Travel operators have won their case.
The government of the Maldives submitted to Parliament, on 19 October 2026, a bill repealing the 17% tax targeting foreign travel agencies, tour operators, and booking platforms, according to a WTAAA press release.
The text provides to remove these companies from the scope of the tax, to reimburse the amounts collected since October 1 and to relieve them of any other obligations for this period. The repeal would take effect once the law is passed, ratified and published in the Maldivian Official Gazette. For now, no date has been announced.
According to The Standard Maldives, the government had already announced postponing its application to April 1, 2027.
The government of the Maldives submitted to Parliament, on 19 October 2026, a bill repealing the 17% tax targeting foreign travel agencies, tour operators, and booking platforms, according to a WTAAA press release.
The text provides to remove these companies from the scope of the tax, to reimburse the amounts collected since October 1 and to relieve them of any other obligations for this period. The repeal would take effect once the law is passed, ratified and published in the Maldivian Official Gazette. For now, no date has been announced.
According to The Standard Maldives, the government had already announced postponing its application to April 1, 2027.
“ This is the right decision, and we commend the Maldives government for listening. Our members have never disputed the Maldives’ right to tax tourism on their soil. What they could not accept was a model that required travel companies from around the world to register, declare, and remit an external tax, while remaining subject to their own banking, tax, consumer protection, and data laws ”, explains Otto de Vries, executive director of the WTAAA.
Arising from the eighth amendment to the Tourism Goods and Services Tax (TGST) law, the scheme obliged operators without a physical presence in the Maldives to register with the tax authority, the Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA). There was no threshold: a single booking by an agency was treated the same as a global platform, and a single file could trigger multiple registrations in the distribution chain, WTAAA details.
Arising from the eighth amendment to the Tourism Goods and Services Tax (TGST) law, the scheme obliged operators without a physical presence in the Maldives to register with the tax authority, the Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA). There was no threshold: a single booking by an agency was treated the same as a global platform, and a single file could trigger multiple registrations in the distribution chain, WTAAA details.
The EDV, SETO, and ECTAA Mobilized
In France, the Syndicate of Tour-Operating Companies (SETO) and Travel Companies (EDV) had written to the Maldivian authorities in collaboration with the European Association of Travel Agents and Tour Operators (ECTAA).
On September 18, WTAAA, ECTAA, the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA), the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) and the Australian Travel Industry Association (ATIA) sent a joint letter to the Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation, Mohamed Ameen. They at least requested a postponement, protection of existing bookings and an exemption for agencies selling on behalf of a tour operator.
On September 23, the Association of Southern African Travel Advisors (ASATA) filed a formal objection with MIRA.
While awaiting the vote, WTAAA advises professionals to keep records of any payment made since October 1.
“ Travel agents have spent years building demand for the Maldives, and they want to continue selling the destination. We urge the authorities to publish the law without delay, and for MIRA to make refunds quick and simple for all companies that paid in good faith ”, concludes Otto de Vries.
On September 18, WTAAA, ECTAA, the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA), the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) and the Australian Travel Industry Association (ATIA) sent a joint letter to the Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation, Mohamed Ameen. They at least requested a postponement, protection of existing bookings and an exemption for agencies selling on behalf of a tour operator.
On September 23, the Association of Southern African Travel Advisors (ASATA) filed a formal objection with MIRA.
While awaiting the vote, WTAAA advises professionals to keep records of any payment made since October 1.
“ Travel agents have spent years building demand for the Maldives, and they want to continue selling the destination. We urge the authorities to publish the law without delay, and for MIRA to make refunds quick and simple for all companies that paid in good faith ”, concludes Otto de Vries.
