MPs worry tourists are avoiding Dutch flight tax by departing from Germany, Belgium

The Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Dutch parliament, is concerned that the government’s plan to increase air passenger tax on long-haul flights will result in travelers no longer flying from the Netherlands, but instead departing from Germany or Belgium.

The government wants travelers to pay a surcharge of approximately €70 for flights to faraway destinations like the United States or Australia starting in 2027. Parliamentarians fear that this will make flying much more expensive than in neighboring countries, and that travelers will therefore choose to use the airports there.

Several parties like the D66 and GroenLinks-PvdA still support the “polluter pays” principle. However, the D66 also advocates for European agreements on prices to reduce price variations between member states. GroenLinks-PvdA also wants people flying business class or by private jet to pay more.

Other parties point out that Germany is lowering its fares. This will further widen the difference with the Netherlands. They fear that the higher flight tax will lower, not increase, the Netherlands’ tax revenue, because the Netherlands will miss out on taxes if travelers depart from other countries.

The government has made exceptions for some destinations, such as the Caribbean islands within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. ChristenUnie MP Pieter Grinwis also wants this exception to apply to Suriname, since many Surinamese living in the Netherlands regularly travel there to visit family.

He doesn’t want the same exception to apply to other countries with historical ties to the Netherlands, like Indonesia. “A lot of holiday flights go there,” he explained Monday during a debate on the caretaker government’s 2026 Tax Plan.

State Secretary Eugène Hejnen (Taxation) will defend the choice for a higher air passenger tax in parliament on Wednesday.