The Billing and Settlement Plan (BSP) is an accounting system developed by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in the year 1971. BSP was aimed at centralizing and streamlining the payment making procedure of travel agencies to airlines. Previously, the agencies used to send money individually to the respective airlines they served, which was complicated, time consuming and error-prone.

The BSP is managed and operated by IATA and it covers the reporting, billing and settlement of the business. The system collects the payment of tickets from the accredited travel agencies and pays the corresponding amounts to the airlines participating, usually weekly or fortnightly.

The primary beneficiaries of BSP are:

• Travel Agencies: They deal with one central payment system instead of multiple airlines, which reduces administrative work and accounting errors.
• Airlines: They receive timely, consolidated payments and can trust that funds are handled under IATA’s strict financial rules.
• IATA: As the managing body, it ensures transparency, compliance and stability in global airline payments.

Today, BSP serves more than 180 nations and processes billions of dollars worth of airline tickets annually. One of the largest and most influential computer reservations and global distribution systems, BSP ranks among the most critical travel industry systems, keeping agency airline financials flowing smoothly, securely and expeditiously.

Flight Terminus has also implemented BSP billing and reconciliation automation powered by AI. We’ve assisted various travel agencies in automating their tedious processes, saving considerable time in routine jobs so their finance team can spend their time in strategic work.