a ceiling, not a guaranteed payout.

Do both steps even if the airline app still shows the bag as "in tracing."

File a lost baggage report before leaving the airport

Go straight to the airline's baggage-service desk after you land, before you leave the terminal and lose easy access to tags and agents. Stay until you have the file open.

Get the reference number from the desk, where staff may call the paperwork a Property Irregularity Report, or PIR.

Work through this while you still have the tag and boarding pass in hand:

1. Open the report. Give the agent your baggage-tag number, flight details, contact information, delivery address, and a clear description of the bag.
2. Save the case details. Photograph or screenshot the report number, baggage tag, boarding pass, and any tracking page. Ask how the airline will contact you.
3. Ask where to send expense receipts. Some carriers use a separate form for delay expenses and a later form for a permanent-loss claim.
4. Buy only reasonable essentials. Keep itemized receipts for necessary clothing, toiletries, and other items you reasonably needed because the bag was unavailable.
5. Submit the written claim promptly. Include the report number on every form, email, and attachment. Don't wait for the airline to decide the bag is lost before you preserve the claim.

The airport slip is not a reimbursement request, and the carrier usually wants its own claim form too.

If the desk was closed or you already left, use the airline's online baggage tool or customer-service channel that day. Keep a screenshot of when you tried.

Separate delay expenses from a permanent-loss claim

Treat a delayed bag as one claim and a bag that never comes back as another, and keep those files separate even when the airline parks both issues under one reference number.

Thing is, a purchase that looks necessary on day one can look excessive after the bag shows up. Buy what you need, not a full replacement wardrobe.

For a delayed bag on a U.S. domestic flight, the airline must consider reasonable, actual, verifiable expenses you can document with receipts. A carrier's daily allowance may be internal guidance. It won't settle the claim by itself.

The U.S. domestic baggage rules that matter

Federal rules for domestic air travel set a minimum liability limit of $4,700 per passenger, and a carrier may offer a higher cap if it wants. It cannot go lower for provable loss, damage, or delay.

Your actual payment may land far below $4,700. Carriers generally weigh what you can show you lost and whether delay expenses were reasonable. They also look at the condition and age of the belongings.

If the airline cites a company policy that seems inconsistent with the federal rule, read DOT's guidance on lost, delayed, and damaged baggage alongside 14 CFR Part 254 and keep both pages handy during the claim.

The airline's contract of carriage still matters because it usually sets the claim channel and the document deadlines you have to meet. Some contracts also flag items the airline treats differently. That contract does not replace the federal domestic liability floor.

International bags: Montreal Convention, not EU261

An international itinerary follows different rules even if one flight segment is within the United States, so don't assume the $4,700 domestic floor applies. Most of those claims sit under the Montreal Convention.

The Convention's baggage limit is expressed in Special Drawing Rights, or SDRs. The current limit is 1,519 SDR per passenger. The dollar value moves with exchange rates.

Turns out EU261 does not set baggage-loss compensation; it covers certain flight disruptions, such as cancellations and long flight delays. For baggage on a flight involving Europe, the Montreal Convention is usually the rule that controls the value claim.

A written complaint for baggage damage is generally due within seven days after you receive the bag.

You generally have 21 days after the bag is placed at your disposal to complain in writing about delay. If the bag has not arrived 21 days after it should have arrived, or the airline admits the loss earlier, you may enforce rights as for lost baggage. Don't wait for day 21.

Keep reporting the delay and submitting receipts while the airline traces the bag.

Make the evidence easy to verify

A solid claim names you and the bag, then states the dollar amount you want without dressing it up. Stay factual about the loss.

Your inventory does not need to look like a store ledger, but it does need enough detail that someone who has never seen your bag can test it. "black spinner suitcase, bought 2023, $160" is much more useful than "suitcase, expensive." Old photos or card statements can help fill gaps.

You can adapt this message for the airline's claims portal or email channel:

Subject: Baggage claim [reference number] - Flight [number], [date]

I reported my [delayed/lost/damaged] checked bag under reference [number].
The baggage tag number is [number].

I request reimbursement of $[amount] for the attached [delay-expense
receipts / bag and contents inventory / repair estimate].

Please confirm receipt of this claim, identify any missing documents, and
send your written decision to [email address].

Attach copies rather than original receipts. Redact full payment-card and account numbers before uploading statements.

A vague total with no item list is hard to defend. If you lack a receipt you should still give the best honest estimate you can, explain how you reached that number, and attach supporting photos or transaction records where you have them. If you can't find a receipt, say so.

Connections, gate checks, and carry-ons

Name every flight and operating airline on the claim, starting with the carrier whose desk opened the baggage report. Keep that report number if a partner airline later joins the chain.

If one airline says another carrier must handle the reimbursement, ask for that instruction in writing and send the same claim packet through the channel it identifies, even if you already uploaded those files once and it feels redundant, because separate tickets can complicate matters when you had to collect and recheck the bag yourself, so don't let that turn into a loop.

To be honest, a carry-on that stayed with you is different from a bag the airline took at the gate. Treat a gate-checked bag as checked baggage once the airline takes it. If airline staff took control of a carry-on, write down exactly when and where that happened.

Escalate a lost baggage complaint without starting over

Ask the airline for a written decision if it denies the claim or comes back asking for documents you already sent. Reply once with the missing evidence, or explain why you cannot provide it.

If the issue is still unresolved, file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Transportation and attach the airline case number plus your timeline. Include copies of the denial or unanswered submissions. DOT's baggage guidance explains the agency's consumer complaint role.

Notify your travel insurer or credit-card benefit administrator within its own deadline, because those benefits are account-specific and may require the airline report, receipts, and proof of any airline payment. Keep reimbursement requests accurate, because insurance may cover a gap but you cannot recover the same expense twice from different sources.

For a substantial disputed amount, review the ticket contract and applicable filing deadlines before considering small claims court or local legal help. A DOT complaint is not an individual claims court. It can still create a record the agency uses to spot practices that deserve scrutiny.

Gather the baggage tag, report number, receipts, and a dated contents list, then submit the airline's written claim while those records are still easy to find. Don't wait for the tracing to finish.