Porter restores $40 fuel surcharge as oil prices surge

Less than a month after reducing its fuel surcharge by half, Porter Airlines is restoring the fee to $40.

The surcharge, which applies to new VIPorter reward bookings, is being increased because “the global oil market has since experienced unexpected and sharp price increases,” the airline said in an email to members Friday evening (July 17).

Porter said it had hoped to eliminate the surcharge altogether after lowering it to $20 on June 23.

“We truly hoped our next update would confirm that full removal,” the email reads. “This is not the direction we wanted to take. While these recent market shifts have stalled our progress in removing the surcharge, our commitment remains unchanged.”

READ MORE: Canada raises travel advisories for UAE & Jordan as tensions escalate

The airline added that it plans to remove the surcharge entirely “when market conditions allow.”

The update applies only to new VIPorter reward bookings made as of July 17, 2026.

“All your existing bookings remain fully protected at their original rates,” the airline wrote. “As a reminder, there is no fuel surcharge for regular bookings made without redeeming points.”

Canada raises advisories for UAE & Jordan

Porter, Air Canada and WestJet introduced fuel surcharges in the spring after oil and gas prices surged following Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz — a key passageway for roughly 20 per cent of global oil traffic — in response to attacks by the United States and Israel.

Last month, the United States and Iran reached an agreement aimed at ending the conflict, allowing ships to resume passage through the strait, albeit at a slower rate than before the war.

However, tensions in the Middle East have since escalated.

The U.S. military said Friday that it had conducted a seventh consecutive night of strikes against Iran since President Donald Trump declared that a temporary ceasefire agreement was “over,” reports the BBC.

The situation has also prompted the Canadian government to raise its travel advisories, urging citizens to “avoid non-essential travel” to five Middle Eastern countries.

On Friday night, Global Affairs Canada placed Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Jordan, Oman and Saudi Arabia under Orange (Level 3) advisories due to what it describes as a “volatile security situation.”

The change comes roughly three weeks after Ottawa eased its advisories for Jordan and the UAE as regional tensions appeared to subside.

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