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 a departure tax. The amendment bill was passed with votes from 42 parliamentarians present at the sitting.
The amendment bill was submitted by Parliamentarian Mohamed Rasheed in February last year. The bill had initially proposed to discontinue airport service charges 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 charges, while USD 25 is imposed on foreign passengers. The proposed rates for departure tax are USD 12 for Maldivians travelling in Economy Class, USD 30 for foreigners travelling in Economy Class, USD 60 for all passengers travelling in Business Class, USD 90 for all passengers travelling in First Class, and USD 120 for all passengers travelling on private jets
The bill also proposes changes to the Airport Development Fee (ADF). Although all other classes will be subjected to ADF in addition to the departure tax, the bill states Maldivians travelling in Economy Class will not be subjected to any fee other than the departure tax.
The Government of the Maldives said the changes were brought to generate more revenue for the state through wealthy classes.