GoAir ordered to pay USD 3.6 million to Maldives tax authority

The Civil Court has ordered Go First, founded as GoAir, to pay USD 3.6 million (MVR 55.51 million) to the Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA).

This is a case filed by MIRA seeking the lump sum of USD 3.6 million in airport service charges, departure taxes and airport development fees under the Airport Taxes and Fees Act (No. 29/2016). The verdict was handed down on the 3rd of this month.

Departure Tax under the Act:

Airport Development Fee:

The civil court ruling ordered GoAir to pay USD 3.6 million in airport service charges, departure taxes and airport development fees from April 2022 to March 2023.

The charge sheet and sentence of the case was pronounced in the absence of GoAir. To this, the court noted that three attempts were made to deliver the charge sheet to the third floor of STO’s Aifaanu building in Male, which was given by MIRA as the address of GoAir.

The company had not appeared before the court even after the charge sheet was sent to M.Nargis/Male, which was given as the company's address.

GoAir started flying to the Maldives in October 2018. In 2020, the airline suspended flights to the Maldives due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but resumed and then stopped flights again in March 2023.

The financially strapped airline filed bankruptcy after most of its aircrafts remained grounded, having failed to repair their engines for some time.

This is the first time that an Indian airline had declared bankruptcy since 2019, when Jet Airways, one of India's largest private airlines, declared bankruptcy.