Probably included in Flight ticket price. Most countries have this tax and many make the airlines collect it.

Papa

What`s next, oxygen tax ? I remember paying this from Mumbai in 1999 so it will probably have been incuded since.

What`s next, oxygen tax ? I remember paying this from Mumbai in 1999 so it will probably have been incuded since.

Please don't be giving them any ideas.

Papa

What's the betting that some poor gullible tourists will be tapped up for this by staff at the airport, and will pay it, without knowing it is a rip-off. Same way some pay an on the spot 'fine' if told they have too many cigs in their bags, or have bought medication in Goa. Little knowing it is a con, and that they have already paid Goan tax on their purchases.
It is entering the UK that they should worry if over the limits, as most of us know, not leaving Goa.

It seems that this IS included in the ticket price, which begs the following.

If it wasn't and you have no money to pay it do you have to stay even if it means exceeding your visa?
If you exceed your visa you will be deported, but you can't pay the departure tax, which means you exceed your visa, which means you get deport...........enough already!

Last march we bought last minutes tickets from Southall Travell, about a week before we flew..coming home via Dehli when we checked in there for the Dehli - Heathrow leg we were informed that we hadnt paid the new airport improvement tax!! we kicked off big style about it and they refused to check us in for the flight until we had paid. We went over to the information desk and was told yes its a new charge and we had to pay as it hadnt been included on our ticket price. We then had to go to a cash office and pay I am sure it was pretty high too about £17 quid each then take the receipt to check in.
Now if it had been in Dabolim I wouldnt have been bothered if I had been left behind but didnt fancy Dehli too much!!. I then read the small print on the back of my invoice from Southall and it did state that in some cases local taxes may not be included. When we booked up for our trip at xmas again we were coming home via Dehli this time I asked Southall if the tax was included and was told as far as they were concerned yes but if a new tax is introduced ( like last years airport improvement one ) during our stay we may be liable to pay!

I cant believe Ive been going to Goa since 1990 and its only the last two trips were I feel Ive been knowingly ripped off

Yes, it appears they can tell you any old price they want, and you feel impotent to do anything as they have you at a disadvantage. You need to get your flight and will eventually have to give in. The small print on the invoice isn't much comfort unless you know just how much you are paying toward an Indian airports improvements. What a cheek. At £17 each, you probably paid the full costs of all the labour required for this.
Can you imagine this being imposed on foreign nationals at gatwick or Heathrow. They would sue the airport, using our Legal Aid, have to stay in a hotel at the taxpayers expense whilst it went though the court, then the appeals court, by which time they would be able to apply for British citizenship!!

Moles,

Not sure if your comments are entirely accurate.

Whilst I am no fan at all of the Indian system of routinely extracting extra cash from us poor saps I think I have to point out a couple of things.

Countries introduce extra taxation at each budget.In the U.K there is generally plenty of notice.

However if you have booked your ticket so far in advance to avoid said tax being included in your ticket price it is no suprise if you turn up at the airport and find you need extra cash.

Not very nice I know but if it was me I would love to have the nerve to say fine I will stay and see what happened.

Top and bottom of it is politicians have long learned to squeeze every last drop of tax out of us and love thinking up new ways to part us from our hard earned.

Papa

Yes I get your point, but is a tax for 'improvements' at Delhi airport @ £17 per person passing through, appropriate, and decided upon in a government budget? And for how long is this being imposed? And did it include domestic flight passengers or just gullible foriegn tourists?
If you had a family of four, this is a lot even by our standards, nearly £70. More than many Indian's earn in a month. If this was imposed on every family passing through. many wouldn't be able to pay.
How many have that left at the end of a holiday?

We paid this leaving Goa upto about 2000. It was 600 or 800 rupees, can't remember.

If you refused they would bugger you about, make you miss your flight, and then ship you home at your expense (via the consulate).

You can imagine how much that bill would be by the time they'd finished adding their admin charges.

I think it might now be included in the ticket pricing because the consulate started refusing to ship people home.

Thats right, I remember in the 90s you used to give the resort rep, I think 300rps each, and he paid it for you and you got a receipt, to avoid hassle at the airport. I think, looking back, you did'nt get any hassle in those far of days, and they actually encouraged package tourists, changed days indeed.
Alan

What are your views of having to pay Gordon Browns tax of £85 since November 09 just to leave the UK on any long haul flight over 6,000 miles and the UK airport and the security charges ?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-1190003/Rising-taxes-force-passengers-desert-UK-airports.html

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/latest/2009/10/31/departure-tax-rise-hits-air-prices-115875-21786308/

http://www.eturbonews.com/10256/rise-uk-departure-tax-could-cut-londons-european-gateway.

Like any tax I don't enjoy paying them.

But if the tax was not imposed on travel, the treasury would still need to find the money so it would be imposed somewhere else.

Much of this tax increase was as a direct result of the green / climate change/global warming lobby

What a lot of people don't understand is that when a "lobby" agitates for controls on anything, e.g climate change, smoking, excess drinking, 4x4's, all that really happens is that the government sees an excuse to levy a tax on it.
It then presents this as a tax that the public want.
In the case of the various taxes applied to air travel, it was obvious from the "green" agenda and also from travel competitors who compained re no vat/ excise on aviation fuel that this would happen.
The security issues are also a godsend to the government in allowing them to increase charges " for our safety".
The excess drinking issue is one that is current example, the government in answer to calls for a crackdown on anti social drinking has responded by talking of minimum prices, i.e. tax increases, to tackle the issue. Not a genuine solution but one that the population wants, in government speak.

Ha ha ha! I have never quite looked at it that way, but you are right, Tax is the answer to everything. And we ask for it!! Of course we feel safer after paying extra taxes to combat terrorism, lol. The nations answer to alcohol abuse - tax it!! Cigarettes - tax them!! fuel pollution - tax it!!
Problems all solved now. Hallelujah.