Investors taking over existing hotels and resorts and initiating extensions and renovations worth over $50 million will be eligible for the short life investment package (SLIP) tax holiday, previously only available for new hotel establishments. The Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, Prof Biman Prasad, revealed this incentive during his 2024-25 National Budget address, stating it would support major investments, including those in Crowne Plaza and Wananavu Resort.
Prasad encouraged investors to leverage the SLIP tax break to enhance the tourism sector’s capacity. He also reported a reduction in the standard allowance for hotel renovations and extensions from 50% to 25%, returning to rates seen prior to COVID-19. Furthermore, to lessen construction expenses, the fiscal duty on prefabricated buildings will drop from 32% to 5%, while duty on steel structures or iron-made articles will stay at 5%.
Other changes include an increase in departure tax from $140 to $170 effective August 1, 2024, reverting to a rate of $200 from August 1, 2025. The transit hours for departure tax exemption will also decrease from 96 hours to 48 hours as of August 1, 2024.
A budget allocation of $68.8 million has been granted for the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation, which includes a Tourism Fiji grant of $44 million and $13.6 million for the Fiji Tourism Development Program on Vanua Levu. Lastly, Prasad announced the establishment of a Pilot Tourism MSME fund, which would provide $15,000 of assistance each to rural communities, promoting an environment for sustainable tourism activities, decent employment, and investment.