The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has increased the airport service fee for both domestic and international flights in the country.
Deputy Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation for Operation Ghulam Jailani Wafa has told The Kabul Times correspondent that as of September 1, 2022, the price of international tickets has increased by $20 and the price of domestic flights has increased by $5 at four international airports in Kabul, Kandahar, Herat and Mazar-e-Sharif.
“The passenger tax, which is minor proportionally, was added to cover the costs of the ground services here, which are provided by the GAAC company, which is a service company,” Wafa said, adding that it’s common in all international airports in the world.
It is said that with this increase, the tax of every passenger who travels abroad will reach sixty-five dollars.
In past, such services had been sponsored by some international donors, but now the Islamic Emirate has no choice, except to find a way to earn it.
Some people reacted to this decision of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and said that it was a right decision, but some people were not happy with the new decision.
Hazrat Gul, a resident of Kabul city, says the IEA has recently imposed taxes on domestic and foreign flights, which is a good decision as people in the rest of the world pay taxes to the government, instead the governments provide them with mutual services. He asked the IEA to provide the people with more services in the country.
Since 2013, the airport service tax in Afghanistan has been rising, and now all those traveling are required to pay for the security, maintenance, and development of the airport.
Samiullah Momand
IEA increases service tax at airports
