Total tax revenue in Malta in 2017 went up by €381.4 million over the previous year and stood at €3,608.2 million. Tax revenue can be broadly classified under three main headings: indirect taxes, direct taxes and social security contributions. All three categories of tax revenue registered an increase in 2017.
The largest increase was recorded in direct taxes (€189.3 million), amounting to €1,589.2 million, or 44% of total tax revenue. This increase was triggered by higher income tax receipts from individuals (€101.2 million) and corporations (€81.7 million), corresponding to an increase of 0.3% and 0.2% of GDP respectively over the previous year.
Concurrently, indirect taxes increased by €139.3 million, amounting to €1,423.8 million or 39.5 % of total tax revenue. The two main components of indirect taxes namely VAT and Taxes on Products, witnessed an increase of €98.6 million and €45.8 million respectively.
Social contributions represented 16.5% of total tax revenue in 2017, standing at €595.2 million, equivalent to a €52.8 million rise over 2016.
Over a period of 20 years, the contribution of current taxes on income and wealth towards tax revenues increased substantially from 8.2% of GDP in 1995 to 14.1% of GDP in 2017. The overall tax burden denotes the total amount of taxes and actual social contributions, expressed as a percentage of GDP. In 2017, the tax burden for Malta was 32.4% of GDP, which is 0.7% higher when compared to the total tax burden recorded in 2016 (31.7 per cent of GDP). The average tax burden for the period 1995 to 2016 is at 30% of GDP.
Increase in Inbound Tourism continues – January to September 2018
Inbound tourists for the first nine months of 2018 reached the figure of 2,036,841, an increase of 15.6% over the same period in 2017. Total nights spent by inbound tourists went up by 13.5%, surpassing 14.8 million nights. Total tourism expenditure was estimated at nearly €1.7 billion, 9.3% higher than that recorded for 2017. Total expenditure per capita stood at €827, a decrease of 5.4% when compared to 2017
Outbound Tourism – An increase of 17.2%
Total outbound tourist trips between January and September 2018 numbered 483,044, an increase of 17.2% over 2017. Total nights spent by outbound tourists went up by 13.9%, reaching nearly 3.3 million nights. In addition, total estimated outlay by resident tourists stood at €414.8 million, 9.5% higher than that recorded for the same period in 2017.
Malta’s Latest Economic & Financial News
During the first nine months this year, the trade deficit increased by €261.8 million when compared to the corresponding period of 2017, reaching €2,272.6 million. Imports increased by €51 million while exports decreased by €210.8 million. Higher imports were mainly due to increases in chemicals (€50 million), mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials (€40.9 million), and semi-manufactured goods (€31.7 million). These were partly outweighed by a decrease of €86.1 million in machinery and transport equipment. With regard to exports, the main decrease was registered in mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials (€285.1 million), partly outweighed by increases of €48.1 million in miscellaneous manufactured articles and €25.2 million in semi-manufactured goods.
In September 2018, the seasonally adjusted index of industrial production decreased by 1.5%. Decreases were registered in the production of intermediate goods (1 %) and capital goods (0.9%). On the other hand increases were registered in the production of energy (1.8%) and consumer goods (0.2%) (Table 2). When compared to September 2017, the index of industrial production adjusted for working days decreased by 4.8%. The production of intermediate goods decreased by 6.2%, while the production of capital goods and consumer goods both decreased by 5.7%. Energy production increased by 2.9%.
Brexit Advisory Service Launched
A €4,000 cash grant for advisory services to local businesses on Brexit was launched by Malta Enterprise. The grant, is aimed at helping those businesses that would be specifically affected by Brexit, who due to their dependence on the British market would need to carry out a close examination for their business model to mitigate the risks of different Brexit scenarios.
For more information on this support scheme, please contact Ms. Alison Mizzi on Tel: +356 2777 2777 or email alison.mizzi@emcs.com.mt
“This government spent two years negotiating a bad deal that will leave the country in an indefinite half-way house,” – Jeremy Corbyn on the Brexit deal put forward by Theresa May, 14th November, 2017.
