The Sun Siyam Group has decided to pay service charges to all employees in Maldivian Rufiyaa starting this month due to the financial challenges caused by the government's US dollar exchange policy.

Under the Foreign Exchange Act and Rules, tourism businesses are required to exchange 20 percent of their monthly income, or USD 500 per tourist, from October 2024.

In a memo sent to its over 500 employees, the Sun Siyam Group said it held extensive discussions with relevant authorities about the impact of the policy on the company’s operations and employees, but there has been no progress.

As a result, the company has decided to pay its service charge to local and expat employees starting January 1, 2026, in MVR.

The company said it faced many financial challenges in paying its employees in dollars since the foreign exchange rules came into force.

The company's employees are still paid in dollars. But, in order to maintain the business and reduce losses, the company is now forced to pay the service charge in MVR, the memo stated.

Businesses in the tourism industry can charge a service charge of at least 10 percent of the price of each service provided.

A number of resorts have been forced to pay their salaries in MVR following the foreign exchange policy.

The policy has not brought down the dollar rate. The black market rate for a dollar is MVR 20. This has also pushed up prices of goods and services in the market.