President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has announced that a specialized system will be developed within one month to monitor tourist activities and ensure compliance with foreign exchange regulations, thereby preventing any fraudulent practices. The President assured that the recent legislative amendment requiring resorts to exchange 40 percent of their revenue through local banks was based on extensive research, affirming that there is no resort in the Maldives incapable of meeting this requirement.
Highlighting the disparity where only a small fraction of the annual 5.6 billion dollars in tourism earnings enters the local banking system, the President emphasized that the government remains firm in enforcing the law. Furthermore, he noted that legislative reforms have been introduced to curb the black market and improve public access to foreign currency. These include mandates for local services to process payments through Maldivian bank POS systems and the implementation of GST collection from international travel platforms.
