Flying from Germany is about to get quite a bit more expensive with a rise in the tax on air tickets that’s designed to plug a hole in the national budget. Increases to take place starting in May, with rates going up by around 20%.
Germany’s budget suffered a sudden gap of several billion Euros when the Constitutional Court struck down a borrowing program the government had counted on to fund its budget. Rather than slashing the national budget, the government has turned to a number of tax hikes, including this one.
The tax on a flight within Germany or to member states of the European Union cost €12.73 per passenger per journey in 2023; it will rise to €15.53, while the maxixmum tax, on flights of more than 6,000 kilometres, will rise to €70.83 per passenger instead of €58.06.
The measure is expected to raise revenue by €445 million this year and €580 million in coming years. The tax is levied on airlines, but is expected to be passed on to passengers.
