Tourism Economics and Laws

the lecture of 16-3-2020

this lecture starts at p.55 and ends at p.80

Dr. Eid Ashry

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 Tourism Legislations
• A number of problems of tourists have their roots
in the absence of any standard norms regulating
the trade.
• The economic importance of tourism and the
present stage of its development have also
brought into sharper focus the need for
appropriate central legislation.
• Tourism, as we understand, is a diverse actively
with different sectors, different types of
destination, different types of tourists and
different types of problem.

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 Varied nature of tourism
• There is no one thing as such which can be
described as tourism legislation because of the
varied nature of tourism itself.
• A crucial question regarding enactment of
tourism legislation is that from whose point of
view the legislation is to be made: From the
point of view of tourism industry; international
industry; domestic tourist; ?

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 Different aspects of tourism
legislation
• all aspects related to tourist should be
governed by one tourism legislation. Currently
there are various legislations and directly and
indirectly affect tourism. These can be
categorised under the following heads:
• Laws related to trans-border movement like
customs, visa regulations, foreign exchange
regulations, immigration laws, etc.

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 Different aspects of tourism
legislation
• Laws related to transportation like airline
regulations, railways, road and water transport;
fares and tariffs, etc.
• Laws related to accommodation like
classification/ grading/rating of hotels, etc.
• Consumer Protection Laws related to health,
hygiene, service quality standard, etc.
• Law related to land use, infrastructure
development, etc.
• Labour laws related to employees' working
conditions, wages etc.
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 Different aspects of tourism
legislation
• Law regarding the functioning of tourism
organizations at various levels.
• Conservation related laws on environment
protection, monuments and historical sites,
etc.
• Laws of regulating the service providers, etc.

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 Which Law regulate the Travel and
Tourism Industry?
• The legal judicial system is a main system that
regulates almost every part of the society,
including tourism and hospitality industry.
When one transacts with another, that person is
essentially contracting with the other party.
Law, in this sense, helps to safeguard the rights
and obligations that these two contracting
parties are entitled to.

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 Which Law regulate the Travel and
Tourism Industry?
• The tourism and hospitality industry is closely
interlinked with the legal system. Business
organizations such as hotels, agencies and
restaurants rely on common law when dealing
with each other. Law also comes into play
when businesses interact with customers
through the provision of goods and services.

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 Egyptian Hotel and Tourism Laws
• Tourism and the hotel professions in the Arab
Republic of Egypt (A.R.E.) have acquired their
legal status by means of special legislation
wherein their activities are defined, spelled
out, and controlled. The legislation covers
tourism categories and activities, the
conditions imposed on each category, the
protection given, and the legal provisions of
acquire, controls, illegal acts, and loss of
license.
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 Egyptian Hotel and Tourism Laws
• The A.R.E., bearing in mind the need to protect
tourism, has enacted the following legislation:
• 1) Laws regulating the professional status of
travel and tourism companies and agencies.
• 2) Laws governing the professional status of
tourist hotels and similar public establishments.
• 3) Laws governing the tourist guide profession.
• Laws relating to the foundation, organization, and
management of the Chambers of Hotels and
Tourism Industries and the Union of Chambers of
Hotels and Tourism Industries.
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 Laws related to tourism in Egypt
• Law No. 1 of 1973 concerning Hotel
Establishments
• Law No. 38 of 1977 concerning the
Organization of Tourist Companies
• Law No. 117 of 1983 concerning the
Protection of Monuments
• Law No. 1 of 1992 concerning Tourist
Establishments

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 Regulations Governing Tourism
Organizations
• Egyptian legislation stipulates that only authorised
companies and (licensed) travel agents conforming to
the laws are eligible to practice these activities and
offer travel and tourism services such as:
• A. Selling and issuing travel tickets and facilitating
baggage transfers, and reserving places on regular
transportation.
• B. Reserving hotel accommodations and other related
functions for travellers.
• C. Organizing individual and group tours with
combined tickets.

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 Regulations Governing Tourism
Organizations
• D. Exchanging foreign currencies.
• E. Insuring against fire only with authorized
insurance concerns.
• F. Selling tickets of theatres and other places of
entertainment.
• G. Executing special services to tourists such
as travel visas.

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 Requirements for a travel agent’s
license
• In order to qualify for a travel agent’s license,
these prerequisites must be met:
• 1) The establishment must be either an Egyptian
corporation or else a foreign one where Egyptian
nationals are eligible to practice the profession on
a reciprocal basis.
• 2) Management and employees must show
evidence of good ethical conduct and not have
committed any unlawful acts prior to their
engagement in travel and tourism agencies.
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 Laws Governing the Hotel Industry
• The law (No. 1/1973) governing the professional status of
the hotel industry was subject to several stages of review
and refinement by both governmental authorities and trade
organizations.
• The aforesaid law likewise deals with regulating the
relationship between hotel guests on the one hand and the
hotel’s management on the other. It provides stipulations
regarding rates and the means of controlling them; the
procedures for sanctions including closing, and the granting
of licenses. Standards are also established for grading hotels
and other tourist accommodations in accordance with
international practices. The law consists of seven sections as
set forth below:

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Section I: Tourism Establishments
• The public establishments that may be authorized
by the Ministry of Tourism for accommodating
tourists include: hotels, tourist villages, floating
hotels, tourist ships, and such premises as rest
houses and furnished apartments and homes.
• The public places that can be licensed by the
Ministry of Tourism to offer food and beverage to
tourists are restaurants, bars, night clubs, and
casinos.

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Section I: Tourism Establishments
• The engineering and structural conditions of such
tourist establishments are to be specified by the
Minister of Housing and Public Utilities except floating
hotels and tourist ships, which are the concern of the
Ministry of Transport. In all cases, the Ministry of
Tourism also approves such specifications.
• Gambling casinos are open only to non-Egyptians and
are under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Tourism,
which specifies where gambling can take place and the
conditions imposed (all dealings must be in foreign
currency).

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 Section II: Taxes
• Tourism establishments, including the hotels
and authorized places defined above, are
exempt from all taxes, including taxes on
commercial and industrial profits and real
estate taxes. These exemptions are granted for
the first five years of operation, beginning with
the date when such taxes become due. (Income
taxes are borne by the individual and based on
the accumulated net income of the person.)
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 Section IV: Guest Relations
• This section regulates the relationship between
clients and hotels in such matters as denying
requests for room reservations or refraining
from renting them, and renting rooms at rates
higher than those authorized.

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Section VI: Relations with Ministry of
Tourism
• The obligations of tourist establishments to the
Ministry of Tourism are spelled out in this
section. They include: publishing the hotel’s
grade and price of services in both Arabic and
English or French in guest rooms as well as in
the reception office; notifying the Ministry
monthly of the number of tourists received and
the number of guest-nights realized;
maintaining a reservation register for all
requests for room reservations.
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 End of lecture

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