Experts assessed the permit for the sale of alcohol to passengers of domestic flights

Allowing the sale of alcohol to passengers on domestic flights could increase non-aeronautical revenues for airports, according to the Airports International Association (IAA). “In the current situation, the reduction in international passenger traffic and the development of domestic flights will be a certain support for the industry,” Galina Buyanova, Deputy Executive Director for Public Relations of the IAA, told Vedomosti. According to her, the association supports the proposal of the Ministry of Finance.

Ministry of Finance informed May 31, that he prepared a bill that would allow the sale of alcohol in retail stores at airports to passengers flying within Russia. The document proposes to allow, until June 30, 2026, the retail sale of alcoholic beverages by owners of duty-free shops at points located in the lounges of domestic flights and in the baggage claim halls of Russian airports with the establishment of special requirements for such sales.

The Ministry of Finance clarified that we are not talking about duty free shops, since they only work in the waiting rooms for international flights. The cost of alcoholic beverages will include duties and taxes – in contrast to its duty-free sale to passengers of international destinations.

The implementation of this proposal will support international trade operators and duty free owners who have suffered during the coronavirus pandemic and from “unfriendly actions of foreign states,” the report said.

The Eurasian Duty-Free Trade Association (EABT) expects positive dynamics for the economy of airports from the implementation of the Ministry of Finance’s initiative – it should help compensate for the lost non-aviation revenues against the backdrop of a multiple decline in international passenger traffic, Fatima Dzoblaeva, director of EABT, told Vedomosti. “The initiative is correct. She supports airports [в то время, как] international tourism has declined and is unlikely to rise any time soon. And non-aviation revenues, which were formed from the work of duty free shops, fell sharply, ”she noted.

Mass foreign destinations – Egypt and Turkey – have risen in price by 2.5 times compared to 2019, the source points out. Tourists face difficulties, all this does not contribute to the popularity of international flights, Dzoblaeva believes. While domestic tourism, on the contrary, is developing.

Permission to sell alcohol on domestic flights may lead to a slight increase in retail sales due to a shift in passenger traffic in favor of flights within the country, Vadim Drobiz, director of the Center for Research on Federal and Regional Alcohol Markets, told Vedomosti. At the same time, he notes that they usually buy premium strong imported alcohol at airports, and if its price does not differ from the usual one in city stores, then the idea of ​​the Ministry of Finance to support trade at airports may not be very successful.

The Ministry of Finance is looking for every opportunity to replenish the budget, and alcohol has always been one of the most important items for replenishing the treasury, says Dmitry Nesvetov, chairman of the council of the Moscow city branch of Opora Rossii. In addition, according to him, in 2022, the trading floors of Moscow airports sank by 25-30% for various types of trade compared to 2021. “There are fewer and fewer financial reserves left to support airports and other infrastructure,” Nesvetov believes. .

In general, allowing the sale of alcohol for passengers on domestic flights can bring a local positive effect, says Mikhail Burmistrov, CEO of Infoline Analytics. The main factor for stimulating sales may be the availability of certain brands that are not represented in Russia. For the consumer, this may be of additional interest, he told Vedomosti.

Burmistrov assumes that at the initial stage, the income of operators at Russian airports from the sale of alcohol will not be significant – no more than several tens of millions of rubles a month. But in 2024 they can reach the level of additional sales from 100 million rubles. per month.

Duty free shops asked the government for help in March 2022. They suggested to exempt them from airport rentals, as they were “on the verge of survival” due to sanctions and a reduction in the flow of passengers.

In April 2022 Opora Rossii as a support measure suggested allow the sale of duty-free goods to passengers flying to the EAEU countries from Russia. Back in 2019, a norm came into force in the EAEU that allowed purchases in duty-free shops for intra-union passengers flying from other countries of the union: Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. But Russian law did not allow this.

Russian law did not allow this. The amendments were developed by the Ministry of Finance. The Federal Customs Service (FTS) and the Ministry of Industry and Trade submitted a positive opinion, in June 2022 the relevant law accepted State Duma.

In June 2022, airports proposed to introduce a duty-free trade regime on domestic flights until 2023, but the idea was not supported by the Ministry of Finance, said RBC co-owner and chairman of the board of directors of Vnukovo airport Vitaly Vantsev. This initiative was also an attempt by airports to compensate for declining revenues amid falling international traffic. According to Vantsov, commissions from duty free shops accounted for a large share of the income from international transportation and allowed to cover the costs of the airport. The FCS said that this initiative could lead to losses in the federal budget.

Vedomosti sent inquiries to Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo, Vnukovo and Pulkovo airports.