MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Surcharge imposed on ship travel to/from Uruguay

The measure comes at a time when a record arrival of cruise ships is expected

The Uruguayan government of President Luis Lacalle Pou issued a decree whereby a new surcharge of US$ 2.56 (US$2.10 plus VAT) per passenger will be added to travel by ship to and from the country to finance the new immigration control system. It will apply to regular daily services from Buenos Aires as well as to seasonal cruise ships.

The new “Security Service Fee” is to be charged by each shipping company when issuing the tickets, it was explained.

With this tax, the government seeks to finance the Integral System of Migratory Management of Uruguay to be provided by an international consortium. This mechanism to be present at 43 border crossings was originally devised in 2018 under then-President Tabaré Vázquez. The initiative lured some criticism, including that from Tourism Minister Tabaré Viera, who nevertheless ended up signing the presidential decree.

The Tourism Association of Colonia regretted the measure because it feared it might have a “negative impact” on the activity. Colonia is the Uruguayan destination that receives “the shortest stays” and has “a high percentage of daily visits,” the association claimed.

Buquebús, one of the two companies linking Buenos Aires to Colonia daily, filed a nullity action against the bidding documents, which is now being defined in the Administrative Contentious Court (TCA).

The measure comes at a time when a record arrival of cruise ships is expected, with some 232 ships due to call at Montevideo and Punta del Este..(Source: Infobae)