The current charge period at Zurich Airport began in September 2016. During the COVID‑19 pandemic, an agreement for an extension of the charge period was reached with airport users in 2020. This agreement allowed to take the extraordinary effects of the pandemic into account and to ensure almost full coverage of capital costs in the regulated sector despite the COVID‑19 crisis. On April 1, 2025, the procedure for adjusting flight operations charges for the next charge period was initiated.
Negotiations began on October 1, 2025 and lasted approximately four months. Participants included Swiss International Air Lines Ltd., easyJet Europe Airline GmbH, a representative of the commercial airlines, a representative of the business aviation airlines, a representative of light aviation and air sport, as well as a representative of freight forwarders. The Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) accompanied the negotiations as an observer.
The new charge period is expected to start on October 1, 2026, enabling Zurich Airport Ltd. to almost entirely cover reasonable capital interest within the current 10-year charge period. The next proceedings for adjusting flight operations charges in accordance with the Ordinance on Airport Charges (OAC) are expected to be initiated four years after the new charges regulation comes into force. The reasonable return on the capital invested (WACCs) applied to determine the cumulative result will be increased from 5.0% to 5.5% as of October 1, 2026. Due to the rollover mechanism (Article 18 OAC), any surplus or shortfall from a charge period will be considered in the future when setting charges for the subsequent charge period, thereby ensuring sustainable coverage of capital costs for Zurich Airport Ltd.
With the introduction of the new airport charges, passengers and airlines will benefit from lower costs. Thanks to the positive passenger traffic development and Zurich Airport's disciplined approach to costs and investments, cost coverage in the regulated sector can be maintained despite the reduction in charges. This will further strengthen both the competitiveness and the development capability of Zurich Airport. Overall, charges for users of Zurich Airport will be reduced by approximately 10%. The key changes in the new charges regulation are as follows:
Passenger-related Charges
For the next charge period, passenger-related charges will amount to CHF 30.40 per departing local passenger and CHF 14.00 per departing transfer passenger. This represents an average reduction of 13% compared with the current charge period.
Other Charges
Regarding movement-related charges, the user fee for the baggage sorting system will in the future be integrated into the landing charges, thereby reducing complexity and enabling simplified invoicing. As a result, landing charges will increase. The new noise charges, which include additional noise surcharges and a reclassification of noise categories, and which were already ordered by the Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) in April 2025, will also come into force together with the new charges regulation.
Next Steps
If no applications for amendments are received, the new charges regulation will come into force as agreed on October 1, 2026.
