What is the UK ETS’s position on the allocation of allowances?
As per the UK Government Legislation released on 17th December 2020, the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (UK ETS) will allocate a proportion of free allowances to qualifying aircraft operators based on their historical aviation activity. The distribution of free allocation will be in line with UK ETS aviation activity emissions, rather than full-scope flight emissions. The deadline for the UK ETS free allocation entitlement was 31st March 2021.
Starting from 1st January 2023, the UK ETS scope was expanded to include flights (excluding excluded flights) departing from Great Britain (GB) and arriving in Switzerland (CH) (GB-CH flights). Consequently, entities with historical aviation activity, including GB-CH flights, have the option to apply for a UK ETS Aviation Free Allocation Entitlement (AFAE) using verified tonne-kilometre data (verified TKM data) from 2010 and/or 2014. The deadline for free allocation entitlement under GB-CH was 31st March 2023.
The UK ETS Authority has decided to phase out aviation-free allocations by 2026. For those airlines whose applications were approved and were entitled for free allocations (as described above), the UK ETS Authority has decided to continue the distribution of free allocations until 2026. This is done to ensure that these airlines experience a smoother transition.
Find the official guidance for Aviation Free Allocation Entitlement (AFAE) to reflect the expansion of the UK ETS Scope.
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Starting from 1st January 2023, the UK ETS scope was expanded to include flights (excluding excluded flights) departing from Great Britain (GB) and arriving in Switzerland (CH) (GB-CH flights). Consequently, entities with historical aviation activity, including GB-CH flights, have the option to apply for a UK ETS Aviation Free Allocation Entitlement (AFAE) using verified tonne-kilometre data (verified TKM data) from 2010 and/or 2014. The deadline for free allocation entitlement under GB-CH was 31st March 2023.
The UK ETS Authority has decided to phase out aviation-free allocations by 2026. For those airlines whose applications were approved and were entitled for free allocations (as described above), the UK ETS Authority has decided to continue the distribution of free allocations until 2026. This is done to ensure that these airlines experience a smoother transition.
Find the official guidance for Aviation Free Allocation Entitlement (AFAE) to reflect the expansion of the UK ETS Scope.
