Egypt's Finance Minister Ahmed Kouchouk on Wednesday unveiled a second package of tax reforms aimed at boosting investment, expanding the tax base, and streamlining procedures for businesses. "The new package is designed to make the tax system simpler, faster, and fairer for all taxpayers, while encouraging investment and economic growth," Kouchouk said during a weekly press conference with Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly. He described the new package as part of a "comprehensive strategy to ease the burden on the tax community." The reforms include establishing specialised tax service centres in New Cairo, Sheikh Zayed, and New Alamein, introducing electronic platforms for consultations, company liquidation, and real-estate transactions, and creating a mobile application for easier tax payments. Legislative amendments will allow the 2023 and 2024 tax years to benefit from simplified "lump-sum" and "proportional" tax systems, while dividends of Egyptian subsidiaries of domestic holding companies will be exempted from tax. The government will also replace capital-gains tax with stamp duty to encourage institutional investment in the Egyptian Exchange (EGX) and coordinate with the Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) to provide three-year tax incentives for new stock market listings. Other measures include VAT reductions on medical devices from 14 per cent to 5 per cent, exemptions for dialysis machine components, extending VAT suspension for machinery and equipment to four years. They also involve new rules to allow offsetting of credit and debit balances for taxpayers to ease liquidity pressures. Kouchouk said the package also targets strengthening tax fairness and integrating the informal economy, with additional benefits for compliant taxpayers, including a "white list" and "privilege card" for priority access to specialised services and faster VAT refunds. He highlighted that VAT refunds reached 7.2 billion Egyptian pounds in the 2024/2025 financial year, a 151 per cent increase from previous years, with further growth expected under the new measures. "The second package builds on the success of the first, aiming to simplify procedures, incentivise investment, and ensure faster resolution of tax disputes," Kouchouk said. Attribution: Amwal Al Ghad English
