Author: Mohamed Reehaan

A webinar intended to explain a tax change turned instead into the clearest warning the island nation’s tourism industry has received in years. The Tourism Ministry, the Finance Ministry, and the Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA) jointly held the said webinar at 17:00hrs on Tuesday evening to brief foreign tour operators on the amendment to the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Act, which brings overseas booking platforms, travel agents and tour operators within the Maldivian GST net from next month. Some 800 participants joined. Over the course of roughly 45 minutes, the live chat filled with anger, and not one…

The Unicode Consortium has released version 18.0 of the Unicode Standard, and the Maldivian Rufiyaa symbol has been included in it. The code point assigned to the Rufiyaa symbol under Unicode Standard version 18.0 is U+20C2. The symbol itself is not new. The Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) introduced it back in 2022, and what has changed today is that the symbol now carries a place in the international character standard which software of every description is built to read. MMA said that the inclusion will allow the Rufiyaa symbol to be used to a single consistent standard across websites, mobile…

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim arrived in the Maldives on a state visit, having accepted the invitation of President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu. President Muizzu himself received the Malaysian PM at Velana International Airport (VIA) upon his arrival. The two governments held an official welcome ceremony in the Prime Minister’s honor on Monday, after which Anwar and President Muizzu held official talks. The talks focused on strengthening bilateral ties between the two countries. Besides this, both leaders also witnessed the exchange of several Memoranda of Understanding. This marks the Malaysian Prime Minister’s maiden visit to the Maldives since assuming office in…

The Business Centre Corporation (BCC) has said that more than 800 forms have been submitted by the time the deadline closed for the competitive category of this year’s national productivity and innovation exposition. Speaking on the programme aired on state media, BCC’s Assistant Director for Strategic Development and Regional Services, Areesha Moosa, said that this year’s expo has been receiving a considerably greater response than that of last year, and that upwards of 800 applications had been received as at the closing of the said deadline. Areesha said that they had received a strong response across all 8 fields opened…

The Attorney General of the Maldives, Uz Ahmed Usham, has said that the government has no intention, for the present, of bringing any further amendment to the law with regards to the exchange of foreign currency. Under the amendment already brought to the Foreign Exchange Act, the proportion of foreign currency which Category-A tourism establishments in the Maldives are required to exchange within the country’s banking system has been set at 40%. Businesses operating in the tourism sector are required to act in accordance with the said change from October 2026. What Prompted This Question? At a press conference held…

The Maldivian government has denied the claims being circulated to the effect that the work of developing the new international commercial port at Thilafushi was handed to a Chinese company after distancing India, and in preference to a particular party. The government commenced a major project earlier this year to relocate the Malé Commercial Harbour to Thilafushi, and the work of developing the international and domestic quay walls under the said project was awarded to China Harbor Engineering Company (CHEC). In a press statement issued by the Economic Ministry, it was said that the project had been awarded in accordance…

A number of businesses have raised concerns over the difficulties arising from prolonged delays in the processing of telegraphic transfers (TTs) through the Bank of Maldives (BML) for the procurement of goods and services from abroad. Business owners who spoke on the matter said that even where the funds have already been secured, a TT takes somewhere between 15 and 20 days to be processed. The said delays, they noted, have obstructed the timely importation of essential goods and have left them carrying financial losses as a result. One businessman, writing on X, said that transfers sent to foreign suppliers…

The Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) has appealed to all parties to comply with the Foreign Exchange Act, having noted that foreign currency continues to be exchanged in the country without a license. MMA said that while the Foreign Exchange Act and the Regulation on Money Changing Businesses state clearly that the business of exchanging foreign currency in the Maldives is to be conducted only under a license issued by the authority, it has been observed that certain parties are carrying out foreign exchange transactions without holding the said license. As the practice constitutes an offence under Maldivian law, the authority…

Manta Air, one of the three airlines currently operating domestic services in the Maldives, has decided to wind down its domestic operations altogether and continue solely as a seaplane operator, sources familiar with the matter have said. While Manta Air has not officially confirmed the said decision, reliable sources have confirmed to local news outlet, Adhadhu, that the airline intends to cease flights operated on its ATR aircraft within the next three to six months, and that the decision has already been communicated to its staff. The airline arrived at the said decision, the same sources said, owing to the…

Allied Insurance, the Maldives’ largest insurance provider has launched a social media giveaway offering one follower a PlayStation 5 console. The campaign, called Mission PS5, opened on Tuesday and runs until 23:59hrs on 30 October, the company said. To enter, Instagram users must follow the company’s account, like the campaign post, and comment on it while tagging three other users. Sharing the post to an Instagram story and tagging the account earns an additional entry. The winner will be announced on 16 November. Full terms and eligibility conditions are set out in the campaign post on the company’s Instagram account.…