Belarus continues to surprise the Forex trading world in being among the most favourable destinations for over-the-counter (OTC) foreign exchange industry. The latest surprise being the move from the president of the country to make Forex trading in the country tax exempt.
Alexander Lukashenko who was the only deputy of the Belarusian parliament to vote against independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 has recently signed the Decree No. 503 “On Taxation” which dismantles all taxes on Forex trading. Specifically, individual profit from transactions with OTC financial instruments will not be subject to an income tax.
The removal of the income tax for individual customers has been in place since March 2016, however, only in a temporary capacity subject to renewal each year.
The Alpari Eurasia Director Evgeny Novik had the following to say regarding the president’s decree, “This initiative, of course, makes the Belarusian jurisdiction even more attractive for traders and investors from other countries of the world. According to the data for the middle of the fourth quarter of 2019, the number of clients of the Belarusian jurisdiction has exceeded 23 thousand, and the number of non-residents in the total number of clients of forex companies was 64%.
Furthermore, he added, “With a high probability, according to the results of the past 2019, the number of clients on the Forex market in Belarus will confidently overcome the mark of 25 thousand people and will demonstrate more than one hundred percent growth compared to 2018.”
