Underperforming Philippines Extends Tax Breaks to Attract Tourism Investors
Skift Take
Despite its beautiful beaches, the Philippines is a tourism underperformer in Southeast Asia. It keeps luring investors with tax breaks. Critics say maybe it's better to prioritize peace and order instead. Both are required.
The Philippines is extending tax incentives for another decade to help stimulate investments in its tourism enterprise zones to help it achieve an ambitious goal of luring 12 million foreign arrivals by 2022.
The incentives were to have expired by the end of this year. The zones are designated and supervised by the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority. They include sites in destinations such as Cebu, Palawan, Manila, Bataan, Bohol, and Surigao del Norte.
The new law signed by President Rodrigo R. Duterte on April 10 but published only on May 27, packs an entire range of incentives, including a six-year income tax holiday, duty-free imports on capital goods and services, a net operating loss carryover as an alternative taxation scheme, and a tax deduction for environmental protection and cultural heritage activities, among others.
Since the Aquino administration in 2010, the Philippines has been keen on developing the tourism sector as a key engine of economic g
