Opposition MDP Chairperson Fayyaz Ismail criticised the Muizzu government's proposed amendment to the Special Economic Zones Act, saying it will hurt tourism and cost the state revenue by granting tax breaks to selected projects. The article sets out the proposed concession rates for designated "Sustainable Townships" and notes the government's stated aim of promoting mixed-use sustainable townships.
One outlet so far Only Maldives Republic has reported this among the sources we monitor. A gap in what we monitor, not proof that others did not report it.
the previous MDP government had proposed a four percent property transfer tax to apply across all tourism real estate sales through an amendment to the Tourism Act submitted to the Parliament on 19 June 2023
Word for word from the report in Maldives Republic. Open the report
The proposed amendment to the SEZ bill will be very detrimental to the tourism industry and will have a huge loss of potential revenue to the state as it introduces tax breaks for selected projects in the highly lucrative tourism sector.
The decision to suddenly grant unfair concessions only for a specific project brings into question the government's intentions
does not need tax incentives to attract investors.
The government's nefarious intentions are laid bare by their proposal to implement this for only selected projects rather than letting the entire sector benefit from this.
Nothing to compare yet. If another monitored source reports it, its headline appears beside this one.
Businesses operating in such zones will face a lower tax rate, starting at 5% for the first 10 years, 10% for the next decade and 15% from the 21st year.
Word for word from the report in Maldives Republic. Open the report
The current administration, he said, later withdrew that amendment in November 2023.
Word for word from the report in Maldives Republic. Open the report
