Bali has postponed implementing its entertainment tax following strong opposition from the country’s tourism sector.
Initially, the government proposed increasing the entertainment tax from 15% to between 40% and 75% on entertainment services such as discos, karaoke, nightclubs, bars, steam baths and spas, reports antaranews.com.
However, tourism stakeholders said the policy would threaten the island’s tourism revenue, as they feared many foreign tourists would choose other destinations with better prices, according to thestar.com.my.
The Indonesian Tourism Industry Board of Bali has since noted that several spa business owners submitted a judicial review to the Constitutional Court regarding the tax.
The government will postpone implementation of the entertainment tax while it awaits the results of the judicial review.