Tax on travel and tourism increases 16%, boosting overall revenue to almost $1.4 billion annually.
Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers has confirmed in tonight’s Federal Budget that the Passenger Movement Charge will increase by $10, with the Australian Federation of Travel Agents saying hiking taxes on every person leaving the country is “disappointing given the current state of the travel sector”.
AFTA modelling indicates the impost will take $520 million out of travel budgets, with annual PMC revenue to hit $1.38 billion in 2024/25 – just $420 million of which is actually spent on border management, the stated original purpose of the impost.
“Today’s decision to increase the PMC by 16% is extremely disappointing and will make it harder for Australia families to stay connected,” said AFTA CEO Dean Long.
“We know that the PMC does impact flight capacity to Australia, and with supply of air seats still tracking 30% down on pre-COVID levels this will make our recovery slower,” he said.
Long said AFTA, alongside TTF and the Australian Airports Association, would be coordinating the sector’s response through the Parliamentary review process to “get the best possible outcome for our members, clients and the sector at large”.
More details in tomorrow’s issue of Travel Daily.