[Economics] 0% VAT for all tourists, one of the six requests made by the tourism sector to President Guillermo Lasso

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Chambers of Tourism, hotels and restaurants are also seeking dialogue to lift the sector affected by the pandemic, strikes and crime outbreak.

On the carnival and Easter holidays, a VAT reduction from 12% to 8% was applied. For the sector, this measure has not been enough. His proposal is a 0% rate for national and international tourists.

 

Comply with credits offered and the refinancing of arrears with the Ecuadorian Social Security Institute (IESS) and the Internal Revenue Service (SRI), as well as that the value added tax (VAT) be 0% for tourists, are part of the requests made directly to President Guillermo Lasso by the tourism sector after three years that considering an ordeal, due to two violent national strikes and the pandemic, to which is added the criminal outbreak, all of which has caused economic damage worse than the effects of the three wars together in 1941, 1981 and 1995.

They also ask for a reprogramming of credits with public and private banks for ten years.

 

"The pandemic devastated the sector's cash flow and then uncontrolled insecurity as of October 2021, beginning with the massacres and loss of control of the country's prisons: (this) caused demand to fall in the middle of the recovery period . The violent strike of June 2022, with criminal actions never seen before, does nothing more than attack what little will remain of tourist businesses”, indicate the representatives of the chambers of tourism, hotels and restaurants in a letter addressed to the president.

The consequences have been to reduce operations, close stores, terminate labor relations with collaborators and fall into very low levels of liquidity without being able to meet costs and liabilities.

 

That the public force effectively protects and defends, as is its constitutional duty, the life, assets and activities of companies in the sector and their clients. That it has the highest permanent foreign advisory services, in terms of security, that its troops be increased, even if it is contracting the private sector for this purpose, while the selection and training processes manage to complete the number of uniformed personnel.
That the credits offered by the Government be delivered as working capital and salvage, campaign proposal. The tourism sector indicates that during 2020 and 2021 it lost $4.5 billion and calculates that unemployment and criminal outbreaks have meant at least $250 million more in losses. “It is unthinkable that the sector does not have direct preferential credit for its recovery. The small percentage of companies that have managed to access them are paying rates of 11% to 16%“.
Require the SRI, IESS and other State institutions that, without restrictions, complied with the provisions of the promotion law issued in November 2021 and refinance the arrears of the years 2020 and 2021, and that the range of dates be extended to include the first half of 2022.
Carry out a national and international communication campaign through the Ministry of Tourism to recover the image of the destination, now devastated. The current tourism promotion budget for all markets is in the mid seven figures, less than what most of the 50 largest companies in the country spend on national advertising.
The rescheduling of credits with public and private banks, and other amounts owed to state institutions, for no less than ten years, a time in which they hope that the sector will recover from the three worst years in its history.

 

That 0% VAT be decreed for all foreign tourists and for nationals, in their consumption and purchases, including restaurants, hotels and tourist packages. “The emergency that the sector is experiencing must be considered, which has faced economic losses (...), without receiving any help from the government sector, but rather the increase in taxes on its clients and its operations.

 

The letter is signed by the president of the Hotel Federation of Ecuador (Ahotec), André Obiol; the president of the National Federation of Provincial Chambers (Fenacaptur), Holbach Muñeton, and the vice president in charge of the Guayas Restaurant Association (Asorest), Carla Colombara. In the letter, sent on July 11, they also request an appointment with the president and the competent authorities to personally expose the situation, but as of July 20 they have not received a response.

 

Link: https://www.eluniverso.com/noticias/economia/iva-del-0-para-todos-los-turistas-uno-de-los-seis-pedidos-que-hace-sector-turistico-al-presidente-guillermo-lasso-nota/