16th Amendment to the Maldives Tourism Act

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The 16th Amendment to the Maldives Tourism Act1 (the “16th Amendment”) was gazetted on 6 December 2025. Among other things, the 16th Amendment has made the following key changes to the Maldives Tourism Act2 (the “Act”).

  1. Revises the tourism services defined in the Act that fall within the scope of the Act;
  2. Grants a further extension of the window for tourist resorts to pay reduced extension fees for lease extensions;
  3. Introduces a framework for the development and operation of tourism training resorts;
  4. Requires foreign tour operators to register with the Ministry of Tourism and Environment (the “Ministry”);
  5. Puts the legal framework for extensions of resort construction periods and the procedures for the demarcation and extension of resort boundaries on statutory footing for the first time;
  6. Restructures the penalties prescribed by the Act for violations of the Act.

Changes to tourism services falling under the scope of the Act

The 16th Amendment has brought the following changes to Section 2 of the Act, which sets out the types of tourism activities falling within the scope of the Act:

  1. References to resort hotels have been removed from the Section;3
  2. Tourism training resorts have been introduced as a distinctive type of tourist facility falling within the scope of the Act;
  3. Watersports services provided specifically for tourists have been included in the scope of the Act;
  4. A clarification has been included that only dive centres and watersports services provided specifically for tourists will fall under the scope of the Act.

However, the primary categories of tourism services listed in Section 2 of the Act (e.g., operation of tourist resorts) largely remain the same.

The 16th Amendment also clarifies that islands, plots of land and lagoons will be leased for the development of yacht marinas under the same routes applicable for resort development.

Extension of lease period

The 16th Amendment has also extended the window for tourist resorts to pay reduced extension fees for lease extensions.

Under the 15th Amendment to the Maldives Tourism Act (the “15th Amendment”), this window expired on 18 September 2025. The 16th Amendment has granted a new window for the payment of reduced extension fees, commencing on 6 December 2025 and expiring on 5 June 2026.

Please refer to our News Update on the 15th Amendment for a comprehensive breakdown of the options available under the Act for lease extensions.

Foreign tour operators required to be registered in Maldives

The 16th Amendment introduces a new requirement for travel agencies to obtain a Tour Operator Licence in order to operate and provide travel agency services in the Maldives. The Amendment also empowers the Ministry to introduce different categories of Tour Operator Licences, each with its own conditions and requirements.

Previously, Travel Agency Licences were issued by the Ministry for similar service providers.

Tour operators will be required to enter into a written agreement with the relevant tourism establishments before providing travel agency services in relation to those establishments.

Under the existing business registration framework, only Maldivian-owned businesses may be registered to provide travel agency services in the Maldives, and foreign entities are required to affiliate with such locally registered entities in order to operate.

The 16th Amendment further provides that any tour operator registered abroad must obtain a Foreign Tour Operator Licence in order to offer services in relation to the Maldives. Such foreign tour operators may only operate in the Maldives through an affiliation with a locally licensed tour operator, and an affiliation agreement must be executed between the foreign tour operator and the local tour operator.

Extensions of the construction periods of resorts and the procedures for the demarcation of resort boundaries.

Extensions of the construction periods of resorts (including deferrals of lease rent and fines during such periods) and the process by which the boundaries of tourist resorts will be demarcated have previously been set out under the following respective regulations published by the Ministry:

  1. Regulation on the Extension of Periods Granted for the Construction of Locations Leased for Tourism Purposes and the Deferral of Lease Rent and Fines4 (the “CP Extension Regulation”); and
  2. Regulation on the Demarcation of the Area of the Lagoon of Locations Leased for Tourism Purposes.5

While the 16th Amendment largely reiterates the provisions of these two regulations, it includes the following key changes to the conditions under which construction period extensions will be granted under the Act:

Condition CP Extension Regulation 16th Amendment
Corporate Social Responsibility Payment (“CSR”) An amount must be paid to the tourism trust fund as CSR before the extension is granted as set out in the CP Extension Regulation The Ministry will have the discretion to either:

Require the applicant to make CSR payment to the tourism trust fund

OR

Require the applicant to make a payment towards the funding of a development project designated by the Ministry
Construction period extension fee Except for the CSR payment obligation, no other payment obligations are applicable An extension fee must be paid in accordance with the relevant regulation in addition to the CSR obligations

In light of these changes, it is expected that the CP Extension Regulation will be amended or restated in due course.

