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Vat Relief And Rebate Of Duties On The Importation Of Essential Goods In The Fight Against Covid-19

Vat Relief And Rebate Of Duties On The Importation Of Essential Goods In The Fight Against Covid-19

COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc worldwide. The severity and swift impact of this pandemic has resulted into countries making declarations of emergency and national disasters. In Lesotho, COVID-19 was declared a national disaster warranting a state of emergency by the Prime Minister through Section 23 (1) of the Constitution1 . Where the Government has declared a national disaster, goods that are imported for the relief of distressed persons are rebated from customs duties2 and are further exempted from value added tax (VAT). What seemingly poses a challenge from VAT exemption and customs rebates point of view is the scope and type of goods that can be considered as imported for the relief of distressed persons hence eligible for exemption on importation.

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