What Happens If Your Checked Baggage Is 1kg Overweight? Complete Guide to Excess Weight & Size Fees

Travelers often fill their luggage with souvenirs on return trips, only to discover at the airport scale that their baggage is '1kg overweight.' Many assume a small excess will be overlooked, but airlines do not have a universal '1kg overweight free pass' policy. Any amount exceeding the free baggage allowance stated on your ticket may result in additional fees or repacking requirements. More importantly, traditional carriers typically don’t charge per excess kilogram—some jump directly to the next fee tier when baggage increases from 23kg to 24kg. Below is a detailed breakdown of how excess weight and oversized baggage fees are calculated according to current official rules from EVA Air, China Airlines, Starlux Airlines, and Tigerair Taiwan.

What happens if your baggage exceeds the limit by 1kg? A jump from 23kg to 24kg could already incur charges.

To start, if your ticket states 'maximum 23kg per checked bag,' and your luggage weighs 24kg, it has already exceeded the airline’s published per-item weight limit.

Whether you’ll be charged on-site depends on enforcement, but never assume 'just 0.5kg or 1kg over is fine.' Airlines publish clear weight limits and do not universally allow passengers to carry an extra 0.5kg or 1kg for free. The safest approach is always to keep luggage within the ticket-specified limits.

Moreover, for piece-based traditional airlines, going from 23kg to 24kg doesn’t necessarily mean paying for just '1 extra kg.'

Take EVA Air as an example: Premium Economy and Economy class have a 23kg per-bag weight limit. Any bag between 23kg and 32kg incurs a 0.5-piece excess baggage fee. For flights from Taiwan to Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Macau, Thailand, Singapore, and other Zone 1 destinations, the current excess baggage fee is USD 140 per piece. Therefore, a bag originally limited to 23kg that weighs 24kg will incur an additional fee of USD 70.

In other words, stuffing just 1kg more of souvenirs could add thousands of dollars in baggage fees.

How are excess baggage fees calculated? See the rules from four airlines at a glance.

EVA Air

According to EVA Air’s current policy, the general weight limit for Premium Economy and Economy class is 23kg per bag. Bags weighing over 23kg but not exceeding 32kg incur a 0.5-piece excess baggage fee per item. Bags over 45kg cannot be handled as regular checked baggage and must be shipped as cargo.

Special attention is needed for bags over 32kg. EVA Air’s 'Baggage Basics' states that to prevent occupational injuries to handlers and check-in issues at certain airports, any standard baggage over 32kg must generally be repacked. If the item cannot be re-packed and weighs over 32kg but under 45kg, passengers must contact EVA Air at least 48 hours before departure. After airline approval, the overweight rate is 3 pieces’ worth of excess baggage fees per item.

Summary:

- Over 23kg, under 32kg: 0.5-piece excess baggage fee per bag - Over 32kg: Standard bags must generally be repacked - Non-repackable items over 32kg, under 45kg: Must contact EVA Air 48 hours in advance; approved bags incur 3-piece excess fee per item - Over 45kg: Not accepted as regular checked baggage; must be shipped as cargo

The actual 'one-piece excess baggage' fee varies by route. From Taiwan to Zone 1 destinations (Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Macau, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam), it’s currently USD 140 per piece. To Zone 3 destinations like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, and Vancouver, it’s USD 200 per piece.

Therefore, when flying EVA Air Economy, whether your bag is 24kg or 30kg (both within the 23–32kg range), the overweight surcharge is the same.

China Airlines

China Airlines also does not charge per excess kilogram.

Under current rules, Economy class has a 23kg per-item allowance, while Premium Economy allows 28kg. If Economy class baggage exceeds 23kg or Premium Economy exceeds 28kg—but remains under 32kg—the overweight rate is 0.5-piece excess baggage fee.

This means that if you’re flying China Airlines Economy with a 23kg limit and your bag weighs 24kg, you’ve already entered the chargeable overweight tier.

However, China Airlines has stricter rules for bags over 32kg. Officially, any single checked bag over 32kg on China Airlines or Mandarin-operated flights cannot be accepted and must be repacked. Only for special items over 32kg can passengers contact China Airlines 48 hours before departure and, upon approval, have them accepted. The excess fee table specifies that approved bags over 32kg and under 45kg are charged at a rate of 3-piece excess baggage fee.

