Jordan’s commercial sector wants lower income tax

AMMAN – Amman Chamber of Commerce (ACC) President Issa Murad on Wednesday called on the government and lawmakers not to increase taxes on the commercial sector. 

In a statement e-mailed to The Jordan Times, Murad said the new tax legislation, currently at the Lower House for discussion, stipulates raising tax on the sector from 14 per cent to 20 per cent, a 6 per cent increase he described as very high and would hurt economic growth.  

Such a tax rate would also encourage more tax evasion in the country, he remarked. 

Murad urged policy makers and legislators to equalise the tax rate with that planned on the industrial sector, which he said is 14 per cent on the first JD100,000 in profit. 

Profits exceeding this level would be subject to a 20 per cent tax rate, Murad added in the statement. 

According to the ACC president, sales tax collected from the commercial sector reached JD912 million last year, representing 36 per cent of the overall sales tax revenues. 

Merchants also paid JD325 million in taxes and customs fees last year, Murad said, adding that the sector plays an important role in the economic growth of the Kingdom. 

Foreign trade reached over JD21billion last year. 

According to the statement, the ACC current membership counts around 44,000 commercial entities whose capital stands at about JD33.4 billion.