PHNOM PENH, Dec 25 (Phnom Penh Post/ANN): The Cambodian government has extended tax holidays for airline companies and tourism establishments for another three months from January to March, 2021 to help offset losses caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
"The extended measures aim to continue stabilizing businesses, as Cambodia is still facing the challenges of the Covid-19 crisis," the government said in a statement released to the media on Thursday.
The statement said people, whose livelihoods have been hit by the pandemic, will also receive cash reliefs from the government for another three months.
It added that unemployed workers in the garment-textile, footwear and travel goods sector will continue to receive US$40 from the government and US$30 from the suspended factory per month for another three months, while the jobless in tourism also get 40 dollars a month from the government for the same period.
The government will also continue to provide cash reliefs to approximately 700,000 poor and vulnerable families for another three months, the statement said.
According to the statement, since the onset of Covid-19, Cambodia has controlled the situation of the virus effectively.
As a result, the kingdom has seen zero deaths among a total of 363 confirmed cases.
Currently, there are 12 active cases in the country, according to the Ministry of Health.
The government will also extend its offer of bearing patent tax and stamp duty charges for travel agencies and tour operators.
Pacific Asia Travel Association Cambodia chapter chairman Thourn Sinan said the government’s renewed tax exemptions for the tourism industry are a small but welcome gesture that will ease some of the burden off the operators’ shoulders.
He said: “The extension of the government’s favourable measures for the sector is a welcome breath of fresh air. [But] we’ve yet to witness a positive sign of recovery for the tourism industry.”
Cambodia Chamber of Commerce vice-president Lim Heng noted that this latest round of stimulus measures would better serve to alleviate the burden on the public sector and allow businesses to stay afloat during this time.
“These measures have trimmed taxes and lent a helping hand for the private sector. So far, no companies have gone bankrupt, ” he claimed. “I understand that if these measures continue, the private sector will be motivated to do their business.”
Hong Vanak, an economic researcher at the Royal Academy of Cambodia’s Institute of International Relations, observed that the government’s implementation of the past six rounds has brought significant, targeted and effective benefits to the tourism industry.
He said: “They seem happy and appreciate that the measures have been very effective, while the industry hadn’t been able to run at full capacity during the Covid-19 outbreak.”
According to data from the Ministry of Tourism released early this month, international tourist arrivals to Cambodia dwindled down to 1,267,890 in the first 10 months of this year, sinking an unprecedented 76.1 per cent from the 5,296,088 recorded in same period last year.
A total of 734,309 tourists entered the Kingdom through its three international airports in January-October, taking an 80.2 per cent year-on-year nosedive, while 533,581 arrived by land or waterways, plunging 66.3 per cent year-on-year.
Chinese tourists once again topped the list at 314,291 visitors, representing an 84.5 per cent year-on-year dip.
Thai, Vietnamese and US tourists numbered 194,774; 181,328; and 55,170, all of which dropped by 41.5,74.8 and 71.6 per cent year-on-year. Tourists from the UK, France and Japan all registered lower figures over last year. - Phnom Penh Post/Asian News Network
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