Tunisia May Withdraw New Departure Tax

by Lorys Charalambous, Tax-News.com, Cyprus

18 February 2015

Only days after taking office, Tunisia's Prime Minister Habib Essid has backtracked on a new exit tax for foreign travelers in the face of fierce popular opposition to his attempts at economic reform.

With a pressing need to reduce spending and cut the budget deficit, Essid introduced a 30-dinar (USD15) exit tax on foreigners. This was immediately resisted in the areas close to the Libyan border, and in particular by the residents of the towns of Dehiba and Ben Guerdan, where cross-border trade is essential to the local economy. Matters worsened when Libya responded by introducing its own similar tax.

Following a weekend of violent unrest in the border regions, the Government has agreed to look at withdrawing the tax.

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