- Economy over 23kg, under 32kg: 0.5-piece excess baggage fee - Premium Economy over 28kg, under 32kg: 0.5-piece excess baggage fee - Single checked bag over 32kg: Not accepted; must be repacked - Special items over 32kg: Must contact China Airlines 48 hours in advance and obtain approval; bags 32–45kg incur 3-piece excess fee

Actual amounts depend on the applicable excess baggage base rate for origin and destination.

Starlux Airlines

Starlux Airlines’ current piece-based system also divides weight tiers clearly.

For Premium Economy and Economy class, if a single bag exceeds 23kg:

- Over 23kg, under 32kg: USD 75 per bag (short-haul), USD 100 per bag (long-haul) - Over 32kg, under 45kg: USD 300 per bag (short-haul), USD 400 per bag (long-haul), and prior confirmation with Starlux Airlines is required.

Thus, if your bag is limited to 23kg but weighs 24kg at check-in, you could immediately incur a USD 75 overweight fee on short-haul routes—not a prorated charge based on the 1kg excess.

Tigerair Taiwan

Low-cost carriers have different baggage pricing logic compared to traditional airlines.

Tigerair Taiwan treats checked baggage as an add-on service. Passengers can purchase different weight allowances based on need. If the actual checked weight exceeds the purchased allowance, the excess portion must be paid according to Tigerair’s published airport overweight baggage fees.

Additionally, Tigerair Taiwan stipulates that standard checked baggage must not exceed 30kg per piece, with total external dimensions (length + width + height) under 203cm and any single side under 100cm. This means that even if a passenger purchases a total allowance exceeding 30kg, they cannot pack everything into one suitcase.

Therefore, when flying LCCs, if you know you’ll shop heavily on your return, confirm your purchased allowance and per-piece weight limits in advance to avoid last-minute repacking or counter fees.

You might still be charged even without overweight! How are oversized bags calculated?

Besides weight, luggage size also has limits.

Traditional airlines often use the 'length + width + height' sum to determine oversized baggage. In other words, even a 20kg suitcase may incur an additional oversized fee if its dimensions exceed the limit.

EVA Air Oversized Baggage

EVA Air’s standard checked baggage has a dimensional baseline of 158cm total. Exceeding this:

- Over 158cm, under 203cm: 1-piece excess baggage fee - Over 203cm, under 292cm: 2-piece excess baggage fee - Over 292cm: Not accepted as regular checked baggage; must be shipped as cargo.

China Airlines Oversized Baggage

China Airlines requires that standard free checked baggage have total dimensions (L+W+H) within 158cm. Exceeding this free size limit incurs an oversized baggage surcharge.

According to China Airlines’ excess baggage rules:

- Over 158cm, under 203cm: 1-piece excess baggage fee - Over 203cm: 2-piece excess baggage fee.

Whether large special items can be loaded depends on the airline’s special baggage policies and aircraft cargo hold conditions.

Starlux Airlines Oversized Baggage

For Starlux Airlines’ piece-based routes, oversized fees are:

- Over 158cm, under 203cm: USD 150 per bag (short-haul), USD 200 per bag (long-haul) - Over 203cm, under 292cm: USD 300 per bag (short-haul), USD 400 per bag (long-haul).

Therefore, even if baggage weight is within limits, an oversized case can still incur a significant additional fee.

Tigerair Taiwan Oversized Baggage

Tigerair Taiwan requires that standard single checked baggage have total external dimensions under 203cm, any single side under 100cm, and weight not exceeding 30kg. If baggage exceeds standard size regulations, it may fall into the oversized category. Starting in 2025, Tigerair will impose handling fees for oversized baggage. Therefore, when carrying bicycles, surfboards, large musical instruments, or other special oversized items, confirm compatibility with aircraft cargo holds and related fees in advance.

If baggage is both overweight and oversized, will only one fee apply?

Not necessarily. excess piece, overweight, and oversized are separate charges. If a single bag violates multiple restrictions, fees may be applied separately.

EVA Air’s website gives a direct example: an Economy class passenger flying from Taipei to Hong Kong carries one 30kg bag with total dimensions of 150cm, plus one