Baku to host a shopping festival

From April 10 to May 10, Baku will host a shopping festival, Culture and Tourism, said  the Minister Abulfaz Garayev at a press conference on Thursday. The second similar festival will be held in October this year. According to Garayev, during the festivals a flow of tourists from Russia, Kazakhstan, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Iran, Turkey and Georgia is expected. Thanks to shopping festivals, about 200-250 thousand tourists will come to Azerbaijan in addition.

The essence of festival is that buyers will be refunded an amount equal to VAT on the value of the purchased goods. This rule will be applied only in the shops of Baku, which have a special registration and received a mark of distinction.

To participate in the festival can only  the owners of shops that are VAT payers. In other words, entrepreneurs who pay tax on a simplified system cannot be participants in a shopping festival. The minimum cost of registration is 1100 manats.

The minister noted that food products, cars, and other excise products do not fall under the category of goods for which VAT will be returned.

To organize two shopping festivals it is planned to spend 1.5 million manat. The revenue from the festivals is projected at the level of AZN 50 million, Garayev said. -71D-