Scope:

Directive 2009/12/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2009 on airport charges

Evaluation findings:

The evaluation covered the period from the deadline for Member States to bring into force national measures to comply with the Directive (15 March 2011) until April 2019. It considered the application of the Directive across all EU Member States, and referred to the EEA and Switzerland, as the Directive is also relevant to these countries.

By providing a common framework for airport charges setting - including requiring regular consultation and greater exchange of information between airports and airlines, requiring the prevention of discrimination and establishing Independent Supervisory Authorities (ISAs) to intervene in case of disagreements - the Directive has prompted action that improved transparency and fairness in the way airport charges are set at EU airports.

The first issue the Directive sought to address – the possibility for some airports to extract prices and terms that would otherwise not be achieved in a competitive market – seems to persist, although on a smaller scale. The second issue that the Directive aimed to address - diverging charging systems in Member States which lack clear transparency in the way they are established – also remains, although to a lesser degree.

The evaluation has highlighted an additional issue, the magnitude of which is not established. At some airports where there is an airline with significant buyer power, there is a risk that the airport charges setting process may be influenced by that airline in a way that makes it more difficult for other airlines wishing to launch services at that same airport to enter the market.

The objectives of the Directive are still broadly relevant to the issues identified above.

Estimated savings and benefits

It is likely that in the absence of the Directive some Member States would have continued to apply their own regulatory systems, without any common set of principles, while others would have had no rules in place at all. Therefore, it is likely that the Directive has added value relative to what would have occurred in the absence of EU level action.

The introduction of the Directive has imposed additional costs for the industry and the Member States' administrations, as compared to a scenario in which no EU legislation on airport charges had been adopted. It has not been possible to quantify the full costs of the Directive, nor has it been possible to quantify its benefits, which are largely qualitative by their nature. The efficiency of the Directive has been reduced by limitations in its effectiveness. However, on the basis of all the evidence collected, it appears reasonable to conclude that the benefits of the Directive exceed its costs.