President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu's tourism advisor Mohamed Khaleel, who is also the Managing Director of Pulse Hotels & Resorts, has decided not to comply with the change in foreign exchange rules.
In a letter addressed to the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA), Khaleel said the decision does not meet the realities of the industry and the economic situation in the Maldives.
Pulse Hotels & Resorts operates Nautilus Maldives, Kandima Maldives, Nova Maldives and Avalon Maldives.
Key points highlighted in the letter
- On November 2, resort operators told MMA that a large portion of their dollar income is spent on expenditure
- These include payments to suppliers, salaries to employees and dollar costs to repay loans
- Resorts do not have sufficient dollars to exchange as required by the rules after all the expenditure
- USD 500 rate per tourist is not a reasonable amount
- This will damage the businesses and lose stability
"Due to these reasons, we cannot exchange dollars under the MMA rules. We hope that in light of these reasons, the rules will be reconsidered," his letter stated.
Apart from Khaleel, Universal Enterprises Chairman Mohamed Umar Manik (MU Manik) and Champa Mohamed Moosa (Uchchu) have also sent similar letters to MMA.
A senior tourism industry official told Adhadhu on Wednesday night that more than 50 resort operators have sent letters to the MMA saying they will not comply with the new rules.
MMA introduced new rules on October 1 to force tourist facilities to change dollars at a fixed rate for every tourist visiting the country as part of measures to solve the dollar shortage problem.
The changes were brought to the Foreign Currency Regulation and Money Changing Business Regulation.
Under the changes, all transactions in Maldives must be done in Maldivian Rufiyaa. But many exceptions were given to businesses earning revenue in foreign currency.
While the rules require the total income to be deposited in banks, a certain amount has to be changed. The amount is USD 500 for each tourist visiting resorts, integrated resorts, resort hotels, hotels, tourist vessels and other such places.
The amount set for guesthouses and hotels in inhabited islands with less than 50 rooms is USD 25 per tourist.
