Late on 21 May 2026 the German Bundestag adopted the Second Act Amending the Air Traffic Tax Act, reversing a 2024 surcharge that had raised levy rates on every ticket issued in Germany. The cross-party measure lowers the levy by €2.50 on short-haul, €6.33 on medium-haul and €11.40 on long-haul itineraries, bringing the rates back to roughly the 2023 levels (€13.03, €33.01 and €59.43 respectively). Background. Germany introduced the Luftverkehrsteuer in 2011 as an environmental-budget instrument; rates were hiked in May 2024 to plug a fiscal gap and nudge travellers toward rail. Carriers – led by Lufthansa Group, Condor and the Board of Airline Representatives in Germany – argued that the surcharge merely diverted traffic to Amsterdam, Vienna and Zurich without cutting emissions. With the aviation lobby warning of capacity pull-outs (Ryanair already removed two Berlin aircraft in April), MPs from all governing parties agreed to restore competitiveness before the 2026 summer peak. What changes for business mobility? • TMCs can expect GDS displays for ex-Germany fares to drop by roughly 3–4 % once airlines file new ATPCO tax codes. Savings are greatest on premium long-haul classes, where the absolute tax cut exceeds €45 on a typical J-class return. • German subsidiaries that reimburse staff under “total trip cost” policies should revise travel budgets for the second half of the year. • Foreign assignment managers should note that the tax is collected on the first coupon ex-Germany only; tickets issued outside Germany but originating here will also fall in price. • Airlines have not guaranteed to pass on the full reduction, citing Kerosene prices that remain 18 % above pre-crisis levels. Policy implications. The Finance Ministry projects a revenue shortfall of €185 million in 2026, rising to €355 million a year by 2030. Opposition MPs criticised the move as a “give-away to weekend flyers”, while green NGOs said the cut undermines the EU’s ‘Fit-for-55’ trajectory. Yet the government insists that Germany still levies one of the highest aviation taxes in Europe and that modal-shift goals will be pursued through rail-infrastructure spending and the coming kerosene-blend mandate rather than ticket taxes alone. Practical tips. Travel buyers should: 1) refresh contract worksheets with updated tax tables; 2) rerun ‘cheapest logical fare’ benchmarks from 1 July; 3) communicate new per-diem thresholds to travelling staff; and 4) review mobility budgets for trainee and short-term assignee rotations commencing after the rate cut. Airlines must update fare-quote systems by the industry-standard D-15 timetable (mid-June) to avoid ADM disputes. In sum, the tax rollback removes a price irritant that had made Germany the costliest European market for long-haul departures. Whether the saving reaches passengers depends on competitive pressure, but global-mobility managers should plan for lower invoice totals on tickets issued from July onward.
Source: t-online / dpa
