Member of Parliament Ahmed Badawi, head of the Egyptian Parliament’s Communications and Information Technology Committee, plans to propose legislative amendments aimed at generating tax revenue from the profits of the widely-used TikTok application in Egypt.
This proposal is part of ongoing discussions about the popular global video app. Recently, the committee officially denied rumors about a potential ban on TikTok by next October.
In recent days, the committee has been engaging with the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA) to explore new mechanisms of regulation. According to Badawi, these measures are intended to “preserve Egyptian values and identity by promoting content that aligns with societal values and customs.”
Why did this TikTok controversy begin?
In an interview with popular talk show host Amr Adib, Badawi noted that recent discussions about the TikTok application follow Parliament’s efforts to take legal action against pages and accounts that post videos deemed to “spread immorality and debauchery.”
MP Ahmed Badawi clarified that while TikTok is extremely popular in Egypt, there are no plans to shut it down. Instead, he intends to propose legislative amendments aimed at regulating the profits earned through the platform and ensuring they fall under tax regulations to safeguard state interests.
“We’ve received numerous complaints from citizens about videos that breach community standards, and there have been widespread social media campaigns urging the complete shutdown of the TikTok app. However, the focus should not be on banning the app but on raising awareness about the risks associated with it,” Badawi said.
Next week, a meeting will be held with the head of TikTok in Egypt and the NTRA to discuss content regulation and the introduction of new laws related to content, he added.
Additionally, the House’s Communications Committee is drafting a new law to impose a tax on profits generated by TikTok. This proposed law will be reviewed in the House’s upcoming session, which begins next October.
In September 2021, the Egyptian Tax Authority called on bloggers making money from social media to obtain “commercial registration, a tax card, and pay income tax.” The income tax rate ranges from exemption to 15 percent, with an additional 14 percent “value-added” tax applied if annual revenues exceed 500,000 EGP (USD 10,200).
Information security expert Walid Hajjaj highlighted that the tax authorities are monitoring social media pages and their owners for compliance with tax obligations. He confirmed that some individuals have already been contacted by tax officials to regularize their tax status based on their observed social media activities.
In recent years, Egypt has detained several women for producing content considered inappropriate and contrary to family values.
In 2020, Haneen Hossam and Mawada al-Adham were each sentenced to ten and six years in prison and fined 300,000 EGP (USD 18,750) on charges of “violating family values and principles.” More recently, security services have arrested blogger Rouky Ahmed for posting indecent content on social media.
Human rights advocates and lawyers have criticized the use of vaguely-defined charges related to family values and public morals, noting that such charges are frequently applied in the Egyptian legal system against women from a lower social class.
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