Latest news with #TSBA
Local France
28-03-2025
- Business
- Local France
Ryanair boss: 'We will reduce flights in France in 2025'
"We will reduce our regional capacity in France this year by four or five percent," Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary said on the sidelines of a meeting for the EU airline association, Airlines for Europe (A4E), in Brussels on Thursday. According to reporting by AFP, the head of the low-cost Irish carrier also clarified that the company would not be pulling out of half of France's regional airports - as he had previously threatened . "No, no, no. We will still fly to France, but simply with lower capacity," he told reporters. He did not provide any deals of which flights or airports would be impacted if the 4-5 percent cut goes ahead. O'Leary also called France an "uncompetitive market", blaming the country's €7.40 'eco tax' on plane tickets. Ryanair has already said that it will pull out of the small airport of Vatry, in France's Marne département, blaming the 'eco tax' increase, which is part of France's 2025 Budget. It is unclear how much this would count toward the four to five percent decrease in services, as the airport only ran two Ryanair flights (to and from Porto and Marrakech). READ MORE: What happened to Ryanair's threats to pull out of France over 'eco tax'? The new rate of eco tax, also known as the taxe sur les billets d'avion (TSBA) came into effect on March 1st and increased the basic rate of the tax on plane tickets from €2.63 to €7.40. Advertisement The Union of French Airports ( Union des aéroports français , UAF) recently warned that Beauvais, Béziers, and Nîmes are among other French airports where low-cost airlines account for over 99 percent of their business, and thus could be at risk from closures. In 2024 Ryanair also pulled out of Bordeaux airport in a separate dispute over airport fees.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
TN Senate Education Committee members ask TSBA to ‘voluntarily submit' all communications related to school voucher bill
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Republican members of the Tennessee Senate Education Committee have submitted a letter to the Tennessee School Boards Association (TSBA) asking them to turn over all 'formal and informal communications' related to the Tennessee Education Freedom Act. The law, which passed a special session of the Tennessee General Assembly in January during a special session of the legislature called by Gov. Bill Lee specifically to address the issue, expanded a controversial voucher pilot program held in Davidson, Shelby, and Hamilton counties. In the letter, Committee Chairman Sen. Dawn White (R-Murfreesboro) said it was 'important for Tennesseans to have the most accurate information concerning pending and adopted legislation.' Click here to read the full letter sent to the TSBA 'The recent discussions around school choice and the passage of the Tennessee Education Freedom Act created a situation where a great deal of information concerning the bill's purpose, provisions, and elements were misrepresented to local communities, boards, councils, and commissions,' the letter reads. 'Whereas we understand that opinions may vary in these contentious moments, facts do not.' The committee members who signed the letter—all eight Republicans, but not lone Democratic Sen. Raumesh Akbari—requested the TSBA's 'cooperation in cutting through any speculation and misunderstanding that might have occurred during the public discourse' about the law. 'To assist this understanding, we are requesting that you voluntarily submit to the Senate Education committee all formal and informal communications with school boards, directors, or districts in Tennessee,' the committee asks in the letter. The communications include all disseminated documents, actions plans, power points, research, white papers, email exchanges, and 'any other documentation that could be considered under a typical Freedom of Information Act Request.' The committee asked the materials be submitted no later than Saturday, April 5. One member of the committee, Sen. Adam Lowe (R-Calhoun), posted a copy of the letter to his official Facebook page, asserting 'evidence that false information might have been intentionally pushed to local school boards, educators, and communities for the purpose of creating conflict.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Local France
13-03-2025
- Business
- Local France
What happened Ryanair's threats to pull out of France over 'eco tax'?
As the French parliament debated the 2025 budget, Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary repeated threats to axe flights to French airports as a result of an increased 'eco tax' on flights. He told a press conference on February 5th: "France is already a high-tax country and, therefore, if it further increases already high taxes, we will probably reduce our capacity" to and from French airports. The following day, French MPs in the Assemblée nationale voted to adopt the budget - complete with increases to the eco tax (among many other measures). The new rates of eco tax came into effect on March 1st. So far, O'Leary has not made any further statements. What has Ryanair done so far? According to a press release by the Marne département - located in north-eastern France which contains the Champagne capital of Reims - Ryanair is reportedly planning to cancel its operations from Vatry (XCR) airport from March 29th. This would lead to the closure of two routes that connect Vatry airport with Porto, Portugal and Marrakech, Morocco. Although Ryanair has not given a reason for the closure at the tiny airport, local authorities in the area specified that the decision "follows the increase in the TSBA voted as part of the government's Finance Act of 2025." They added: "The département of Marne regrets that the increase in the TSBA will penalise regional airports and their users to the benefit of other countries that do not tax air transport. "Increasing the charges levied on airlines leads directly to a reduction in transport services, to the detriment of local populations and businesses." Local authorities said it would cause significant financial losses. The département said: "In 2024, 85 percent of the tourist activity at XCR airport, as it is now known, was generated by these routes, representing 74,000 passengers out of a total of 86,000. In the light of the latest announcements, this dominance poses a major threat to the airport's future." Since February 6th, Ryanair has made no further announcements on services in or out of France. What did Ryanair originally threaten? Initially, the company threatened to scrap up to half of operations at its 22 French regional airports in response to the original proposal (under the former Barnier government) to triple the eco tax. In the end, the increase to the eco tax, also known as the taxe sur les billets d'avion (TSBA), was slightly lower than first planned, increasing the basic rate of the tax on plane tickets from €2.63 to €7.40. In 2024 the company pulled out of Bordeaux airport in a separate dispute over airport fees. Will there be more operations cancelled? It is possible that Ryanair might scrap other flights or reduce operations at other French regional airports. You can keep up to date with the latest at the Travel News section of The Local France.
