Air Travel To One Popular Destination Is About To Get More Expensive

When looking at the fine print of one's plane ticket receipt, you will see a number of fees beyond the base fare of the ticket. 

Depending on where one is in the world, this can take the form of airport fees, taxes or a "departure charge" that airlines transfer to the government.

Related: Another popular vacation hotspot is slapping visitors with a 'tourist tax'

Over in the United Kingdom, there is something called the Air Passenger Duty (APD). Anyone older than 16 has to pay the tax when leaving the country from one of its airports while the exact amount to be paid varies on factors such as the distance of one's destination and the traveler class.

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This is how much you'll have to pay to fly out of the UK

Each ticket will fall into a category with a distance-based band — Band A is for flights of less than 2,000 miles, Band B is for flights of 2,001 to 5,550 miles while Band C is for flights of more than 5,500 miles — and either the reduced, standard or higher rate.

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"Reduced" means the lowest fare class available or, in the language of airlines, what is generally known as economy. Despite a name that implies a normal seat, "standard" refers to anything beyond an economy seat on a commercial airline — premium economy, business and first class all qualify — while "higher" refers to planes with fewer than 19 passengers (those private and semi-private jets.) 

The standard rate is the one that will see the biggest increases when the British government introduces a series of changes to the pricing chart over the next two years.

The current Band A rates are £13 ($16.54 USD) for premium, £26 ($33) for standard, and £78 ($99.25) for higher, while Band B is £87 ($110.7), £191 ($243.1) and £574 ($730.5). The highest fare would be £601 ($764) for both Band C and higher travelers.

From April 1, 2025, Band A fares will increase by £2 ($2.54) for standard and £6 ($7.63) for higher. Band B will rise to £88 ($111.9) for reduced, £194 ($246.8) for standard, and £581 ($739.3) for higher per flight.

Treasury says fares ‘will be further adjusted for recent high inflation’

By April 1, 2026, fares will once again increase to, respectively, £90 ($114.5), £216 ($274.8), and £647 ($823.3). The British Treasury released a convoluted chart of exact increases for each band and rate but the biggest changes affect those trailing in premium economy, business and first classes. The increase for short-haul flights will reach as much as 23% while short-term flights will rise by 12% by the time the second phase of the price hikes is complete. For domestic flights within the UK, the APD will only rise in the higher category.

 "The 2025-26 APD rates for economy passengers will increase in line with forecast RPI [Retail Price Index], rounded to the nearest pound," the Treasury said in a statement. "Rates for those flying premium economy, business and first class and for private jet passengers will also increase by forecast RPI and will be further adjusted for recent high inflation to help maintain their real terms value.”