| Taxation Personal
Taxation
The Income Tax Act now provides for the "Pay As
You Earn" (PAYE) system on emoluments and the "Current Payment System"
(CPS) for the payment of income tax by individuals deriving income from business
and trade. The same rate applies to residents and non-residents.
The
annual tax rates are as follows : | Taxable
Income | Rate % | Amount Rs | Total
Amount Payable | | First R15 000 | 5
| 750 | 750 | | Next
R20 000 | 15 | 3 000 | 3
750 | | Next R20 000 | 25 | 5
000 | 8 750 | | Remainder 30 | | | |
Corporate
Taxation Corporate income tax is levied for each year of
assessment on a company's taxable income arising in the preceding year. The corporate
tax rates are as follows :
| Type
of Company | Tax Rate(%) | | Tax
incentive company | 15 | | Freeport
companies | Exempt |
Net income derived
By clinic :15
From agriculture other than sugar
cane: 15
From all other companies including resident trusts : 35
By companies
quoted on the stock exchange : 25 INCENTIVES The
incentives offered to encourage both local and foreign investors include tax,
financial and other benefits. They have been brought up to date by the Industrial
Expansion Act of 1993 and offer almost the same tax incentives, which are mainly
:
· corporate tax rate of 15% instead of 35%
· tax free
dividends Freeport
The operations of the freeport
are regulated by the Freeport Act 1992. This Act provides for the establishment
of freeport zones in Mauritius and for the setting up of the Mauritius Freeport
Authority (MFA) to act as the developer, promoter, and maintainer of the freeport
and to provide for the necessary infrastructure and storage facilities in the
freeport zones. Authorised activity includes warehousing and
storage, breaking bulk, sorting, grading, cleaning and mixing, labelling, packing
and simple assembly. TAX TREATIES
Mauritius has
entered into double taxation agreements with countries including Germany, France,
UK, India, Zimbabwe, Sweden, Malaysia. Swaziland, Italy, China, Pakistan, Madagascar,
Singapore, Luxembourg, Namibia, Botswana, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Indonesia. Double
taxation agreements which have note yet been ratified include Belgium, Russia,
Mozambique, Kuwait, Thailand and Oman. VALUE ADDED TAX
VAT
legislation has recently been passed in Mauritius and will become effective from
7 September 1998. The legislation will replace the Sales Tax Act 1982 and also
provides for a phasing out of the Hotel and Restaurant Tax. The
initial rate of VAT to be applied is 10 %.
The VAT legislation follows the norms
laid down by the International Monetary Fund, who have
assisted in the implementation of the legislation in
Mauritius. A Brief Guide to the Introduction of VAT
in Mauritius has been published by Ernst & Young,
Mauritius to assist clients in the transition from Sales
Tax to VAT.
For
more information on VAT, see our guide to VAT in Mauritius Exchange
Control There are no exchange control regulations actually
in force in Mauritius. Dividends and royalties may be
repatriated freely.
Source: The
Board of Investment, Mauritius | 
