Australia’s peak airports physique has renewed requires extra income from passenger costs to be invested in “modernising” the border.
The Australian Airports Affiliation (AAA), in a pre-budget submission, stated that allocating an additional 5 per cent of income per yr from the $70 Passenger Motion Cost (PMC), which raises greater than $1.35 billion yearly, might increase border and airport processing infrastructure.
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“The funding would come from an estimated $380 million a yr in further income by FY2030, generated by way of worldwide passenger progress alone, with no improve to the PMC for passengers,” the AAA stated.
“This is able to assist cowl the price of important authorities upgrades, similar to extra SmartGate kiosks and digitising the incoming passenger card.”
It comes after the AAA launched a survey final month which CEO Simon Westaway says confirmed 71 per cent of Australian travellers assist digitising the IPC, whereas 78 per cent again “passportless” border processing.
“After a protracted worldwide flight, passengers count on to clear the border effectively, not spend an hour standing in queues questioning why techniques can’t sustain,” he stated.
“Many Australians are travelling by way of locations like Bali or Singapore and getting a sooner, extra seamless border expertise than they do at house. When our neighbours are providing a smoother arrival than Australia, it’s a transparent sign we have to raise our recreation.
“Passengers are already paying this cost, and it’s cheap to count on that progress on this income is reinvested into the border expertise to enhance effectivity and productiveness, quite than absorbed into consolidated income.”
Australia in December 2025 marked its busiest vacation journey peak in 5 years, with general passenger numbers up 4.5 per cent year-on-year.
“The sheer quantity of passengers shifting by way of airports over December and January reveals simply how shortly worldwide journey has rebounded and the way a lot strain that places on border techniques,” stated Westaway.
“That’s why extra funding now in trendy, environment friendly border processing is so vital. With hundreds of thousands of extra guests anticipated forward of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Video games, Australia’s borders should function effectively and reliably.”
The AAA has additionally joined the ACCC’s name to increase the competitors watchdog’s airline monitoring scheme past its scheduled expiry this yr, saying it might “cut back transparency throughout the aviation system at a time of ongoing capability and reliability challenges”.
“It’s clear that airline monitoring has improved visibility of competitors and client outcomes, and that transparency mustn’t merely change off in 2026,” stated Westaway.
