Egypt’s Cabinet Economic Committee approves proposed VAT Tax Act amendments

LEGISLATION WATCH- The Cabinet economic group signed off yesterday on proposed amendments to the VAT Tax Act, which now go to cabinet as a whole for approval, according to a statement. The proposed legislative changes, which the Finance Ministry finalized last week, would subject most commercial advertising to the value-added tax but scrap the 20% stamp tax on ads. Under the amendments, departing tourists would be able to claim VAT rebates on select items worth more than EGP 1.5k or more (as opposed to the current EGP 5k threshold for VAT drawbacks), special economic zones would enjoy the same VAT treatment as freezones, and the Health Ministry would be given the authority to issue decrees exempting pharma components from the tax.