CAIRO — Egypt’s parliament is currently discussing the final version of the value added tax bill in preparation for its entry into force to supersede the general sales tax law of 1991. The government claims that this draft law will increase state revenues and curb the budget deficit, which has ranged between 11% and 13% over the past six years.
Egypt has been facing high inflation rates over the past several months due to the high rate of the US dollar against the Egyptian pound. The annual inflation rate jumped to 14% in June compared with 12.3% in May, the highest rate in seven years, according to data from the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics.