the rate of 8%. It worth noting that VAT shall also, with some exemptions, be applied to any legal or natural person (including non- resident person(s)) selling or providing services to any company in Egypt. The said exemptions include, inter alia, the following: • Dairy products for children: • Milk, suger and tea products; • All types of bread; • All types of slaughter animals, birds and seafood; • All agricultural products; • All vegetables and fruits expect potatoes; • All legumes and table salt; • Crude petroleum and natural gas; • Pure gold and silver; • Producing, distributing and transferring electric current; • All paper products and postage and financial stamps; • Civil airplanes and all of its components; • Purchasing and selling currency through the banks that are registered with the CBE; • Education, training and scientific research services; • Insurance and reinsurance services; • News agencies’ services; and • Advertising services. Dispute Resolution Court Litigation The Egyptian judicial system is based on the French system of civil law, adopting a dual-judicial system, with the ordinary judicial courts (the Ordinary Courts ) handling civil and criminal cases and the administrative courts (the Administrative Courts ) handling administrative disputes with governmental and administrative bodies and authorities. Civil and Commercial Disputes Civil and commercial disputes are handled by the Ordinary Court systemwhich is governed by the Civil and Commercial Code of Procedure. Under this law, the ordinary court system contains the following main courts:
• Court of Cassation, which is the highest court in the Ordinary Court system. • Court of Appeal, which has jurisdiction over appeals lodged by opponent against judgments of lower courts. • Courts of First Instance, in which the claims are started. Constitutional Matters Constitutional matters are handled by the Supreme Constitutional Court which has jurisdiction over cases regarding the constitutionality of legislation, conflicts of competence between judicial courts and/or authorities, conflicts between two or more un-appealable judgments and interpretation of application of law. Economic Disputes Economic disputes are handled by the Economic Courts that are modern specialised courts established in accordance with the provisions of the Economic Courts Law. The Economic Courts have jurisdiction over disputes set forth under a number of financial laws, such as the Investment Law, the Capital Market Law, and the Banks Law. Administrative Disputes Administrative disputes are handled by the Council of State. In addition to disputes with governmental and administrative bodies or authorities, the Council of State Law provides the right to individuals or entities to challenge any conclusive decisions for the rescission of the relevant Egypt is a pro-arbitration jurisdiction and has adopted the New York Convention. Egypt has made no reservation to this convention. In addition, the Arbitration Law No. 27 of 1994 expressly stipulates that arbitration awards are enforceable in Egypt. In order to enforce an arbitration award in Egypt, an enforcement order must be obtained by the competent Court of Appeal, providing that such arbitration award does not contravene the Egyptian public order or morality, and does not deal with rights over certain issues such as immovable properties located in Egypt, personal status or criminal issues. judgements. Arbitration
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