Flight operationsEU Emissions Trading SchemeFree allowances
 

Application for free allowances

 

Aircraft operators may apply for free allocation of allowances for the first (2012) and the second (2013-2020) emissions trading period.
 
The free allowances available to the entire aviation sector will be distributed amongst operators through a benchmarking procedure, where the individual allocation of each operator is proportional to the reported and verified tonne kilometres flown over the course of the year 2010. From year 2012 onwards, the European Commission and the competent authorities will issue the free allowances allocated to each individual aircraft operator once a year.

Free allowances can be applied for until the end of March 2011. The deadline for submitting the application to the competent authority is 31 March 2011. The application must include a tonne kilometre report verified by an independent accredited verifier, in which the tonne kilometres flown over the year 2010 are reported in a standardised form.

Before making a tonne kilometre report, the aircraft operator must first draw up a monitoring plan, in which it should be outlined how the tonne kilometre data are obtained, processed, registered and monitored. 
 
To be able to apply for free allowances, the monitoring plan on tonne kilometres had to be submitted to the competent authority (in Finland to the Finnish Transport Safety Agency, Trafi) by 31 August 2009 using the forms provided on Trafi's website. The monitoring plan was not required to be approved by a verifier.