Ryanair denies it is still charging departure tax

Ryanair yesterday refuted claims it continued to charge the departure tax after November 1.

The airline was this week investigated by the Civil Aviation Department following claims by passengers that it was still charging the Maltese tax after its abolition at the beginning of this month.

MEP Simon Busuttil also wrote to the airline about the matter after receiving complaints.

Dr Busuttil said his office looked into the matter and discovered that the tax amount shown on the Ryanair website for flights departing before November was the same as that for flights departing after November 1.

He said he was then told by the airline that it had not received any formal notification of the tax amendment.

But the airline insisted yesterday that it had, in fact, changed its tariffs following November 1 and all bookings made since the beginning of the month have not included the abolished tax.

Ryanair said it welcomes the removal of the departure tax as it will further encourage Maltese passengers to take advantage of its services.

Spokesman Stephen McNamara said the airline was always opposed to the tax and described it as a totally unjustified barrier to international travel.

The €23 tax levied on all passengers was lifted after the European Commission declared it discriminatory.