Government Bill Would Repeal GST on Overseas Tour Operators Weeks After It Took Effect

The government has asked Parliament to repeal the goods and services tax (GST) on Maldives holidays sold by overseas tour operators, travel agents and booking platforms, less than three weeks after the tax took effect on 1 October.

The bill, numbered 20/2026/B-31, amends the Goods and Services Tax Act (Law 10/2011). Kolamaafushi MP Ibrahim Didi submitted it on behalf of the government, and it received its first reading at the sitting of 20 October, according to Parliament’s record.

Its statement of purpose, in Dhivehi, says the bill would stop the collection of GST, in place since 1 October 2026, on inbound tourism products and on agency and booking services supplied by businesses without a permanent establishment in the Maldives.

Tax Already Collected

Under a transitional clause, collection of the tax on these supplies ends when the amendment takes effect. Any GST collected on them between 1 October and that date must be returned, and suppliers will not have to meet their obligations under the current provisions for that period, according to the bill.

The bill removes the provisions that brought overseas sellers into the tax, along with the Act’s definition of an inbound tourism product. It requires amendments to the GST regulations to be published within 90 days of the change taking effect. The amendment would take effect once it is passed, ratified and published in the Government Gazette.

MVR1.61 Billion at Stake

A fiscal note attached to the bill puts the tourism GST revenue linked to the overseas-seller provisions at MVR1,608.5 million, citing the Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA). It attributes MVR1,309.2 million to foreign tour operators and MVR299.3 million to overseas travel agents, and says the revenue would not be received if the bill passes.

Tourism GST receipts totalled MVR8.12 billion between 1 January and 15 October, 1.8% less than in the same period of 2025, according to the Finance Ministry’s weekly fiscal report published on 20 October. The 2026 budget forecasts MVR11.47 billion for the full year. Tourism GST is charged at 17%.

Tourist arrivals in the first 14 days of October were 3.9% lower than a year earlier, as Maldives Today reported.

Registration Deadline Still Listed

The overseas-seller rules were introduced by the eighth amendment to the GST Act, ratified on 31 August. On 21 October, MIRA’s website still listed 31 October as the deadline for overseas suppliers to register.

The rules drew objections from travel agents and tour operators before and after they took effect. On 4 October, the Maldives Association of Travel Agents and Tour Operators said Tourism Minister Mohamed Ameen had confirmed the President’s decision to change the framework, as Maldives Today reported.

At the same sitting, the government also submitted bills to amend the Tax Administration Act and the Income Tax Act. Parliament’s records show the income tax bill has moved to the committee stage.