UAE Saudi to impose VAT soon
Posted [relativedate] at [relativetime time_format=”H:i”]
Gulf countries like UAE, Saudi, have not only aimed at higher education, they are also planning to impose VAT from 2018. This will apply to food, clothes, gasoline, phone, electronics, water, electricity bills and hostel bookings. Many other Gulf nations will follow suit very soon with their own VAT scheme in the coming years.
Both the nations plan to impose 5 percent tax in 2018 on most goods and services to boost revenue after oil prices collapsed since 2014. Elda Ngombe, a 23-year-old college graduate finds the VAT as crazy as the products are already expensive in Dubai and she plans to buy her makeup kit before the price hike.
There are some exemptions in relation to big-ticket costs like rent, real estate sales, certain medications, airline tickets and school tuition. Higher education will be taxed, in UAE, extra costs parents pay for school uniforms, books, school bus fees and lunch will also be taxed. The real estate brokerage costs for renters and buyers will be taxed too.
Stores, gyms,and other retailers are trying to lure the customers to buy before the hike, but many still believe the five percent hike is not as expensive when compared to Europe.
While salaries remaining the same, cost of living in UAE is expected to rise about 2.5 percent in 2018 because of theVAT. Foreigners are definitely going to be impacted by this change.
