The Tourism Fund and the Meteorological Department will get a portion of the billions of shillings collected as fees from air travellers if a Bill proposes doubling beneficiaries of the charge to four agencies passes.
The Air Passenger Service Charge (Amendment) Bill, 2025 proposes adding the Fund and the Kenya Meteorological Service to the list of beneficiaries of the charge that generates more than Sh10 billion every year.
Only the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) and the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) share the amount.
“Section 3 of the Air Passenger Service Charge Act is amended by deleting sub-section (3) and substituting the following: Proceeds of the charge imposed under this section shall be apportioned between the KAA, the KCAA, the Tourism Fund and the Kenya Meteorological Service Authority in such manner as the Cabinet Secretary may – by notice in the Gazette – specify,” says the Bill by National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung'wah.
While not an existing institution, the Kenya Meteorological Service Authority is proposed in another bill to take over the mandate from the Kenya Meteorological Department, with changes including an expanded mandate and managing its revenues.
The Bill wants to amend the Air Passenger Service Charge Act to provide the allocation of proceeds to the Tourism Fund and the Kenya Meteorological Service Authority, in addition to the KAA and KCAA.
It seeks to reallocate the proceeds designated to the Tourism Promotion Fund to the Tourism Fund, aiming at limiting duplication of roles and enabling the government to support the financing of tourism-related projects from a single source.
“It seeks to allocate proceeds to the Kenya Meteorological Service Authority to enable it finance its responsibilities and functions and, thereby, deliver on its mandate efficiently and effectively,” Parliament files state.
The government has been generating billions of shillings from the charge, with the latest available data showing that it collected Sh11.5 billion in the financial year that ended June 2023.
Passengers into and out of the country by air pay $50 as the charge, while those travelling internally pay Sh600 per journey. The collections vary, depending on the number of travellers in a year.
The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) collects the charge.
“KRA collected Sh11.57 billion from the air passenger services charge at JKIA, against a target of Sh8.037 billion. This translates to an excellent performance rate of 114 per cent,” the authority said.
