AERA Cuts User Development Fee for Hyderabad Airport Passengers by Over 30%

The Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (AERA) has reduced the user development fee (UDF) for domestic passengers departing from Hyderabad's Rajiv Gandhi International Airport by more than 30%. Under a new tariff calculation framework, the fee has been brought down from ₹750 to ₹515 per passenger.

The revised tariff order will come into effect on September 1, 2026, and will remain valid until March 31, 2031. The airport operator had proposed a domestic departure UDF of ₹580 per passenger.

For international passengers departing from the airport, AERA has fixed the UDF at ₹1,030 per passenger. This marks a decrease from the existing ₹1,500 rate and is also lower than the airport operator's proposed charge of ₹1,150 per passenger.

In addition to passenger fees, the aviation regulator has lowered aircraft landing charges during the tariff period. AERA fixed landing charges at ₹435 per metric tonne for domestic flights and ₹630 per metric tonne for international flights.

The revisions follow AERA's introduction of an incremental Aggregate Revenue Requirement (ARR) approach for the tariff period. Under this new methodology, the recovery of project-related costs through airport charges is directly linked to the actual completion and commissioning of major capital projects.

This framework is designed to prevent passengers from being charged upfront for major infrastructure projects that have not yet become operational. The policy covers major investments such as new terminal buildings, runways, and taxiways, which are expected to be commissioned during the latter half of the tariff period.

The Hyderabad airport operator had originally sought an aggregate revenue requirement of ₹27,851 crore. However, AERA approved a baseline ARR of ₹11,683.49 crore to determine the tariffs. This translated into a baseline yield per passenger (YPP) of ₹426.39, which served as the foundation for setting the airport's revised UDF, landing charges, and aircraft parking charges.