Govt aims to boost revenue through increased departure tax as tourism industry rebounds - Prof. Prasad

As departure tax is being progressively increased to pre-pandemic levels of $200, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Professor Biman Prasad says the Government has to make sure that they also collect enough revenue.

While responding to questions on whether now is the right time to increase departure tax, Professor Prasad says the tourism industry has rebounded very strongly and that has a positive impact through spending in other sectors.

He says however, we are having a capacity issue within the tourism industry.

He says Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Tourism is working very hard to bring new investment and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Investment, Trade and Industry is also actively working to get new investments in those areas.

Professor Prasad says a number of those investments are already happening and some of them will start pretty soon.

The departure tax will increase from $140 to $170, effective from 1st August 2024 and will return to the pre-pandemic rate of $200 from 1st August 2025.