09-16-2005, 06:20 PM | #1 | ||
Coordinator
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Chicagoland
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OT: International Air Fares + $200 in taxes?
Recently, I noticed that British Midlands had dropped their fares from Chicago to London to $150 roundtrip from now until March.
"Cool!", I thought, since that would mean I could visit friends in England for relatively cheap. I went to the website and selected my flights, but once done selecting them (but the step before purchasing them), it said I'd be paying almost $400 per ticket. "Odd", I thought. I looked at the fine print. The fine print said upwards of $200 was added to the bill for "taxes and fees". I looked at the taxes and fees and found (I'm paraphrasing here): "A tax of $200 may be added to the purchase of tickets by the U.S. government based on certain fares or routing." I checked other airlines, other flights, other destinations. All the same. If you want to fly international from the U.S., apparently you're going to pay a $200 tax. So, questions: Is this new? Has anyone else run into this? Is there any way around it? |
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09-16-2005, 06:26 PM | #2 |
Pro Rookie
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Berkley, MI: The Hotbed of FOFC!
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I noticed that earlier this week as well. If I recall, taxes were about 50-75 less when I purchased a round-trip ticket to Europe last fall.
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09-16-2005, 06:30 PM | #3 |
Death Herald
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: Le stelle la notte sono grandi e luminose nel cuore profondo del Texas
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Most international flights are adding a fuel surcharge. I don't think it's a tax, it's their way of shifting blame from the company to the government.
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Thinkin' of a master plan 'Cuz ain't nuthin' but sweat inside my hand So I dig into my pocket, all my money is spent So I dig deeper but still comin' up with lint Last edited by cartman : 09-16-2005 at 06:30 PM. |
09-16-2005, 07:52 PM | #4 |
Pro Starter
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Oakland, CA
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My wife just flew to England from SF. The ticket was $400 before taxes. $600 something after taxes.
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09-16-2005, 08:14 PM | #5 |
Pro Starter
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Cary, NC
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This is becoming common in all industries here in the US. For example, the phone company will advertise local service for only $19.95. By the time all the "fees" are added in, you're paying around $40. These "fees" include such things as real estate taxes paid on their property. Things that used to be considered a business expense and rolled into the price are now split out so they can claim a low price, even if the final cost to the consumer is much higher.
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