taxes

Tag Archives for taxes.

Austria Passes Minimum Ticket Prices And New Airline Taxes

by Gary Leff on June 9, 2020

Jun 09 2020

Austria’s government bailed out Austrian Airlines with about half a billion dollars, even after its German parent obtained a $9.8 billion aid package. Part of Austria’s bailout includes moves to protect the airline from competition, under the guise of environmental responsibility.

Last summer Lufthansa’s CEO declared that only the wealthy should fly arguing that the cheapest flights offered by competitors are “economically, ecologically, and politically irresponsible.” And all it took was a global pandemic to get those cheap flights banned.

How The Federal Airline Bailout ‘Devalues’ Frequent Flyer Miles

by Gary Leff on March 29, 2020

Mar 29 2020

The Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security Act of 2020 (CARES Act), which contained a nearly $60 billion bailout of the U.S. airline industry, has a curious affect on the value you will get for your airline miles and points.

Get A Tax Refund Whenever You Buy Airline Miles And Spend Them On International Travel

by Gary Leff on February 17, 2020

Feb 17 2020

The federal government charges a 7.5% excise tax on domestic air travel. When you buy miles from a U.S. airline you have to pay the tax, because the assumption is the miles are being used for domestic travel.

The IRS notes that if you use purchased miles for international travel (or hotels, gift cards, or anything other than domestic air travel) you can claim a refund of that 7.5% tax.

Argentina Expected To Impose 20% Tourist Dollars Tax

by Gary Leff on December 16, 2019

Dec 16 2019

This is part of an “economic recovery package” that will somehow “reactivate the local tourism industry.” I do not think this is how it works.

Trump Proposes Higher TSA Taxes and Asiana Has a Problem

by Gary Leff on March 22, 2019

Mar 22 2019

A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.

Double United Miles for Tax Payments

by Gary Leff on January 16, 2006

Jan 16 2006

On Thursday I mentioned that the Starwood American Express is offering double points for tax payments. According to Free Frequent Flyer Miles the United Visa is offering double points on tax payments as well.

Bush Administration to Raise Taxes on Travelers

by Gary Leff on January 28, 2005

Jan 28 2005

The Bush Administration is proposing to more than double the airline security tax under its budget for the Homeland Security Department. Bush’s plan calls for boosting the security fee from $2.50 to $5.50 for a one-way airline ticket and from a maximum of $5 to $8 for multiple legs. The hikes are expected to generate $1.5 billion. I know this makes sense to me, since the Department of Homeland Security gets so much value out of the budget they have now. Any money will surely be well spent. Heh.(Hat tip to Tripso Daily.)

AA Tax Offer

by Gary Leff on January 7, 2005

Jan 07 2005

H&R Block is offering up to 1000 American Airlines miles for filing your taxes with them.

Bonus miles for filing taxes

by Gary Leff on December 30, 2004

Dec 30 2004

American Express OnlineTax is offering 1000 Delta miles for using their online tax filing service from January 1 to April 15. $34.95 buys filing of your federal and state returns, which is somewhat higher than other online services I’ve seen and likely higher than the after-rebate price of some software packages.

Hypocrisy, thy name is Bono.

by Gary Leff on June 20, 2002

Jun 20 2002

Hypocrisy, thy name is Bono. No wonder Bono is so generous with government money. Under a special Irish law, he doesn’t pay taxes.