Tourism Training Resort

The 16th Amendment establishes Tourism Training Resort as a new category of tourism establishment.These establishments must include dedicated training facilities for tourism sector trainees and provide opportunities for practical, on-the-job experience in serving guests.

The Government will determine, having regard to national development priorities, the number of Tourism Training Resorts to be established and the locations in which they may be developed.

The acquisition fee payable for islands designated as Tourism Training Resorts will be prescribed in regulations to be enacted for this purpose, and is expected to be subject to reduced or otherwise more favourable payment terms compared to standard resort islands.

Tourism Training Resorts will generally be operated in the same manner as conventional tourist resorts, subject to additional training-related obligations and standards imposed under the regulations.

Lease of islands, plots of land and lagoons to SOEs for resort development

The 16th Amendment introduces an exception to the general bidding and awarding procedures by which islands, plots of land and lagoons can be leased for the development of tourist facilities under the Act, where such properties are leased to state-owned enterprises (“SOEs”)6 for the development of a tourist resort or an integrated tourist resort.

Such properties can be leased to SOEs directly, subject to the following conditions:

  1. The granting of the lease to the SOE must be approved by the Cabinet of Ministers;
  2. The SOE must have the financial and professional capacity to undertake the development project;
  3. The lease must be granted pursuant to a written agreement;
  4. The SOE must pay an acquisition fee in accordance with relevant regulations to be enacted under the Act;
  5. The Ministry may also impose additional corporate social responsibility (“CSR”) payment obligations in the situations to be specified in the relevant regulations to be enacted under the Act.

Tourism developments in the jurisdiction of local councils

The 16th Amendment also made the following changes to the framework provided in the 15th Amendment for the lease of islands, plots of land and lagoons falling within the jurisdiction of a local council for tourism development.

Subject Position prior to the 16th Amendment Position under the 16th Amendment
Purpose for which uninhabited islands and lagoons falling within the jurisdiction of local councils leased for tourism development can be used No limitations For the development of tourist guesthouses and tourist hotels only
Treatment of lease rent collected by the central government for locations falling within the jurisdiction of local councils leased for tourism development No provisions To be recorded as income of the local council and to be paid to the local council

Penalties

The 16th Amendment also revises the penalty framework under the Tourism Act. Previously, the Act provided for a general penalty of MVR100,000 for violations where a specific penalty was not prescribed in a regulation.

The 16th Amendment replaces this with a more detailed penalty structure, as follows:

  1. Where a tourism service that is required to be licensed under the Act is provided without a licence, a penalty ranging from MVR100,000 to MVR1,000,000 may be imposed;
  2. Where a tourism service that is required to be licensed under the Act or any regulation is continued to be provided without a licence, a penalty of MVR100,000 may be imposed for each day on which the service continues to be provided;
  3. Where a specific penalty is not provided in the Act, violations may be penalised with a fine ranging from MVR5,000 to MVR100,000.

Effective Date

The 16th Amendment became effective on 6 December 2025. Regulations to be enacted pursuant to the 16th Amendment is required to be enacted within 90 days from the date.

References

  1. Act Number 26/2025
  2. Act Number 2/99
  3. However, “Resort Hotel” remains as a defined term under the Act. As such, it is unclear whether resort hotels are distinctive tourist facilities regulated by and falling under the scope of the Act.
  4. Regulation Number 2022/R-236 
  5. Regulation Number 2023/R-90
  6. The 16th Amendment defines SOEs for the purposes of the Act to be companies in which the Government of Maldives holds at least 45% of its issued shares.