In the past decade, Montenegro has been developing at an accelerated pace with the tourism industry as the main catalyst of the economy. Directly and indirectly, tourism contributes to the country GDP with a share of 23%. (World Travel and Tourism Report report, page 7).
Even though the socialist past is noticeable and low-quality tourism offer is still present, the country’s tourism strategy is oriented towards developing elite tourism. That is the reason why government motivates investors with very tax privileges for high-class hotel and mixed-use developments.
To understand why the Government offers incentives for high-quality hotels, it is enough to see the statistics of overnight stays:
- Private accommodation (apartments, houses, etc): 8,720,000 overnights
- Collective accommodation (hotels, resorts etc): 1,100,000 overnights
Projects such as Lustica Bay, Porto Montenegro, Dukley Gardens and Porto Novi prove that elite tourism and luxury real estate already live in Montenegro. There are also dozens of smaller projects, especially in the Boka region and Budva Rivijera, supporting high-class tourism development of the country.
Besides tourism, other main industries in Montenegro are steelmaking, aluminium, agricultural processing and consumer goods.
TAXES:
- Corporate tax: 9%
- VAT: 21% and 7% on certain goods and services.
- Personal income tax: 9%
- Real Estate acquisition tax: 3%
- Yearly property tax: 0,25-1% (In some cases, the property tax may be levied up to 5.5%.)
Below you will find laws statistics needed for proper evaluation of the market.
Useful links
Government of Montenegro
Montenegro Statistical Office
Montenegro Chamber of Commerce
Laws
Law on Spatial Planning and Construction
Law on Construction Products
Law on Tourism and Hospitality
Statistics – Montenegro Tourism (download)
Statistics on Overnight Stays in Private Accommodation
Statistics on Overnights stays in Collective accommodation
Statistics on Collective Accommodation Capacities (hotels etc)
Statistics on Foreign Tourists Arrivals and Overnight Stays
Nautical Tourism Data