The Government will abolish the passenger cap at Dublin Airport through legislation later this year, the Taoiseach has said. Airport operator DAA has repeatedly called for the 32m annual passenger cap to be lifted, arguing that expanding Dublin Airport to 40m passengers a year is “in line with national aviation policy”. The complaint warned that enforcement of the cap could force American carriers to lose slots at Dublin Airport, which it said would be discriminatory. The memo bringing the legislation to Cabinet outlined the “importance of addressing the passenger cap at Dublin Airport and the challenges faced in securing timely permission for planning applications”. Under its 2007 planning permission, Dublin Airport is limited to handling 32 million passengers a year across both terminals.

Source: Irish Examiner January 08, 2026 14:44 UTC