Airport tax, or the passenger service charge, is set to be increased with the operator of Malaysian airports, Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB), expected to make the announcement soon, said Transport Minister Kong Cho Ha today.

Confirming a report in a local newspaper today, Kong said the approval for the airport tax increase had been given in February 2009.

“We actually approved the increase back in February 2009. The only thing is that it has not been implemented as we left it to MAHB to implement it and make the appropriate announcement.

“The increase is actually part of an operating agreement signed between MAHB and the Transport Ministry in 2009,” he told Bernama when contacted in Kuala Lumpur today.

Quoting sources, The Sun in its front page story today reported that Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) was set to raise the airport tax to cover rising operating costs and finance airport expansion.

It was also reported that MAHB proposed that the tax at the country’s 39 airports it manages, excluding low cost carrier terminals (LCCTs), be raised by RM14 for international travellers from Sept 15. In this event, the travellers will have to pay RM65 compared with RM51 (RM45 for airport tax and RM6 for security charge) now.

The last increase was in 2002, when the charges were raised to RM45 from RM40 for international passengers and to RM6 from RM5 for domestic departures.

The report also said the tax at the LCCTs in Sepang and the Kota Kinabalu International Airport will also likely be raised by RM7, bringing the airport tax to RM32 from the current RM25 for international passengers.

In May 2007, the Transport Ministry halved airport tax at LCCTs from RM51 to RM25 for international passengers and from RM9 to RM6 for domestic passengers.

- Bernama