Ticket tax has resulted in lasting damage for Amsterdam airport, others

DutchAmsterdam.nl — Amsterdam Airport Schiphol and other airports in the Netherlands encounter lasting damage as a result of the Ticket Tax that will discontinued from July 1 this year.

Schiphol president Jos Nijhuis last Tuesday told a meeting of the Dutch Aviation Group, an umbrella organization for the airline industry, that nine percent of all passengers have been lost to less expensive airports in neighboring countries.

“We expect to only win back a quart of that number next year,” Nijhuis said, explaining that the rest is expected to continue using the cheaper airports, Amsterdam daily Het Parool reports.

Ticket Tax Money Grab

On July 1, 2008, the Dutch government introduced the Ticket Tax (vliegbelasting), claiming that the money would be used to counter the negative effect flying has on the environment.

Flights within the European Union, or up to 2,500 kilometers were subject to a €11.25 surcharge. Longer flights were taxed €45.00.

At the time, the government said it expected the tax would lead to a slower growth of air traffic, which they claimed would benefit the environment. Critics denied this, pointing out that other means of transport also damage the environment. The government countered that they already taxed cars and coaches.

Just about anyone else quickly concluded that the Ticket Tax, expected to bring an additional €350 million a year to the government’s coffers, was simply yet another creative way to ‘steal’ money.

Ticket Tax Discontinued

The levying of the Ticket Tax had an immediate negative effect. Several discount airlines, including Volare Airlines and Corendon, stopped flying to and from Dutch airports — and instead followed a growing stream of passengers to airports in Belgium and Germany. Other low-cost airlines, such as Easyjet, reduced the number of flights to and from The Netherlands. The travel industry responded by organizing scheduled coach trips to and from the less expensive airports across the border.

Airports, airlines, travel organizations, and others warned the government the Ticket Tax damaged not just the competition position of Dutch airports, headed by Schiphol, but also the entire tourism sector. The trade fairs and congress sector would also see a sharp decline.

Then came the roll-on effects of the worldwide economic crisis, which — among other things — resulted in a further reduction in air travel.

Last March the government relented, declaring that the tax would be discontinued as of July 1 this year.

Record Decline

Schiphol president Jos Nijhuis says everything will be done to try and lower Schiphol’s tariff, indicating that even if some passengers start using the airport again Schiphol’s position in Europe has gone from being part of the top three to somewhere in the middle of the bunch.

A correction does not yet appear to be in the cards. During the summer months, the high season, 8.5 percent fewer flights are scheduled. The first quarter of the year Schiphol saw a reduction in flights by 12.5 percent.

Schiphol’s independent slot-coordinator, Michiel van der Zee, says never before has the airport seen such a decline — which must be compared to a high season growth in previous years of 4 to 6 percent.

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