Remittance Tax will not be applicable from 1 January 2020, following the enactment of the Income Tax Act.

Remittance Tax, which was introduced on 1 October 2016 via the Fifth Amendment to the Employment Act, was a 3% tax on money transferred out of the Maldives by foreigners employed in the Maldives.

All individuals, including foreigners employed in the Maldives, will be subject to Income Tax under the newly introduced Income Tax Act if their gross annual income exceeds MVR 720,000 (click to see tax rates applicable under the Income Tax Act). However, the gross income of a “person temporarily resident in the Maldives” includes only income derived from sources in the Maldives (the gross income of a person who is non-temporarily resident in the Maldives includes their worldwide income).

An individual is temporarily resident in the Maldives if they have permission to stay in the Maldives under the Maldives Immigration Act and they are not married to a Maldivian citizen.