The Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment held an emergency meeting to address rising airline ticket prices and establish a fair pricing mechanism.
Chaired by Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Adviser Dr. Asif Nazrul, the meeting identified key factors behind the surge in airfare and introduced several corrective measures.
A major concern highlighted was the practice of group booking without passenger details, where travel agencies reserve large numbers of seats without names, passports, or visas.
This practice creates artificial shortages and inflates prices, particularly for flights to Riyadh, Dammam, Jeddah, Oman, Doha, and Kuala Lumpur. Ticket hoarding and speculative sales by agencies have significantly affected migrant workers, students, and expatriates.
To tackle these issues, the following measures were announced:
Mandatory Passenger Information for Bookings: Airlines and travel agencies must provide passengers’ names, passport numbers, and copies of passports at the time of booking.
Automatic Ticket Cancellation: Tickets booked but not issued within 72 hours will be automatically canceled.
Review of Existing Blocked Tickets: All group bookings made before February 6, 2025, must have traveler details updated within seven days or face cancellation.
Investigation Committee: A seven-member committee, led by the Senior Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs, will probe price manipulation over the past six months and submit a report with recommendations within 15 working days.
Task Force for Continuous Monitoring: A 13-member task force has been formed to monitor airfare trends and prevent further irregularities.
Officials from relevant ministries, departments, and agencies attended the meeting, reinforcing the government’s commitment to protecting travelers from unfair pricing practices.
