In making its announcement, the EU said the fee will cover the operational costs of ETIAS and โalign the EU fee to the ones of other countries that have similar travel authorisation programsโ.
European travel industry groups have expressed โdeep concernโ over the additional cost on travel to the region. Lobby group Airlines for Europe said: โWhile the fee may represent a small fraction of overall travel expenses, the cumulative impact on families is not negligible.โ
The cost of visiting attractions like Baden-Baden in Germany (pictured) is going up for Australians: Credit: iStock
The EU โreferencing other travel authorisation schemes (eg. UK ETA and US ESTA) as benchmarks for pricing sets a concerning precedentโ, the group said.
The ETIAS will begin in the last quarter of 2026, the EU said. At this point, the EU advises Australian travellers that they donโt need to do anything.
โThe European Union will inform about the specific date for the start of ETIAS several months prior to its launch,โ the EU said on its site.
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Complex Travel director Mark Trim said: โWhen you are travelling somewhere itโs a significant investment for flights, insurance, hotels and more. We all know that, so another $20-40 here or there means very little.โ
โWhile there is a general โcost of living crisisโ in most major economies, if $20-30 is a dealbreaker to you then really you shouldnโt be travelling anywhere,โ said Adelaide-based Trim.
Australia has had an inbound โETAโ which has been in place since 1996 and currently costs travellers $20.
โIf weโve been slugging tourists to Australia, itโs only reasonable to expect that other countries will charge us to travel to their shores too and that over time those costs could increase,โ said Trim.
To date, bottomless demand for European travel has shown little sign of weakening, even as Australians increasingly travel on shoulder seasons.
Travel booking company Webjet said that increasingly the busy EU summer period is no longer limited to the northern summer, running from June to August.
โAussies are also opting for European travel in May and September at similar levels,โ said a spokeswoman for the company.
May 2024 departures accounted for 11.3 per cent of all flight bookings to Europe that year, while September departures made up 12.6 per cent of all flight bookings to Europe that year.
This was comparable to 2024 flight bookings for travel in the peak season July of 12.6 per cent and August at 12 per cent, Webjet said.
โWeโre seeing bookings this year remaining at similar levels in May and September versus last year, showing a longer Euro summer is still proving popular this year,โ said a spokesperson for the company.
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