The Whole House Committee of the Parliament of the Maldives has passed the amendment to the Airport Taxes and Fees Act to abolish the airport service charge and to replace it with departure tax.
The amendment was submitted to Parliament of Maldives by Parliamentarian Mohamed Rasheed, in February last year. The bill had initially proposed to discontinue airport service charge after March 31, 2020 and to introduce departure tax on April 1 the same year. However, the Parliamentary Committee on Economic Affairs decided to implement the changes in 2022.
Currently, USD 12 is imposed on Maldivian passengers as airport service charge, while USD 25 is imposed on foreign passengers. The proposed rates for departure tax are as follows:
- USD 12 for Maldivians travelling in Economy Class
- USD 30 on foreigners travelling in Economy Class
- USD 60 for all passengers travelling in Business Class,
- USD 90 for all passengers travelling in First Class
- USD 120 for all passengers travelling in private jets
The bill also proposes changes to the Airport Development Fee (ADF). While the bill states Maldivians travelling in Economy Class will not be subjected to any fee other than the departure tax, all other classes will be subjected to ADF in addition to the departure tax. The administration said the changes were brought to generate more revenue for the state through wealthy classes.
Following deliberations at the whole house committee, the bill was passed with votes from 43 parliamentarians. Only two parliamentarians voted against the bill.