High temperature dense ceramic membranes made from mixed ionic/electronic conducting perovskite ceramics represent a high potential as a reliable source for oxygen and syngas production. In this work, La 0.2 Sr 0.8 Fe 0.8 Ta 0.2 O 3- based thin film perovskite system was evaluated, addressing the effect of structural surface modification on oxygen permeation rates. Membranes with 20 µm thick dense functional layer and varying surface area on permeate side were fabricated by a dip coating technique. Oxygen permeation was measured at temperatures between 800 and 1000 C by using varying partial pressure of O 2 as a driving force. Maximum O 2 flux values of 5.8 and 8.7 mlcm -2 min -1 were recorded for smooth and structured permeation surfaces, respectively. This indicates that the surface roughness, which corresponds to an increase in surface area at the permeate side; can lead to a significant improvement in oxygen permeation rates reaching 50 % at 1000 o C.