Bahrain to implement excise tax from December 30

The Ministry of Finance in Bahrain has announced selective/excise tax on tobacco and its derivatives, energy drinks and soft drinks from December 30.

The step is based on the decision taken by the Supreme Council of the leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council at its 36th session held in Riyadh in 2015.

Earlier this year, the UAE's Federal Tax Authority announced excise tax in the country from October. On October 1, the excise tax went into effect at a rate of 100 per cent on tobacco and energy drinks that include stimulants or substances that induce mental or physical stimulation, such as caffeine, taurine, ginseng and gaurana. Soft drinks were also taxed at a rate of 50 per cent.

As per the Federal Decree-Law No (7) of 2017, excise tax will be charged on production of excise goods in the UAE, import of excise goods in the UAE, release of excise goods from a designated zone and stockpiling of excise goods in the course of conducting business.

Excise tax available in a registered designated zone will not be charged excise tax until released from the zone.

Boost to tourism
The Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB) has recently revealed investment in Bahrain's tourism infrastructure reached over BHD4.9 billion ($13 billion).

According to the Bahrain News Agency, the figure covers 14 prominent projects that will further boost growth in the kingdom's tourism and leisure sector.

The sector witnessed rapid growth in the past year, with the total number of tourists increasing by 12.8 per cent in the first nine months of 2017. The kingdom is also witnessing further enhancement to its tourism infrastructure to support this growth.

"The total number of tourists visiting Bahrain has reached 8.7 million during the first nine months of this year, a significant number considering our resident population of only 1.5 million people." said Simon Galpin, managing director of Bahrain EDB.

"The tourism sector is one of the key investment sectors we recognise as having a strong competitive advantage for Bahrain. It contributes 6.3 per cent to the country's GDP and is set to grow significantly as the number of visitors and leisure activities increase. Bahrain continues to reaffirm its position as a tourism destination of choice with a number of new hotels, retail and leisure developments currently underway."

The tourism investment projects are part of Bahrain's large-scale infrastructure development across a range of sectors and are valued at over $32 billion.