Attention, all Australians who love to travel! Holidays could soon cost more!

Three leading industry groups have sent an urgent letter to the Prime Minister, demanding the Federal Government not increase the Passenger Movement Charge (PMC) in next week’s federal budget or risk damaging tourism.

The Tourism & Transport Forum (TTF), the Australian Federation of Travel Agents (AFTA) and the Australian Airports Association (AAA) are urging the government to commit to a five-year freeze of the current PMC rate to protect Australia’s vitally important tourism sector.

They warned increasing the PMC from the current rate of $60 per passenger, for Australians and visitors leaving our country, at a time when rising costs-of-living continue to bite, will make it significantly harder for tourism to bounce back as it rebuilds from the pandemic.

For many years, the PMC has already been used in part to fund border processing and vital biosecurity outcomes, which the industry fully supports.

But they warned increasing the PMC would discourage international tourists from visiting Australia and see Australians pay more every time they leave Australia, whether it’s for a holiday, for business or to visit friends and family.

What is the Passenger Movement Charge?

• Anyone who departs Australia, whether a tourist or an Australian traveller, is taxed $60 per passenger, per trip. The extra charge is added to their airfare and collected by the Commonwealth, to help fund international passenger processing at our borders. The industry does not want the PMC to be removed. They just don’t want it increased.

• Australia’s departure tax has risen 500% since it was first introduced at $10 in 1978. We now have one of the highest departure taxes in the world.

• When Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was Shadow Tourism Minister, he strongly opposed increasing the PMC, telling Parliament on November 28, 2016, “The increase in the Passenger Movement Charge has real consequences for tourism and will have jobs impacts in the tourism industry, which employs a million Australians, is Australia’s largest services export and has been nominated as one of Australia’s five super growth sectors.”

Quotes attributable:

“The tourism sector is still struggling to recover from the impacts of the pandemic, international tourism levels in Australia still haven’t recovered, so any increase to the PMC would be a major setback. Without a five-year freeze, we risk losing jobs in our industry.”
– Margy Osmond, CEO of Tourism & Transport Forum (TTF) Australia

“The reality is an increased PMC means more expensive airfares and overseas holidays for Australians already struggling with cost-of-living pressures.”

“The PMC is the second highest travel and tourism tax in the world and covers the costs of the world leading border processes and biosecurity program.”
– Dean Long, CEO of the Australian Federation of Travel Agents (AFTA)

“Australians already pay one of the highest departure taxes in the world. Increasing the PMC would discourage people from travelling and put jobs at risk.”

“We need the government to prioritise supporting our industry’s recovery and not tax it even more.”
– James Goodwin, CEO of the Australian Airports Association (AAA)