President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has decided to bring amendments very soon to the law concerning the collection of T-GST under the destination principle.

Speaking tonight at a ceremony held to mark National Tourism Day, Tourism Minister Mohamed Ameen stated that this decision was made in response to numerous requests submitted to the President by leading figures in the tourism industry and travel agents. Over the past two months, changes had been made to the law by incorporating additional provisions for paying T-GST under the destination principle. Minister Ameen noted that the government observed significant concerns within the industry following those changes, highlighting that travel agents raised issues regarding implementation timeframes and other factors.

Consequently, prominent industry figures and numerous travel agents petitioned the President to seek solutions to these concerns.

"At present, the President has decided to bring very swift changes to the T-GST law under the destination principle," the Minister stated.

The President ratified the bill to amend the Goods and Services Tax Act to collect GST on goods and services provided to the Maldives by foreign businesses operating in the tourism sector on August 31st. The bill stated that its purpose was to specify in the Goods and Services Tax Act the procedures for collecting GST on goods and services provided by offshore booking platforms, foreign tour operators, and travel agents, in order to implement the destination principle in the Maldives. It also aimed to introduce other necessary amendments to resolve difficulties encountered in implementing the GST system and to further strengthen it.

The bill projected that once passed and tax collection begins in accordance with these amendments, state revenue would increase by MVR 1,608.5 billion annually, comprising MVR 299.3 million paid by foreign travel agents and MVR 1,309.2 billion paid by foreign tour operators.

The legislation explicitly covers offshore booking platforms, foreign tour operators, and overseas travel agents for GST collection, alongside reforms to enhance implementation efficiency. In accordance with the law, the collection of T-GST under these provisions commenced last Thursday.