Malta Developers Association welcomes budget measures

The Malta Developers Association welcomed a number of measures announced in the budget speech, measures which the Government intends to implement to continue to maintain the good pace of economic development in the country in recent years.

Among these measures there are several that the MDA indicated to the government during consultation meetings held with the authorities, among which: • the extension of the scheme through which first time buyers are exempt from paying stamp duty on the first €150,000; • the concession for those who are passing on their business to their children where stamp duty on transferred property will be of 1.5% instead of 5%; • a fiscal incentive for those who rent for not less than seven years so that the tenant will be reassured that he has a reasonable period in which he will not lose the lease; • the lowering of stamp duty on those who buy property in Gozo from 5% to 2%; • the removal of the anomaly that exists when parts of structures that are made abroad have an advantage on those made in Malta because of the excise duty on cement; • fiscal incentives for those

who develop car parks; • the renewal of temporary leases where government is the owner; and • financial assistance schemes for products that are energy saving, like heat pumps. The MDA also understands that in a situation where the construction sector is doing well, those involved in this sector have to contribute to society so that there is more social justice. However, it feels that the introduction of excise duty on imported construction materials will negatively affect the small consumer who is acquiring his first home.