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Coming soon: More taxes on Cambodian property, cinema


Coming soon: More taxes on Cambodian property, cinema

Lights, camera, taxation!

A cinema at Preah Norodom Boulevard in Phnom Penh. myrmux / Shutterstock.com
A cinema at Preah Norodom Boulevard in Phnom Penh. myrmux / Shutterstock.com

Cambodia’s coffers are about to get bigger streams of revenues from two of its strongest sectors: real estate and entertainment.

A withholding tax of 10 percent will be levied on real estate agents in the country upon the sale or rental of any property, The Khmer Times reported, citing a directive issued last week by the General Department of Taxation (GDT).

A 14 percent withholding tax will also be slapped on foreign film production companies and local theatres authorised to screen movies in the country.

More: More optimism urged on Cambodia’s property market

“If a local cinema pays for film authorisation and transfers to a local agent, the agent will not be entitled to pay for film authorization in the form of the withholding tax because the local agent is not the owner of the film,” the GDT said in a statement.

Tax collection in the first 10 months of the year increased by more than 20 percent from the same period in 2015 to USD1.3 billion, the Times Reported.

“In my view, the general department of taxation should hold a public forum and invite all real estate agents so they know their tax obligation,” said Kim Heang, president of the Cambodian Valuers and Estate Agents Association. “I think it’s the best way as many don’t know much.”

Read next: How to buy land in Cambodia (like Angelina Jolie)

Source: Property Report