The Independent
26-02-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Low-cost airline to pass on full cost of France's new ‘eco tax' to passengers
A low-cost airline in France will charge customers the increase in airline solidarity tax – and passengers who thought they had paid their fare in full may be billed an extra €5. Passengers flying with Transavia, a subsidiary of Air France-KLM, will be refused travel if they do not pay the difference of the increased surcharge from €2.63 (£2.18) to €7.40 (£6.14). The solidarity tax on airline tickets (TSBA) is paid on all flights departing from France and charged per passenger depending on distance and aircraft type. Transavia announced on Monday that it has 'chosen to collect the entire amount of this tax' for journeys departing from 3 March 2025. The increased 'eco-tax' is part of France's 2025 budget and will apply to all flights departing France from 1 March, including reservations made before this date. For economy flights in France and Europe, the tax will now be €7.40 per flight, per passenger – almost €5 more than the previous €2.63 charge. Outside of Europe, that tax will rise from €7.51 (£6.23) to €15 (£12.45) per flight, per passenger. A payment link for the TSBA supplement was included in an email to Transavia passengers 'in possession of a ticket purchased before 28 October and after 7 December 2024". For any booking made between 28 October and 6 December, the customer is eligible for a refund of the difference between the previous scale already paid and the new one in force. In the event a customer does not pay the surcharge, Transavia 'reserves the right to refuse travel'. Customers will 'not be able to check-in online and thus obtain their boarding pass' if this happens. The new TSBA amount has been included in the price of tickets on the Transavia website for all bookings since 19 February. Other airlines flying out of France are yet to announce whether they will be passing on the tax rise to their passengers.
Local France
11-02-2025
- Business
- Local France
How France's new eco tax will affect the cost of plane tickets
As part of France's new 2025 budget - which was pushed through parliament at the start of February - the 'eco tax' on plane tickets will be increased. This is called the taxe sur les billets d'avion (TSBA), but it is commonly referred to as the taxe Chirac, as it was developed under the former president's tenure as a fund to offer aid to disadvantaged countries. In 2020, a special 'eco-contribution' was factored into it and the overall tax levels raised. It has now been raised again in France's recently-passed 2025 Budget. The new rates will come into effect on March 1st 2025, and will apply to any ticket bought after that date. How much is the tax? It depends on the type of ticket you are purchasing and how far you are flying. For short-haul economy class tickets, the tax will more than double from its previous amount of €2.63. Here is the breakdown; Economy class short-haul flight (to a French or European city) - €7.40 (increase from €2.63) Economy class flight for an medium haul flight (not to French or European destination, less than 5,500km away) - €15 Economy class flight for long-distance (more than 5,500km, excluding French territories) - €40 Business or first class short-haul flight - €30 (increase from €20.27) Business or first class medium haul - €80 Business or first class long-distance - €120 Private jets have a significantly higher rate - for a flight within France or Europe with a turboprop plane, it would be €220. For the same flight with a turbojet aircraft, it would be €420. These two aircraft types are typically used for private jets. For medium-haul flights with a turboprop plane, the tax would be €675. For turbojet planes, it would be €1,015. For long-haul flights with a turboprop plane, the tax would be €1,025, and it would be €2,100 for turbojet planes. The tax is applied only to flights departing from France - so if you have a round-trip flight within France then you would pay the tax twice. In contrast, if you have a round-trip international, you would only pay the tax once (for the flight from France, not for the return flight). France's overseas territories (for example the French Caribbean islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe) are exempted from the tax rise. Instead the tax will remain at its previous level for flights to and from Corsica and all French overseas territories. As such, it will be €2.63 for economy and €20.27 for first or business class. How much will my ticket actually increase by? Ultimately, it depends how much the airline chooses to absorb the increased tax. They could choose to have customers absorb the entirety of the cost, or they might take on some of it themselves. Le Parisien estimated that - based on Air France data from spring 2024 and how the company decides to attribute the TSBA to customers - an average one-way flight between Paris and Nice would increase to €135 from €130. Meanwhile, they estimate that a Paris-New York one-way ticket would on average increase to €773, from €740. By contrast budget airlines would be more likely to pass the costs on the passengers. How do I pay it? The tax will be paid the same way it is currently - it is simply included in the total price when you book your tickets. You can see it applied if you look at a breakdown of the payment, which also includes things like admin fees. You cannot opt out. Why is the French government doing this? As the French government seeks to decrease its deficit, the French minister for public accounts, Amélie de Montchalin, told the French press that the 'solidarity tax' increases are "a measure of fiscal and ecological justice". She added: "The 20 percent of the population with the highest incomes are responsible for more than half the expenditure on air travel." How have airlines responded? Speaking at a press conference in Portugal last week, Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary repeated previous threats made in relation to the tax. He said: "France is already a high-tax country and, therefore, if it further increases already high taxes, we will probably reduce our capacity" to and from French airports. As for other airlines, Air France's CEO, Anne Rigail, told the French press that she was worried about "adverse effects" from the tax. She noted that: "Air France is still in the process of recovering from the Covid period" and estimated that the measure would cost them €100 million.
