BY JEWEL GOPWANI
FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER
INTERNATIONAL FEES
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| For international travel, fees stack up higher than for domestic trips. The number of fees and their prices depend on the country you're visiting. Here are the fees for a sample Northwest round-trip fare from Detroit to London's Gatwick Airport. |
| Total fare |
$1,050.68 |
| Base fare |
$818 |
Tax to depart
and arrive at U.S. |
$29 |
Animal and
plant health inspection |
$5 |
| U.S. Customs |
$5 |
| U.S. Immigration |
$7 |
| Metro Airport |
$4.50 |
| 9/11 security |
$2.50 |
| British air duty |
$36.53 |
British passenger
service fee |
$13.15 |
| Total government fees |
$102.68, or 10% of fare |
| Fuel charge from airline |
$130 |
Anita Patterson felt pretty good about the $202 airfare she paid for a trip to Orlando this month.
But then the 66-year-old Detroiter noticed the fees tacked on to the ticket price.
There's a $5 security fee, a $7.50 airport fee, $15.21 in taxes and another $6.60 fee, adding more than $34 to her ticket on Spirit Airlines.
"It's crazy," said Patterson, eyeing taxes and fees that raised her airfare to $237.10.
"I remember when taxes on airline tickets used to be more around $5 or $10," she said.
As passengers get ready to board planes in record numbers this summer, they're paying a long list of taxes and fees.
Domestically, these fees go to the Federal Aviation Administration, the Transportation Security Administration and local airports to watch the skies, screen passengers and build airport projects like new terminals.
Fees stack up higher for international travel, which is subject to customs fees, immigration fees and additional charges depending on your destination.
A few of the U.S. fees are up for review in coming months as the government works on the 2007 federal budget, and changes could end up costing travelers more than they pay now.
Here are the fees you can expect if you're flying in the United States:
• 7.5% federal tax: When you're booking Northwest or Spirit online, this tax usually is included in the price it shows. For instance, a sample Northwest fare of $300 from Detroit to New York has a 7.5% tax, or $20.93, built into it. This tax is applied to domestic fares and is one of two domestic fees that fund the FAA's budget.
• $3.30 federal segment fee: This is the other fee domestic passengers pay to the FAA for its operations. Passengers are charged $3.30 for each leg of a trip. For a round trip with no stops, passengers are charged $6.60.
These taxes and additional fees charged to international travelers and to the airlines are expected to add up to $10.6 billion and cover most of the FAA's $14-billion budget.
But these fees could change. The fees that fund the FAA are slated to expire in 2007. The FAA this year plans to propose a funding plan that isn't a tax connected to the price of a plane ticket, which has dropped since 2001.
• $2.50 security fee: Implemented after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, this fee is charged to passengers every time they board a plane. The fee is capped at $5 each way, so you can't be charged more than $10 for a round trip. This year, the TSA expects to raise $1.9 billion through the fees, with $250 million going to a fund that pays for airport security projects such as installing explosive-detection systems to screen luggage. The rest of the money goes toward the TSA's $4.3-billion budget.
The Bush administration has proposed changing the fee to a flat $5 charge each way to raise $3.3 billion in 2007. Travelers who fly nonstop, like many who fly out of Detroit Metro Airport, would see their current security fee double. But the proposal earlier this year received criticism from members of Congress, who rejected an increase to the security fee last year.
• $4.50 airport fee: Passengers pay $4.50 for every time they get on a plane at Detroit Metro Airport.
You might have to pay the fee when you leave your destination, too. The government caps this fee at $18 or two charges per round trip.
For the 12 months ending in September last year, the Wayne County Airport Authority raised $54.6 million through these fees. These fees pay for construction projects at the airport, including the $1.2-billion McNamara Terminal, and they'll pay for construction of the new North Terminal.
• Fuel: For domestic flights, fuel is usually built into the price of the ticket. That's why, in the last couple of months, airlines have announced fare increases such as a $5 fare increase that Spirit Airlines and Northwest Airlines implemented in April to offset rising fuel costs. But when you fly internationally, expect to see fuel surcharges each way. How much you pay typically depends on how far you travel.
Original Article