The government announced late last month that the rate of Value Added Tax (VAT known in Turkey as KDV) charged on tourism and restaurants would be cut from 18% to 8% in an effort to regain some of the competitiveness in the Turkish Tourism industry. Some see the cuts as an election ploy but the government said the cut will bring Turkey in line with some of its other competitors in the Med. It remains to be seen if the cuts will be passed onto tourists but we’ll wait and see.

There are also plans to cut the rate of VAT on food items in an effort to reduce inflation. Most foods will be cut from 18% to 8% with the exception of bread which will remain at 1%. No date has yet been given for the cuts to take place so keep an eye on your supermarket receipts to see when and if the cuts actually take place.