Recently, the Egyptian Cabinet proposed a new draft law to revive the zero-customs car import initiative for expats. This initiative was introduced last autumn through temporary legislation from October 2022 to May 2023.
Though the initiative allowed expats to import a single personal-use vehicle to Egypt without paying any customs duties or taxes, it only brought in almost $900 million to the state coffers, less than the targeted $2.5 billion. If the draft law passes, it will extend the temporary legislation for another three months, subject to Cabinet approval.
Egypt has designed various initiatives to secure more foreign currency to bridge a financing gap estimated at $17 billion through 2026. The country strives to increase its annual revenues from $70 billion to $191 billion by 2026. Recently, the New Urban Communities Authority (NUCA) extended a 2022 decree that allows foreigners to purchase land in new cities in Egypt for hard currency, which was set to expire in December 2023 for another six months. Between January and June of 2023, the NUCA sold $2 billion worth of land in Egypt under this decree, per Minister of Housing Assem El-Gazzar’s statement in July.
In July, the Cabinet also issued a decree allowing foreigners to buy real estate properties without restrictions, but they must pay in hard currency.
