The General Authority of Civil Aviation announced that it is not permissible to open or operate a travel office unless a license is obtained from the competent department affiliated with the Authority, in accordance with the provisions of Article No. (2) of the Travel Offices Regulation Law. The Civil Aviation confirmed in a post on its official social media accounts that it is prohibited for any natural or legal person to practice the activity of issuing or selling travel tickets without obtaining the necessary licenses.
Article (2) of the Travel Agencies Regulation Law stipulates that it is not permissible to open or manage the exploitation of travel agencies except after obtaining a license to do so from the competent administration.
Except for the services necessary to facilitate the performance of Hajj and Umrah, only travel agencies licensed in accordance with the provisions of the previous paragraph may carry out the work and services stipulated in the previous article.
However, airlines may carry out these activities and services for passengers on their routes, if they obtain the license stipulated in the first paragraph of this article, provided that they allocate an independent department in their offices to carry out these activities and services, which shall have an account separate from all other activities. These offices are prohibited from carrying out any activities or activities outside the limits of the license. The General Authority of Civil Aviation recently recommended the need to exercise accuracy and caution when purchasing travel tickets to various destinations and to verify the reservation conditions. This is to ensure the rights of the public, indicating the need to ensure that the office dealt with has a valid license issued by the Authority.
Granting licenses
The General Authority of Civil Aviation is keen to provide services to facilitate investors by granting them the required licenses to practice commercial activities related to air transport in order to avoid any penalties resulting from violating the laws and instructions issued by the General Authority of Civil Aviation. Those wishing to practice activities related to tourism, travel and flight reservations can contact the General Authority of Civil Aviation to issue the necessary approvals in accordance with the applicable laws and regulations.
Important step
Tourism expert Ayman Al-Qudwa believes that the recent notice from the General Authority of Civil Aviation regarding the ban on issuing or selling travel tickets without a license is a step in the right direction, as most travel agencies and tourism companies are suffering severely this season from a decline in sales and a decrease in growth rates, compared to previous years, due to intruders in the sector who have contributed mainly to the crisis because they do not bear any burdens in terms of employees, obligations, rent, license renewals, etc.
Online stores
Al-Qudwa told Al-Arab that there are online stores through websites and private accounts on social media platforms to sell travel tickets, tourist programs, travel packages, and everything related to travel and tourism through what is known as a “third party.” They do not have any licenses, offices, or headquarters, and rely on “WhatsApp groups” in their work. They buy tickets from various websites using personal credit cards and then sell them to the public, considering themselves travel and tourism consultants to provide personal services to individuals in order to profit from them without incurring any burdens or obligations.
Strong competition
Al-Qudwa explained that the competition is strong between companies this season, and prices have decreased by about 15 to 20% due to offers and price burning, noting that there are about 50 airlines operating in the local market in addition to Qatar Airways, and the volume of supply is very large compared to the volume of demand in the local market, and this season is the weakest in sales ever since the post-Corona pandemic stage.
He said that travel companies are suffering all over the world after the Covid-19 pandemic crisis, as their business volume has declined significantly, due to the trend of large segments of travelers to book through websites “online”, which opened the door for brokers to compete with ticket booking offices and made electronic booking record a remarkable growth in the Gulf countries, ranging between 25 to 30% annually.
IATA circular
Tourism expert Ayman Al-Qudwa pointed out that the recent circular issued by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) for the Middle East and Africa region, which obliges travel companies to reduce the period allowed for payment of the value of tickets issued through them from two weeks to only one week, which will be implemented as of the beginning of January 2025, will increase the pressure on the local travel market and thus reduce its contribution to the national economy and will also reduce the opportunities for sales volume growth and covering the costs of operating companies, as individuals and institutions usually request facilities and longer periods for payment and settlement of due bills related to flight reservations, stressing that the decision will have negative effects on tourism companies and local travel offices.