NEW Airport DEPARTURE TAX could be coming 2025  

Dana Malcolm 

Staff Writer 

#TurksandCaicos, August 14, 2023 – A new departure tax could be instituted in the Turks and Caicos as early as 2025 to augment earnings at the Providenciales/Howard Hamilton International Airport, informed the Turks and Caicos Airports Authority in its recently launched redevelopment plan.

The business case is dubbed: the Intermediate Infrastructure Business Case for the Redevelopment of the Howard Hamilton International (HHIA), which details the project, estimated at around $400 Million for interested individuals and potential investors.

The tax, if instituted, will apply to non-national departing domestic passengers traveling in the Turks and Caicos and there is a new fee for commercial carriers.

Howard Hamilton International Airport is the new name to be bestowed on the country’s leading airport gateway, in the redevelopment plan, which will see the airport’s capacity vastly expanded.  The name has already been approved by the Cabinet.

In two information sessions last week, the TCIAA aimed to bring broader understanding of what is envisioned as it tries to attract a private partner to enter into a PPP or Public Private Partnership. 

It is proposed that aircraft pay a Passenger Boarding Bridge Charge, set at $80 per landing for about half of all international flights. The Information Memo, announced and publicised on August 8, proposes that these charges be reassessed every three years and updated by the US Consumer Price Index.

The tax was presented alongside the airport’s current and projected earnings as part of the package aimed at making the project more alluring to investors, adding to the airport’s already robust revenue.

The proposed $5 departure tax is stacked on top of a suite of other taxes already levied on international departing passengers including:

•  Aerodrome Charges;
•  Airport Development Charge of ;
•  Security Recovery Charge of and;
•  Extended Airline System Environment Ease.

According to other documents shared by ALG Global, consultants on the redevelopment, the total passenger-related fees from these taxes are about $70 per departing international traveller.

At the closing of June, the TCI Government announced a new entry levy of $10 for all passengers – visiting or resident – to be charged with the funds funnelled to the country’s new Destination Management and Marketing Organization, Experience Turks and Caicos.

On the heels of the reveal, some industry players had warned against over-taxing the golden goose of tourism; this latest potential tax will likely stir up fresh skepticism.

The TCIAA says the $47 million yearly earnings of the HHIA are projected to rise after 2027 when renovations should be complete.