Arusha/Dodoma. Tour
operators say they want dialogue with the government over the
Value-Added Tax (VAT) on tourism services announced last week in
Parliament, and which they want scrapped.
“The
government policies have to be friendly for the development of this
sector,” said a tour operator, Ms Viola Mfuko, after a hastily convened
meeting to discuss the crisis in Arusha on Friday.
She
said tour operators and other players in the industry were already
overburdened by a string of taxes, and that the proposed VAT would add
salt to their injuries.
“Already
we pay $2,000 each year for the Tala licence, which is very expensive.
This business is proving to be very expensive for us,” said the
businesswoman who operates a tourist van company called Viola Car Hire.
Tour
operators are already subjected to 32 different taxes, 12 in business
registration and regulatory licence fees as well as 11 duties for each
tourist vehicle per annum, and nine others.
Kenya
learned the hard lesson in 2015 when it imposed VAT on tourist
services. It rescinded this decison in its 2016/2017 budget only for
Tanzania to grab the same idea.
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