Fees for security controls at airports in North Rhine-Westphalia and most of Germany increased on January 1.
According to the “Rheinische Post”, citing a compilation by the Federal Ministry of the Interior, the main reason for the increase is the rise of the maximum fee from €10 to €15 per passenger, effective January 1. The other reason is the increasing costs.
In Düsseldorf, the fee per passenger has risen from a maximum of €10 to €10.70. In Münster, the new fee is €11.70, up from €10. In Dortmund, it remains the most affordable at €6.47, up from €5.82. In Weeze, the fee is now €9.07, up from €7.60. In Cologne/Bonn, the fee has reached the maximum of €14, as the airport is open 24/7.
Passengers will only indirectly notice the higher costs, as airlines factor in the local fees when calculating ticket prices. Eurowings stated that there will be no additional demands for tickets booked in 2024 before the new prices were set.
Ralph Beisel, CEO of the Airports Association ADV, views the higher fees critically, saying, “This significantly contributes to the location costs at German airports. We hope for guiding decisions from the new federal government to reduce location costs.”
A nationwide comparison shows that Germany’s largest airport, Frankfurt, now charges €11.86 per passenger, up from €10, while Munich, the country’s second-largest airport, has become cheaper, with the fee now at €8.97, down from €9.39.