New Zealand’s government announced on Tuesday a 285% increase from October in the tourist congestion charge, a tax designed to help support public services and preserve heritage.
Visitors arriving in the country from October 1 will have to pay NZ$100 (€56) for the overseas visitor conservation and tourism tax, up from the current NZ$35 (€20).
The tax, in addition to visa fees, will cover part of the country’s tourism costs, Tourism and Hospitality Minister Matt Doocy explained, according to an official statement.
“International tourism has costs for local communities, including additional pressure on regional infrastructure and increased costs to maintain and preserve our protected area,” Dusi said, highlighting the significant contribution the tourism sector makes to the local economy.
According to official figures, New Zealand was visited by about 4.9 million tourists in 2023, contributing about NZ$11 billion (€6.17 billion) to the economy.
Dusi said that despite the tax increases introduced from 2019, the New Zealand Government was committed to continuing to grow the sector and that the new tax, which represents less than 3% of total spend per visitor, was “unlikely” to have a significant impact on visitor numbers.
However, Rebecca Ingram, chief executive of Tourism Industry Aotearoa, an association that represents various sectors of the tourism industry, said she believed the increase would result in an outflow of about 48,000 visitors and a reduction in tourism spending, according to statements from public broadcaster Radio New Zealand.