Tax
Schedular income tax, 17 per cent corporate rate, and 11 per cent VAT
Income tax is schedular, taxing categories of income separately rather than aggregating them. Corporate profits are taxed at 17 per cent, and VAT is 11 per cent.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — National, administered by the Ministry of Finance.
Governing law
- Income Tax Law, Legislative Decree No. 144 of 1959, as amended
- Value Added Tax Law No. 379 of 2001
In practice
The schedular structure is a genuine difference from most modern systems: business profits, salaries and investment income are assessed under separate chapters with separate rates and no general aggregation, which limits loss relief across categories. The corporate rate rose to 17 per cent in 2017. The dominant practical issue since 2019 is currency: obligations, thresholds and assessments framed in Lebanese pounds have been distorted by devaluation of well over 90 per cent, and successive budget laws have adjusted rates and introduced multiple exchange rates for customs and tax purposes. Anything written about Lebanese tax burdens before 2019 requires re-verification.