Planned 50% Customs tax of ‘great concern’ for exporters

Santo Domingo.- Dominican Exporters Association(Adoexpo) president Alvaro Sousa on Thursday expressed "greatconcern" on the proposal in the 2017 Budget bill in which Customs chargesa 50% ITBI (VAT) tax on raw materials, machinery and capital used by theindustrial sector.

"This measure would eliminate the facilitythat allows rational industries to pay the added value tax at the end of the productionprocess, and makes the Dominican export sector uncompetitive by limiting the cashflow of exporting companies, which would be undercapitalized by such ameasure," the export leader said.

He said Adoexpo will ask president DaniloMedina to strike that provision from the budget bill, "which would have anegative impact on the export sector of our country."

"We must preserve the export sector’s competitivenessas an engine of the national economy and the social development of our country,"Sousa said and cited a statement from several associations that the proposal "wouldrisk the investment climate, domestic production and exports and job creationin the country."

"We expect the same to be removed fromthe bill of the budget as per commitments of the Government headed by presidentDanilo Medina, Congress and industry."