Hello all,
As you may know already, yesterday the annual budget was presented by the minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development. Here are a few measures, compiled by the Expat.com team, that could be of interest to expats and to-be expats.
-To encourage foreign investment as well as the creation of local businesses, the registering of companies will now be free of charge and the maximum processing time for opening a bank account will be a week. Businesses will be encouraged to recruit foreign talent under the young professional occupation permit.
-In terms of visas, entrepreneurs and students who are completing their studies will be able to benefit from the Premium visa. Furthermore, holders of Residence permits will be able to acquire a residential property of a minimum of $ 350 000 if a 10% contribution is made to the Solidarity Fund.
-An important section of the budget was to allow for greater self-sufficiency for food in Mauritius ahead of a possible food crisis. Several financial and fiscal incentives were announced to boost local production of fruits and vegetables, milk, honey, tea and breeding of livestock in the form of subsidies and grants for equipment and facilities.
-As borders reopen, the Mauritian authorities are looking to boost the Tourism sector. Several measures have been announced including the reinforcing of personalized facilities for ultrahigh net worth passengers including handling of private jets and hotel transfers, further lease rent waiver for hotels to help with refurbishment and further funding for marketing of the Mauritius destination.
-After the exclusion of Mauritius from the FATF and EU Black lists, it is important for the Mauritian government to further strengthen the Offshore sector. As such, a domestic minimum top-up tax is being introduced to ensure resident companies of large multinationals are taxed at a minimum of 15%, training in Anti-Money Laundering is being offered to graduates and a Financial Crime Commission will be set up.
-The government also wants to boost the development of the Small and Medium enterprise sector with grants, interest-free loans and other financial incentives. The SME Act will also be amended so that more enterprises are able to benefit from these.
-The Economic Development Board (EDB) will organize an International Silver Economy Festival.
-Sustainable energy production is also an important part of this year's budget with financial incentives offered for the production of electricity from solar panels, for example.
-Hybrid and electric cars will be duty-free.
-The old-age pension is also being increased to Rs 10,000 for individuals under 65 years old and to Rs 11,000 for individuals above 65 years old.
Note that the specifics of a lot of these measures remain unknown until now and should become clearer once the relevant laws are voted.
Do let us know if we can be of any help and whether these measures are going to be of any help to you!
Have a great day!
