KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 30): Passengers flying out of klia2 in Sepang will pay 46% more in passenger service charge (PSC), or commonly known as airport tax, for international destinations beyond Asean as the rate will be increased to RM73, from the current RM50, effective Jan 1 next year.

This is part of a move to level the playing field for airlines operating in Malaysia and end nearly a decade of discord between full-service carriers and their budget counterpart AirAsia Bhd over the different rates.

In a statement today, the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) announced the completion of a full equalisation of the PSC to be implemented across the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, klia2 and all other airports in Malaysia.

The revised PSC will be applicable to tickets issued from Jan 1 onwards and will not affect tickets issued prior to that date, even if the date of travel takes place on or after Jan 1, 2018.

According to Mavcom, even after the revisions, the PSC in Malaysia remains among the lowest in the world.

Meanwhile, airports that do not maintain or achieve the airport service standards will be imposed with a financial penalty of up to 5% of the airport’s aeronautical revenues.

The commission said this is part of its development of the regulatory framework to improve service levels at airports in Malaysia, following the revision of the PSC, as referred to in Mavcom’s earlier announcement in October last year.

“The objective of this "Airports Quality of Service" (Airports QoS) framework is to enhance passenger comfort at the airport, ensure airport operators prioritise consumer service levels and facilitate improved airport user experience for airlines, ground handlers and other users of airports in Malaysia,” it added.

“The commission had undertaken a robust process to arrive at this position, which we believe to be more equitable. Aside from ensuring airport charges in Malaysia remain among the lowest in the region, we expect this move to also allow the government to reallocate subsidies to more needful purposes. The equalisation now progresses us in international aviation and we look forward to further strengthening Malaysia’s aviation sector,” Mavcom executive chairman Tan Sri Abdullah Ahmad said.

He noted that the Airports QoS framework is another mechanism introduced by Mavcom to empower consumers further.

“We hope to implement the Airports QoS framework in 2018, as part of our efforts to protect consumers and ensure a better travel experience overall, as it is aimed at improving service levels at airports, while ensuring airport operators are held accountable for improving their standards,” Abdullah added.