IATA Billing and Settlement Plan (BSP)
- IATA’s BSP is a system designed to facilitate and simplify the selling, reporting and remitting procedures of IATA Accredited Passenger Sales Agents, as well as improve financial control and cash flow of participating airlines.
- A worldwide system operates in some 160 countries and territories.
- Over 80% of worldwide airline revenues are ticketed via IATA travel agencies in the BSP system.
- In 2007 IATA’s BSP processed US$ 220 billion
| Year |
Agents |
Sales US$ bn |
Bad debt US$ m |
Bad debt % sales |
| 2001 |
55 770 |
120 |
56 |
.046 |
| 2002 |
58 000 |
126 |
45 |
.035 |
| 2003 |
58 900 |
131 |
42 |
.031 |
| 2004 |
59 500 |
158 |
55 |
.035 |
| 2005 |
60 400 |
171 |
62 |
.036 |
| 2006 |
60 557 |
187 |
31 |
.017 |
| 2007 |
60 600 |
220 |
53 |
.024 |
- In all, IATA’s financial systems processed over US$315 billion during 2007
- IATA Clearing House - US$44 billion
- IATA Currency Clearing Service - US$26.5 billion
- Billing and Settlement Plan (BSP) - US$220 billion
- Cargo Account Settlement Systems (CASS) - US$23 billion
- Other - US$950 million
Agency Programme
- The IATA Passenger Agency Programme provides a system for the accreditation of travel agents that meet specific industry standards and financial and security criteria.
- Currently there are 60,000 IATA Travel Agents
- operating in over 200 countries
- selling US$220 billion of airline tickets
- The Passenger Agency Programme provides a standard method for agents to be recognised by both the travel industry and consumers.
Benefits
IATA Airline Members
- Access to a global distribution network of IATA Travel agents who have signed a single standard Sales Agency Agreement with IATA
- Outsourced agent verification services including legal and financial evaluation and monitoring
- Reliable credit management with a collection rate of 99.98%
- Access to IATA’s Billing and Settlement Plan (BSP), and BSPlink that together provide a single standard interface for invoicing and payment between the agents and the airline
- Protects the IATA member in case of violation of the Passenger Sales Agency Agreement or fraudulent practices
IATA Travel Agents
- Access to approximately 230 IATA airline members using a single standard Sales Agency Agreement
- Authorisation to sell international and/or domestic tickets on behalf of the airlines
- Access to IATA’s Billing and Settlement Plan (BSP), and BSPlink that together provide a single standard interface for invoicing and payment between the agent and multiple airlines and transport providers
- Global travel industry recognition through an “IATA Numeric Code” that provides a unique identifier for the agent
- Global consumer confidence due to IATA Travel Agents meeting industry standards identifiable by the IATA logo and branding displayed on Travel Agents premises and websites
- Provides standard procedures which ensure fair and uniform standards in all dealings with the airlines
Consumers
- Confidence that IATA Travel Agents meet industry standards and set financial and security criteria
- Unbiased advice and the option to purchase tickets on a wide range of airlines