A group of MPs have formally asked House Speaker Hanafy El Gebaly to allow debate of the upcoming 1 January 2022 reintroduction of a capital gains tax on EGX transactions, according to Al Mal. The 20 lawmakers, headed by the leader of the Homeland Defenders Party’s caucus in the house, Rep. Ahmed Bahaa Shalaby, signed the petition. This followed a similar push in the upper house of parliament by Sen. Ahmed Samir Zakaria proposing a series of meetings to discuss the feasibility of the capital gains tax.

What’s the CGT? The 10% tithe would hit the net realized portfolio gains each tax year of domestic investors on the EGX. After years of delays, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait has said the tax will come into effect on 1 January 2022. Many, from fund managers to figures from the securities industry and MPs have voiced concerns about the timing of introducing the tax, asking for it to be postponed after having been already pushed several times, or going as far as suggesting replacing it with another levy or scrapping it entirely to protect a still-recovering EGX. A related drive could put the tax on the agenda of the House Planning and Budget Committee.