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Another airport record has fallen, with Sydney seeing its busiest-ever year for international travel.
17.17 million passengers travelled through Sydney’s T1 international terminal in 2025, with the December quarter also the airport’s busiest in history for international passengers at more than 4.62 million, up 5.9 per cent on the same time in 2024.
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More than 42.54 million passengers travelled through the airport in total last year, up 2.7 per cent on 2024, with inbound international travel continuing to grow while outbound remained steady. Travel from China was “particularly strong” in the last quarter, up 12.2 per cent on 2024.
“2025 marked a record year of international passengers for Sydney Airport reflecting sustained demand for travel and Sydney’s role as Australia’s primary international gateway,” said airport CEO Scott Charlton.
“International travel accelerated throughout the second half, with the final quarter of the year delivering the highest international passenger volumes of any quarter in 2025. This reflects the recovery of key inbound markets and the return of airline capacity.
“Importantly, we delivered this growth while maintaining strong operational performance during one of the busiest periods of the year. The opening of new security lanes at T1 and T2 is already improving the passenger experience, even as major construction continues across the precinct.”
According to Sydney Airport’s figures, 99.8 percent of domestic passengers and 99.4 percent of international passengers cleared security in under 10 minutes in Q4 2025, due in part to the installation of new screening lanes at T1 and T2 in December.
Inbound immigration also improved, the airport said, with 90 percent of passengers clearing immigration within 34 minutes, up 8.1 on the previous year.
“Looking ahead to 2026, our focus is firmly on delivery as we progress our development program to add capacity and continue improving the passenger experience,” said Charlton.
“This includes the completion of the $200 million T2 upgrade later in the year, the commencement of the T2/T3 Integrated Terminal expansion, and continued progress on our Master Plan review ahead of the final plan being published mid year.
“These projects will ensure we are well positioned to meet future demand and deliver long term benefits for passengers and airlines.”
December 2025 was Australia’s busiest Christmas travel period in five years, up 4.5 per cent year on year overall.
