State Collects USD 6.5 Million in Green Tax in January 2023

The Ministry of Finance has revealed the state collected USD 6.5 million (100.8 million MVR) in Green Tax in January 2023. This is a 4.7% increase from the same period last year. In January 2022, the state collected USD 6.2 million (MVR 95.2 million).

In 2022, the Ministry of Finance disclosed that the state generated USD 63.3 million (MVR 972 million) in green tax. Last year the green tax accounted for 4.4% of the state’s revenue.

The 2023 State Budget has projected USD 678 million (MVR 10.4 billion) in Green Tax revenue. The budget estimates that the number of arrivals and nights tourists spend in the Maldives will be increasing.

Green tax is payable at the rate of USD 6 per day of stay at resorts and hotels, and USD 3 per day of stay at guesthouses with less than 50 rooms. From January 2023, tourists who stay in guesthouses and hotels on inhabited islands with more than 50 rooms are subject to pay the green tax at the rate of USD 6 per day.

The Green Tax was established in 2016 to fund sustainable and urban development projects. Last year, expenditures from the green fund were used for sewer systems, coastal protection, land reclamation and water supply networks.

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