The UK Government and His Majesty’s Treasury have announced their latest budget for 2024/2025.
Unsurprisingly, aviation is hit with a rise, with Air Passenger Duty (APD) levies to be increased and plans for further rises in 2026.
Budget 2024 – Original at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/autumn-budget-2024. Modified for the purpose of this post.
How much APD you pay is defined in two ways
- Destination bands
- Rate Class
Bands are calculated from London to the capital city of the destination you’re going to. They’re divided into:
- A – 0 to 2,000 miles
- B – 2,001 miles to 5,500 miles
- C over 5,500 miles
Rates Classes are split into:
- Reduced rate -For travel in the lowest class of travel available on the plane for seat pitches less than 1.016 metres (40 inches).
- Standard rate – For travel in any other class of travel or where the seat pitch is more than 1.016 metres (40 inches).
- Higher rate -For travel in planes of 20 tonnes or more equipped to carry fewer than 19 passengers.
For those who have no life, or want to spend hours calculating APD (when an Airline will normally do it for you), head to https://www.gov.uk/guidance/rates-and-allowances-for-air-passenger-duty (as well as the exceptions).
.So, let’s get onto the numbers
Rates from 1 April 2024
These are the current rates that you’ll be paying on your airfare
| Destination bands (distance in miles from London) |
Reduced rate (distance in miles from London) |
Standard rate (other than the lowest class of travel) |
Higher rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK Domestic | £7 | £14 | £78 |
| Band A | £13 | £26 | £78 |
| Band B | £88 | £194 | £581 |
| Band C | £92 | £202 | £607 |
Air Passenger Duty Rates from 1 April 2025
These have been pre-announced and have been updated for the upcoming year.
| Destination bands (distance in miles from London) |
Reduced rate (lowest class of travel) |
Standard rate (other than the lowest class of travel) |
Higher rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK Domestic | £7 | £14 | £84 |
| Band A | £13 | £28 | £84 |
| Band B | £90 | £216 | £647 |
| Band C | £94 | £224 | £673 |
Breaking down the price rises for 2025, it works out like this:
| Destination bands | Reduced rate | Standard rate | Higher rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK Domestic | £0 | £0 | £6 |
| Band A | £0 | £2 | £6 |
| Band B | £2 | £22 | £66 |
| Band C | £2 | £22 | £66 |
Further rises to come for 2026
However, the Chancellor of the Exchequer isn’t quite done – with plans to increase APD in 2026. Here’s are the planned uplift in charges
| Bands (distance in miles from London) |
Reduced rate (lowest class of travel) |
Standard rate (other than the lowest class of travel) |
Higher rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK Domestic | £8 | £16 | £142 |
| Band A (0 to 2,000 miles) | £15 | £32 | £142 |
| Band B (2,001 to 5,500 miles) | £102 | £244 | £1,097 |
| Band C (over 5,500 miles) | £106 | £253 | £1,141 |
Whilst those with their private jets will pay the most, there are significant rises for UK, European and International travel for the rest of us. Against the 2025 vs 2026 rise, it looks like this:
Breaking down the price rises for 2025, the increases look like this:
| Destination bands | Reduced rate | Standard rate | Higher rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK Domestic | £1 | £2 | £58 |
| Band A | £2 | £4 | £48 |
| Band B | £12 | £28 | £450 |
| Band C | £12 | £29 | £468 |
The only certainty in life – taxation
I’m not going into the UK finances or Budget (go and find a proper new source for that), but in all honesty, I’m not surprised that Air Passenger Duty hasn’t risen much in yearrs, whereas inflation has made life expensive for the rest of us.
And its an easy target,
Of course, it’s never nice to find APD going up, which will affect your ticket pricing (be it cash, redemption or otherwise).
Just don’t fly a Private Jet with under 19 seats… well… anywhere. That thing is going to be expensive as the APD is per person….
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