Taxes from Sarajevo Airport for the Development of Air Traffic in Mostar and Tuzla

(Patria) - Since 2004, and in accordance with the decision of the Government of the Federation of BiH on passenger tax, passengers from Sarajevo International Airport have been paying a federal tax of 20 KM. Although the decision on paying these taxes was valid for the airports in Tuzla and Mostar, it has today been repealed, while the taxes have been retained at Sarajevo Airport.

The money from taxes collected at Sarajevo Airport is largely allocated for the needs of the airports in Tuzla and Mostar!

In 2016, the Audit Office of FBiH published a report questioning the method of collecting the 20 KM tax and the method of distributing the funds for one reason - the Federation of BiH is not the founder of the airports in Mostar and Tuzla.

"Re-examine the validity of collecting the passenger tax – fee for the development and improvement of air traffic in the Federation of BiH per departing passenger, and the validity of the existing method of investing these funds in companies in which the Federation of BiH is neither the founder nor has a share in their capital," stated the report of the Audit Office of FBiH from 2016.

The founders and owners of Mostar International Airport are the City of Mostar and Zagreb Airport in an approximate ratio of 88:12, and the founder and owner of Tuzla International Airport is the Tuzla Canton.

"These collected funds are used specifically for the development and improvement of air traffic. By the decision of the Government of FBiH from 2013, this tax was abolished at the airports of Tuzla and Mostar in order to encourage the balanced development of airports in FBiH and stimulate traffic growth at these airports," the Ministry of Transport and Communications of FBiH explained to the Patria agency.

When asked how much of the collected taxes from Sarajevo Airport is allocated for the needs of the airports in Mostar and Tuzla, the Ministry explained:

"In 2018, based on the passenger tax per departing passenger from Sarajevo International Airport, 10,241,460 KM was collected, and 6,860,000 KM was paid to the airports in Tuzla and Mostar."