Business operation licenses of 60 travel agencies have been suspended or revoked since May 2014, according a senior official. Out of 2,500 active travel agencies in Iran, 300 have been inspected since May 2014, when the government announced it was planning to liberate airline ticket prices. At the time critics argued the move would lead to about 30 percent increase in prices. The 5th Five-Year Economic Development Plan (2011-2015) calls on the government to liberate the ticket prices in an attempt to push for growth in the sector. Some travel agencies, however, used the opportunity to illegally raise their service prices in advance. Alireza Jahangirian, deputy minister of roads and urban development said, “30 licenses have been revoked so far and another 30 suspended,” as reported by Eghtesad News on Tuesday.
