Malta Collecting More In Tax

by Robert Lee, Tax-News.com, London

30 May 2006

The Maltese Government has recorded a 6.1% increase in the amount of tax collected during the first quarter of 2006 compared to the same period a year earlier.

According to Malta's National Statistics Office, recurrent revenue up till the end of April 2006 amounted to Lm247.9 million (EUR578 million), and made up 26.0 per cent of this year’s budget forecast. Compared to the first four months of 2005, this revenue represented an increase of Lm14.3 million, or 6.1 per cent.

The recurrent revenue for the comparative period in 2005 amounted to Lm233.6 million, which accounted for 26.1 per cent of the actual final outturn.

At the same time, total expenditure, excluding sinking funds contributions and direct loan repayments, amounted to Lm304.2 million, an increase of Lm0.8 million, or 0.3 per cent, on the Lm303.4 million expended in the same period in 2005. The total expenditure for the January to April period amounted to 29.9 per cent of the approved 2006 estimate. Total expenditure for the same period in 2005 made up 31.2 per cent of the actual total expenditure for the year.

The increase of Lm14.3 million in recurrent revenue during the first four months of 2006, when compared to the same period last year, was registered mainly under Income Tax (+Lm4.3 million), Social Security Contributions (+Lm3.0 million), Customs and Excise (+Lm2.7 million), Licenses, Taxes and Fines (+Lm3.1 million), and Value Added Tax (+Lm4.0 million).

The shortfall between recurrent revenue and total expenditure during the period under review amounted to Lm56.4 million this year, compared to a shortfall of Lm69.8 million for the first four months of 2005.

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