The Danish government has announced a green tax on air travel to help finance the airline industry’s green transition, as reported by Strait Times on December 15. Scheduled to commence in 2025, the tax will be included in plane ticket prices. It will apply to flights leaving from Denmark but not those in transit through the country. The Danish Ministry of Taxation stated that the green tax will start at Kr.30 (USD2.9) per passenger for short-haul flights in 2025, before rising to Kr.50 (USD4.8) in 2030. By 2030, the green tax for medium-distance flights and long flights will increase to USD45.3 and USD59.9 per passenger, respectively. The proceeds raised from the taxation will contribute to Denmark’s goal of enabling all domestic flights to use 100% sustainable fuels by 2030, while adding approximately USD2.18bn annually to the pensioner bonus for those receiving the smallest benefits.

Denmark envisions building the country’s first exclusively green-fueled domestic route by 2025. It has also called on other European Union countries to follow suit by imposing green taxes on air passengers. Earlier this year, the Dutch government also tripled its passenger tax on air travel to curb carbon emissions from flying. In addition, France also passed a bill this June to ban short-haul flights between places where a train alternative of 2.5 hours or less exists. These initiatives aim to limit the negative climate impact of the aviation industry. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the aviation industry was responsible for approximately 2% of global energy-related carbon dioxide emissions in 2022.

Sources:

https://www.straitstimes.com/world/europe/denmark-to-introduce-green-tax-on-plane-tickets

https://www.ecowatch.com/denmark-airline-passenger-green-tax.html

https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2023/11/14/denmark-tax-flights/

https://www.euronews.com/green/2022/12/02/is-france-banning-private-jets-everything-we-know-from-a-week-of-green-transport-proposals