We all know who actually pays when any government imposes a tax.

Tax Article

I really don't think it makes ANY sense to have the airport be the sole beneficiary of $36/pp..that's a lot of cash. Maybe the original plan should have been a 50/50 split or whatever....now they want to add the governments' take...and the vehicle licensing fee...why not a toll to cross the bridges

Give it time! You know if the government wants a cut from the airport it will NOT come out of what is already being collected. It will be an additional tax/fee that the passenger will ultimately pay.

Don't give them such ideas

Like someone said, don't give them any ideas!! A toll to cross either the Simpson Bay bridge or the causeway? If you think traffic in Simpson Bay is bad now, with a backup for a toll??? Yikes!!

Regarding departure tax, it is pretty ridiculous that there is a departure tax now and the whole thing goes to the airport, and nothing to the government. The airport is like GEBE, they are supposedly owned by government, but they do whatever they darn please!

I didn't look at my booking closely when I purchased our tickets for our last trip, so I don't know if PJIA charges both an improvement fee and the 'departure' fee. If it is just the departure fee it is not unlike many airports in North America that charge an airport improvement fee. The airport keeps that fee and uses it, in theory, to improve the airport. The fee, like a departure tax is usually included in your ticket cost so you may not notice it.

My point is that the name may be different, but the fee probably isn't that unusual. And the fee and a departure tax wouldn't be extraordinary in the Caribbean.

(Please don't mistake the above for an endorsement of these fees and taxes.)

We have already booked out trip to SXM in February. We haven't been for years and if the tax is $36 pp ($72). I think this might be our last trip to SXM. There are way too many other good places to travel. They can nickel and dime us to death but at some point it has to stop.

The current departure/airport fee is built into your ticket price. Check your receipt if you have access to it and you will see it. Virtually every island has some sort of arrival/departure fee or tax but it is getting to the point it will make people think.

I'm laughing because one of the articles I read on this subject said that at one time the departure 'fee' was only five dollars. DH and I were reminded during our brief visit with the friend we saw in SXM that the first trip we made in 1973 or '74 the fee was only $2.00 US pp.

The thing is, with it included in the airline tickets many don't even realize they're paying one and I have to admit, I hadn't realized it had climbed to $36.00.

But still, I can't imagine having to choose another destination for an extra few dollars in airfare but that's just me. Certainly none of us want to pay more than we have to but we each have to decide if this location is worth the extra money.

Personally speaking and never having been there myself, a lot of my Canadian friends keep talking about how beautiful and affordable Cuba is. Lookout SXM, you could be plucking the feathers off the golden goose if you aren't careful. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" />

Pat, the son of a friend of ours married a girl from Cuba and my friend says it it truly beautiful yet lost in the 50's We should visit now before it becomes a tourist trap.

Any fee/tax that is "included" or automatic can rise quietly at the whim of the agency involved. Hidden airport taxes, departure fees, and even roll tolls. Massachusetts has gone to a no toll booth system which is great ..but...you it's not easy to find out what the actual cost is...

Yes, J.D. you hit the nail on the head. The e-ticket issued by the airline provides a complete breakdown of all fees/taxes - a close examination revealed some startling facts - the departure fee is small potatoes to the overall fees charged by the domestic (in this case the US) airport/govt.

When we budget for vacation these total fees are not the deciding factor in our going or not.

In my personal case, the $36 going for SXM departure fee/tax is the biggest add-on followed by the US transportation tax. A total of over $129 in taxes/fees.

Taxes, Fees and Charges
United States - Immigration and Naturalization Fee(Immigration User Fee) (XY) $7.00 USD
Sint Maarten - Passenger Screening Fee (FG) $10.91 USD
Sint Maarten - Airport Departure Tax (SXM) (FH) $36.00 USD
United States - September 11th Security Fee(Passenger Civil Aviation Security Service Fee) (AY) $11.20 USD
United States - Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Fee (APHIS User Fee - Passengers (XA) $3.96 USD
United States - Custom User Fee (YC) $5.50 USD
Sint Maarten - Airport Improvement Fee (IW) $5.50 USD
United States - Passenger Facility Charge (XF) $13.50 USD
United States - Transportation Tax (US) $35.60 USD

Wow, owning and managing Caribbean airports is an attractive business.
I wonder who gets the Passenger Screening Fees and Airport Improvement Fees. I'm assuming the Airport Improvement fees go to the airport owners as well. So that is $41.50 a passenger x 800,000 passengers for a cool $33 million annually plus all the other income generating activities. Not bad for an airport.
One thing to keep in mind is that many of these airports split fees with Airlines.
For instance, American Airlines makes a killing at CLT since they get a cut of parking fees, vendor fees and other airport generated revenue as part of their deal to use CLT as a hub. Not sure what the deals are with airlines but I would assume a 50/50 split is not unreasonable in order to get the cooperation of airlines and have it automatically billed.
It's a shame that this money is not going to the government where it is badly needed to invest in schools, infrastructure and security that ultimately benefits tourists.

if the airlines get a 50/50 cut too bad they don't reflect that in their ticket pricing.

Wendell

No idea for sure but I would guess gate/parking fees are a totally separate thing and are probably built into the price of the ticket.

Is there a similar tax on cruise ship passengers as well?

Yes (although a lesser amount) and I believe there was discussion of raising that also. Every port has a port tax per passenger and that is whether they leave the ship or not.

From the original article: "The Port, charges US $7 per tourist"

Wow, I guess I didn't realize they were talking about putting these new taxes on day trips. Wow. That will be really popular...