AERA’s move is expected to provide significant relief amidst rising operational costs
Passengers travelling to/from Navi Mumbai airport will continue to pay existing user development fees for another year.In its tariff order, the Airport Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) has accepted the airport operator’s proposal and retained user development fees (UDF) of ₹620 and ₹1,225 for departing domestic and international passengers for FY27. Incoming passengers will be charged ₹270 and ₹525 respectively. The levies will progressively increase between FY28 and FY30.The first phase of Navi Mumbai airport was developed at a cost of over ₹19,000 crore. Passenger operations began last December. For the first tariff control period (2025-30), the Navi Mumbai International Airport Limited submitted an aggregate revenue requirement (ARR) of ₹28,290 crore.After considering stakeholder and airport operator comments, AERA further carried out a comprehensive analysis and considered ₹14,087 crore as the ARR. Capital investment“Keeping in mind the fact that Navi Mumbai airport is a greenfield airport with significant upfront capital investment and comparatively lower tariff base resulting in higher tariff charges, AERA has decided to defer a sizeable portion (11.32 per cent) of the ARR to the next tariff cycle so as to moderate tariff charges in the interests of passengers and airlines,” it said in a press statement on Wednesday. AERA said the rationalised and moderated UDF charges would significantly benefit domestic passengers who constitute around 73 per cent of total passenger traffic in the country. Published on May 20, 2026
