President Ratifies 7th Amendment to Goods and Services Tax Act

President Dr Mohamed Muizzu has ratified the 7th Amendment to Act No. 10/2011 (Goods and Services Tax Act of the Maldives).

The Amendment to the bill was passed in the 44th sitting of the 20th Parliament on 31 October 2024.

The new amendments seek to revise the Tourism Goods and Services Tax (TGST). As such, the TGST collected from tourism-related services from January 1, 2023, will remain at 16 per cent until June 30, 2025. Following this period, as stipulated under Section 15(b)(6) of the Act, the TGST rate will rise to 17 per cent, effective July 1, 2025.

Before the 7th Amendment, shops operating exclusively for employees in the tourism industry were exempted from being classified as tourist goods or services. The most recent change broadened the scope of the exception to include employee-only cafés, making the legislation more comprehensive.

Following the ratification of the Act, any necessary amendments to the regulations under the Act must be completed and published in the Government Gazette within 30 days of the Act’s enactment.

The 7th Amendment has now been published in the Government Gazette and is in effect.