Parliament passes bill setting tourism tax

The Chamber of Deputies on Monday, April 28, passed a bill to implement a tourism tax on accommodation, which is expected to take effect on July 1, 2025. The tax, set at 3 per cent of accommodation charges (exclusive of value-added tax), will apply to all registered accommodation businesses, including hotels, motels, lodges, apartments, and Airbnb facilities. The bill got unanimous approval by 70 MPs who were present at the Monday plenary sitting. ALSO READ: Rwanda introduces ‘tourism levy’ to boost investments This new tourism tax is part of the government’s National Strategy for Transformation (NST2), which aims to position the country as a top-tier ecotourism destination and significantly increase tourism revenues from $620 million in 2023 as a baseline to $1.1 billion by 2029. Rwanda’s tourism revenues grew by 4.3 per cent to $647 million in 2024 compared to the performance of 2023, according to Rwanda Development (RDB). The bill is intended to help fund NST2 objectives and strengthen domestic resource mobilisation to support the tourism sector growth, the government indicated in the explanatory note of the bill. ALSO READ: Treasury chief Kabera defends new 3 per cent tourism levy Key provisions of the bill include that accommodation businesses must register and remit the tax on a monthly basis; the tax should be paid within 15 days after the end of each month; and it applies to both paid and outstanding accommodation fees. MP Hope Tumukunde Gasatura, chairperson of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and Security, which analysed the bill said that no substantive changes were made to the overall structure of the bill tabled by the government. A point of clarification raised by MP Angelique Nyirabazayire focused on how the 3 per cent tax would be applied to fees not yet received by the accommodation facilities. Gasatura explained that similar to VAT, the tax would apply to all amounts due, even if only part of the payment had been made in advance.

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Parliament passes bill setting tourism tax