The Civil Aviation Authority renewed 923 Atol licences in September, up from 871 12 months ago, with another 60 applications remaining in the process.
The number of Atols granted was the highest since September 2020 and left the total number of travel businesses holding an Atol licence at 1,579.
However, the overall number of Atol holders was down from 1,618 in April.
The CAA noted 1,047 Atols expired on the September 30 deadline, with 63 holders choosing not to apply for a new licence.
Of these, it reported 13 were trade Atol-holders which are no longer require an Atol – which protects customers buying package holidays against the insolvency of the travel business.
The CAA reported that 10 of the businesses with outstanding applications made a submission more than 15 business days before the deadline – meaning 50 submitted ‘late’ applications.
It urged businesses due to renew in March 2023 to apply in good time “because of the time required to analyse and process applications and put any required conditions in place”.
The CAA warned: “Businesses that fail to allow reasonable time to apply by the deadline risk being unable to take Atol-protected bookings.”
The annual September renewal is the larger of the two Atol-renewal periods.
At the March 31 renewal this year, 594 licences were granted of the 675 which expired and a further 31 remained in the process with 50 not applying.
The number of Atol holders has steadily declined, with 1,133 expiring a year ago down from 1,261 in September 2020 and from 1,283 in the last pre-pandemic renewal in October 2019.
The September 2020 renewal in the first year of the pandemic saw 176 Atol holders fail to apply for a renewal and a further 144 not apply to renew in September 2021.
CAA head of Atol Michael Budge said: “Household budgets will be under pressure in the coming months, so it is more important than ever to ensure consumers enjoy Atol protection by booking with a licensed tour operator.”
He noted: “We’re pleased so many travel companies engaged with us as we considered their licence application.
“We will continue to work with businesses to maintain resilience as the travel industry expects bookings to get back to pre-pandemic levels.”