Hyderabad Airport News: AERA Introduces User Development Fee for Arriving Passengers
Hyderabad Airport News
The Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (AERA) has issued a revised tariff order for Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad, bringing changes to the User Development Fee (UDF) paid by passengers. The new tariff structure will come into effect from September 1, 2026, and will remain applicable through March 31, 2031.
One of the major changes is the introduction of a User Development Fee for passengers arriving at Hyderabad airport. This is the first time arriving passengers at the airport will be charged a UDF. AERA has fixed the fee at Rs 220 for domestic arriving passengers and Rs 440 for international arriving passengers.
While arriving passengers will face a new charge, the UDF for passengers departing from Hyderabad airport has been reduced.
The UDF for domestic departing passengers has been fixed at Rs 515, compared with the existing Rs 750. For international departing passengers, the fee has been reduced to Rs 1,030 from the existing Rs 1,500. Both departure charges represent a reduction of around 31%.
The airport operator, GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd (GHIAL), had proposed a higher UDF of Rs 580 for domestic departing passengers and Rs 1,150 for international departing passengers. AERA’s approved rates are therefore lower than the operator’s proposal. (National Revealed)AERA has changed the way infrastructure costs are shared between passengers. The regulator said both arriving and departing passengers use airport facilities such as aerobridges, travelators and conveyor belts.
Therefore, the revised system distributes part of the tariff burden between passengers arriving at and departing from Hyderabad airport. The move is aimed at creating a more balanced approach to recovering airport infrastructure costs.
The revised UDF will apply to tickets issued from September 1, 2026. The new tariff order covers the airport’s fourth control period and will run until March 31, 2031.
AERA has also revised landing charges for airlines. The charges have been fixed at Rs 435 per metric tonne for domestic flights and Rs 630 per metric tonne for international flights.
For passengers flying out of Hyderabad, the revised UDF means the airport-related charge will be lower than the existing fee. However, people travelling to Hyderabad by air will now see a new UDF included in their travel costs.
The revised tariff is part of AERA’s broader approach to regulating airport charges and recovering infrastructure costs. With the new structure, Hyderabad airport will share the cost burden across both arriving and departing passengers while maintaining lower departure fees.
The changes are expected to affect airfares and airport-related charges from September 1, making it important for travellers to check the revised fee structure when booking flights to or from Hyderabad.
Ajeet Yadav is an aviation enthusiast covering airline news, airports, aircraft, and industry developments through well-researched and reliable reporting.
