MOSCOW, September 24. /TASS/. The Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR) send a formal application to the Maldivian Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation and informed the Russian Ministry of Economic Development about the risks for the Russian business due to imposition of a tax on Russian tour operators, the press service of the association said.

"The ATOR send a formal letter to Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation of the Republic of Maldives Mohamed Ameen. The reason was the changes in fiscal laws coming into force since October 1, 2026, which extend the Maldivian goods and services tax at a rate of 17% to cover foreign tourist product providers, including companies that do not have a place of business in the country. The new mechanism actually entails taxation on the margin of Russian tour operators already paying taxes in Russia. The ATOR views such structure as unacceptable," the association noted.

Russian companies acquire services of Maldivian hotels at a price already inclusive of local taxes. The margin of the Russian tour operators is at the same time generated in Russia. Additional taxation of such margin means introduction of a charge on the business, the association noted.

The association urged the Maldivian government to exclude the margin of Russian tour operators from the new mechanism and suspend the relevant requirements for tour operators until the issue is settled. The ATOR stressed new requirements for actually double taxation of Russian tour operators make the Maldivian destination less competitive versus other premium resorts and may lead to a decline of the tourist flow.