Private jets are flown by the very wealthiest - who can by definition afford to pay.
The wealthiest travellers in Britain pay only a fraction of the rate of tax for private jet use than that paid by ordinary passengers for domestic journeys - despite taking the most polluting flights.
A new analysis from climate charity Possible shows that around 100,000 private jet flights depart from UK airports each year, yet many pay no or minimal air passenger duty (APD), due to outdated thresholds and loopholes in the tax system.
Even after the government’s planned increases to higher-rate APD next year, private jet passengers will still pay only £142 for a short-haul flight or £1,141 for long-haul. This is negligible compared to the tens of thousands of pounds per hour that can be spent on chartering private aircraft.
Wealthiest
The report is calling for the tax to be increased to 30 times the current rate and levied on all private flights - as well as fuel duty to be imposed on private jet kerosene set at 10 times the rate the motorist pays for fuel at the pump.
Taken together, this will create a tax rate which is comparable to what an economy passenger pays as a proportion of their ticket cost.
Alethea Warrington, head of aviation at Possible, said: “Private jet passengers are currently paying almost nothing in tax while producing an astronomical amount of pollution, on journeys that only the obscenely wealthy can afford.
"In the cost-of-living and climate crises, that simply isn’t acceptable. Introducing a fair rate of tax on private jets - which ordinary people already pay on standard economy class plane journeys — could raise billions each year for our vital public services.
“In this month’s budget, the chancellor [Rachel Reeves] faces a clear choice: will she tax the most polluting journeys taken by the wealthiest people, or instead slash essential services relied on by the most vulnerable, such as funding for warm homes?”
Passenger
The Possible proposal involves introducing a fair APD rate for Domestic and Band A journeys (flights to all destinations less than 2,000 miles from London) for private jet flights of £2,520 and an APD of £19,410 for Band B journeys, and £20,190 for Band C journeys.
On a Band A flight from London to Geneva that would bring the cost of a private jet journey from about £4,500 per passenger, assuming a £9,000 flight cost shared between two passengers, to £10,061 per passenger.
In this case, 25 per cent of the ticket cost would be APD, and 30 per cent would be fuel duty, giving a total tax rate of 55 per cent. In comparison, a lowest-cost economy flight on the same route costs £27, of which 56 per cent is reduced-rate APD, with no fuel duty paid.
On a Band B flight from London Luton to Dubai, the cost of a private jet journey would rise from around £35,000 per passenger to £86,126 per passenger.
Private jets are flown by the very wealthiest - who can by definition afford to pay.
Polluting
Of this, 23 per cent would be APD, and 37 per cent would be fuel duty, giving a total tax rate of 59 per cent. A lowest-cost economy flight on the same route would cost £325, of which 31 per cent is reduced-rate APD (no fuel duty is paid).
These reforms bring the percentage of tax paid as a proportion of the cost of the flight much closer to parity with that paid by economy passengers.
A spokesperson for Possible added: "Private jets are currently under-taxed, and they’re flown by the very wealthiest - who can by definition afford to pay.
"Private jets are also by far the most polluting form of travel. A London to New York private jet passenger emits 27 times more CO₂e than an economy passenger making the same journey.
Win-win-win
"Despite this, 22 per cent of private jet passengers pay no APD at all and only around 25 per cent pay the highest rate. No VAT is levied on these journeys, and no fuel duty is paid on private jet kerosene."
The measures proposed by Possible would raise up to £2.7 billion a year, which could help fund essential public services such as the NHS, schools, and investment in warm homes - while finally bringing tax rates for private jet passengers closer to those paid by ordinary travellers in economy class seats.
Many are in support of higher taxes on private jets to help fund public services. Polling commissioned by Possible shows that 67 per cent of the UK public support this, while 75 per cent of people believe private jets should pay the same or more fuel duty as cars.
The spokesperson concluded: "This would therefore be a win-win-win for the climate, the economy, and for fairness across the UK’s tax system."
This Author
Brendan Montague is an editor of The Ecologist. This article is based on a press release from Possible.
