Digital taxation push raises eyebrows in Egypt
The Egyptian Ministry of Finance is working on a bill that will tax digital ads in Egypt, much to the concern of e-commerce enterprises.
CAIRO — Egyptian Finance Minister Mohamed Maait announced Aug. 20 that a team from the Finance Ministry and the Egyptian Tax Authority is set to finalize a new income tax bill that will include a tax on social media and digital platform ads.
Maait’s statements came following a meeting held with Facebook representatives to review the best tax ways to calculate and collect taxes associated with online services and e-commerce and the mechanisms needed for their implementation in Egypt.
He explained that once the law is drafted, the ministry will coordinate with appropriate parties such as Facebook to receive their advice and asserted that the bill will be submitted to representatives of civil society.
A number of e-marketing companies raised objections, saying that local advertisers should be exempted from any new tax burdens given the difficult economic conditions plaguing Egypt.
