Australian tourism welcomes change in departure tax

Australia’s tourism industry has welcomed the federal government’s decision to change increases to the passenger movement charge (PMC) announced in last month’s budget.

Australia’s tourism industry has welcomed the federal government’s decision to change increases to the passenger movement charge (PMC) announced in last month’s budget.

The charge will no longer go up automatically every year, and the amount going to tourism promotion and development will double.

Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) boss Felicia Mariani says while the charge will now increase by $8 to $55 for every departing visitor, it will no longer be indexed to inflation.

That, she says, would have damaged the industry for years to come.

“The industry isn’t excited about the prospect of an increase to the PMC, which comes on top of the carbon tax, the high Australian dollar and all the other external pressures faced by tourism businesses right now,” Ms Mariani said.

But the fight produced a blueprint for how the tourism industry can work together in the future, she says.

Queensland’s peak tourism body says the decision is a huge relief at a critical time.

Queensland Tourism Industry Council chief executive Daniel Gschwind says local operators are still recovering from natural disasters and poor economic conditions.

“Most importantly, this decision proves to the industry that by working together as a united voice we are able to achieve positive outcomes,” he said.

Tourism and Transport Forum chief, John Lee, says it was a victory for common sense.

“Automatically increasing the PMC every year would have seen the burden grow and grow,” he said.

“This will see over $40 million allocated to help boost regional tourism through projects such as the development of key tourism infrastructure and experiences in regional areas.”

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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