The Airport Charges Regulations 2011
The Regulations implement European Directive 2009/12/EC on airport charges into UK law. They establish a common framework by which airports consult their airline customers about airport charges, service level agreements and major infrastructure projects. The Regulations require airports to:
- consult airlines about airport charges annually
- give at least 4 months notice of proposed changes to airport charges (unless there are exceptional circumstances)
- provide specific information to airlines on how airport charges are calculated
- (if practicable) announce decisions on changes to airport charges at least 2 months before they come into effect
- consult airlines on major infrastructure projects
The Regulations also contain provisions about airlines providing information to airports, the basis for airports providing differentiated services and discrimination. We can investigate complaints that an airport has not complied with the Regulations.
The full text of the Regulations is available on-line
Guidance on the application of our powers under the Regulations
We have issued guidance on how we will interpret, monitor and enforce the obligations on airports and users in the Regulations.
Links to our guidance and the consultation we held on it are below.
- CAP 1343 - Guidance on the application of the CAA's powers under the Airports Charges Regulations 2011 (October 2015)
- CAP 1344 - Guidance on the application of the CAA's powers under the Airport Charges Regulations 2011: Consultation response document (October 2015)
Responses to the consultation (Birmingham Airport, Bristol Airport, Edinburgh Airport, Gatwick Airport, Heathrow Airport, Manchester Airport Group, Virgin, IATA/KLM, James Chan (Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association):
- CAP 1290 - Guidance on the application of the CAA's powers under the Airports Charges Regulations 2011: a consultation (April 2015)
- CAP 1291 - Draft guidance on the application of the CAA's powers under the Airport Charges Regulations 2011 (April 2015)
Airports covered by the Regulations
The Regulations apply to airports with more than five million passengers in the year two years prior to the current year. Airports with more than five million passengers in 2022 are, therefore, covered by the Regulations in 2024, while airports with more than five million passengers in 2023 will be covered by the Regulations in 2025. A list of these airports is below.
| 2024 | 2025 |
| Heathrow | Heathrow |
| Gatwick | Gatwick |
| Stansted | Stansted |
| Manchester | Manchester |
| Luton | Luton |
| Edinburgh | Edinburgh |
| Birmingham | Birmingham |
| Bristol | Bristol |
| Glasgow | Glasgow |
| Belfast international |
Investigations under the Airport Charges Regulations 2011
- Notice of the opening of an investigation under the Airport Charges Regulations 2011 (November 2021)
- Preliminary View for consultation (September 2022)
- Final decision (November 2022)
Related publications
- The Airport Charges Regulations – Reporting under Regulation 32 (June 2021)
- The Airport Charges Regulations - Annual Report 2016-17 (August 2017)
- The Airport Charges Regulations – Annual Report 2015-16 (November 2016)
- The Airport Charges Regulations - CAA Annual Report 2014/15 (October 2015)
- The Airport Charges Regulations 2011 - CAA Annual Report 2013/14 (July 2014)
- The Airport Charges Regulations 2011 - CAA Annual Report 2012 (March 2013)
- Implementation of the Airport Charges Directive in the UK - CAA emerging thinking (December 2010)
In December 2016, the European Commission published two papers produced by a working group of the Thessaloniki Forum of airport charges regulators:
- Recommendations on Consultation and Transparency
- Recommendations for the Setting and estimation of the WACC of Airport Managing Bodies
In December 2017, the Commission published two papers produced by the Thessaloniki Forum on market power assessments:
- Recommendations on market power assessments to ensure that economic regulation of airports in the EU is appropriately targeted
- Practices in conducting market power assessments
Recent airport conduct decisions
Until 1 April 2014 we had powers to investigate airport conduct under section 41 of the Airports Act 1986. The decisions of our recent cases (both about alleged discrimination) are shown below:
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