Air Transat said on Thursday (29 April) it had come to a funding agreement with the Canada Enterprise Emergency Funding Corporation to refund outstanding travel credits.

The policy applies to trips that had been due to depart on or after 1 February 2020 through to flights booked by Thursday 29 April 2021.

"We’ve been impatiently waiting for this moment, and we know our customers have been too," said Annick Guerard, chief operating officer of Air Transat parent, Transat.

"Now a funding agreement has been reached and the eligibility criteria have been established by the government of Canada, we are delighted to be able to provide our customers with this long-awaited aid."

Those holding travel credits must submit a refund request via the Air Transat website (airtransat.com/refunds) by 26 August.

Travellers who booked via agents are advised to contact them directly.

The airline has been criticised by agents for only offering refunds on the UK-Canada leg of their clients’ journeys, and providing a travel credit for the Canada-UK return leg.

The issue was raised with the CAA, but the authority said it didn’t have the legal powers to enforce payment.