13 Nov 2025

Vice President also Minister of Finance, Mr Ndaba Gaolathe says consultations with the Tourism Sector in the Value Added Tax (VAT) amendment bill are ongoing with a meeting scheduled for November 17. 

Answering a question in Parliament on November 12, Minister Gaolathe said the Tourism sector had requested clarification on certain clauses in the draft Bill, particularly Part IIIA which outlined rules for remote services, a critical gap identified in the current VAT framework. 

Minister Gaolathe said the provision had significant implications for the tourism sector. Accordingly, he said the ministry ensured that the tourism industry was included in the discussions as it would be directly affected by the proposed amendment. 

He said the meetings between tourism operators, Botswana Unified Revenue Services (BURS), Hospitality and Tourism Association of Botswana, Botswana Tourism Organisation, the Ministry of Finance, Office of the President and Business Botswana were being held to find an optimal solution to the issues raised by tourism operators. 

He also said consultation were essential to address concerns and mitigate any unintended consequences before the Act came to effect. The Vice President in his capacity as Minister of Finance was answering a question by Member of Parliament for Maun North, Mr Dumelang Saleshando. 

Mr Saleshando had asked the Minister if the recently enacted Value Added Tax Amendment Bill No. 22 of 2025 was in operation.

He said if the bill was in operation, the minister was to further disclose if any key sector of the economy had made presentations to him on possible adverse impacts of the new law on their operations and how such concerns had been addressed. ENDS