Landside Port & Air Cargo Terminal Charges Index – 2026 Update

Since 2018, terminal access charges – the most significant and widely levied – have increased continuously at all major Australian ports. Charges at cities on the East Coast have followed a similar trajectory since they were initially introduced.

It does, however, appear that the rate of increases to all charges is decreasing. While still significantly above inflation, 2026 index increases were all 15% or lower  for the second time since 2018, with the access index experiencing the smallest y-o-y increase since 2018. In 2026, Penalty charges have experienced an uplift, driven mainly by the introduction on new Laden Stack Run Extension & Shortfall fees levied by DP World.

Timing changes from Victorian Voluntary Pricing Protocol amendments.

After the Department of Transport and Planning made changes to the Victorian Voluntary Pricing Protocol in 2024, the three Victorian-based container terminals aligned their landside pricing tariffs to commence from January 1 each year. Patrick Terminals and DP World Australia  also adopted these protocols for their terminals in Sydney, Brisbane and Fremantle. This year, Flinders Adelaide Container Terminal have joined the stevedores in implementing these changes on January 1 2026.

ACCC hardens stance on stevedores’ and ECP’s charge behaviour.

The ACCC’s 2023-24 & 2024-25 container monitoring reports¹ found there are likely market failures in the container freight supply chain which, in their view, may warrant a policy or regulatory response. The ACCC has raised concerns with limited competition, excessive profits, limited justification of weight misdeclaration fees and the lack of service improvements. The reports have also noted that despite excess capacity at stevedore terminals, and no significant growth in volumes, prices and profits have increased significantly in recent years.

The ACCC has recommended the consideration of policy response or regulation of charges levied by stevedores and empty container parks. These recommendations are supported by key industry groups including the Container Transport Alliance Australia, International Freight Forwarders and Customs Brokers Association of Australia, Freight Trade Alliance, and Australian Peak Shippers Association.

ACCC calls out rapidly rising empty container park notification fees, and a need for closer scrutiny.

The ACCC’s 2023-24 container monitoring report¹  also noted that empty container parks (ECPs) have been significantly increasing notification fees across Australia. This has created a situation where ECPs charge 3 different parties 3 different sets of charges for handling the same empty container, with shipping lines, importers and exporters all paying different fees at different stages of handling the same container. The average ECP notification fee across Australia has increased from $6.01 in 2018 to $134.40 in 2026 (see right).

The Victorian government expanded the Victorian Voluntary Pricing Protocols to include ECPs in 2025. The National Transport Commission is now working to update the National Voluntary Guidelines for Landside Stevedore Charges in response to a request from Australian transport ministers.

Australian Cargo Terminal Charges: 2018-2026 Snapshot

This year, the LPCI is being expanded with the addition of the Air Cargo Terminal Charges Index. This index tracks changes to document, handling and storage fees being levied by air freight handlers at Australian airports.

Since 2018, the air freight import charges index has risen 54%, and the export charges index by 62.7%, versus the 29% increase in CPI.

Average document processing fees are 48% higher in 2026 than they were in 2018, while minimum cargo handling fees have seen an even larger increase over the same period, of around 66%. Cargo storage fees have seen the largest increase, with the minimum charge almost doubling, including big jumps in 2024 (annual increase of 15.3%) and 2025 (annual increase of 12%).

Further details on this year’s Landside Port and Air Cargo Terminal Charges index, including insights and methodologies can be found in the accompanying document, available for download below.

To view content from previous years’ releases, the methodology used for calculating the LPCI and other special reports and discussion papers, visit the LCPI Archive Page.

Our LPCI dashboard calculates and reports on three Landside Port indices (Access Charges, Ancillary Charges, and Penalty Charges) and two Air Cargo Terminal indices (Import and Export), while also allowing users to view individual charges that make up the these indices. Interested parties can access the dashboard by completing the form below: