Despite the Egyptian artist Adel Imam being absent from the artistic scene for four years, he now finds himself obliged to pay more than 6 million Egyptian pounds (194,000 US dollars) in Egyptian taxes. This story was detailed by Khaled Al-Ashwah, the lawyer for Adel Imam, who mentioned in television statements that the issue pertains to three television works presented by Adel Imam: "Afarit Adli Alam," "Awalem Khafiya," and "Valentino." They were surprised when the Egyptian Tax Authority demanded approximately 6.5 million as value-added tax on these works, despite Adel Imam having already paid the tax on commercial profits. However, the tax law introduced a value-added tax and subjected artistic works to it, which the lawyer counters by stating that these series were filmed in the Media Production City and are not subject to value-added tax.
The Egyptian lawyer explained that there is a protocol signed between the Ministry of Finance, represented by the Tax Authority, and the Syndicate of Artistic Professions that stipulates the exemption of works filmed in the free zone of the Media Production City from value-added tax. The lawyer revealed Adel Imam's reaction to this matter, stating that he told them, "If they have the right, let them take it." Therefore, they are awaiting the court's ruling when it considers their appeal on January 28 of this month. This crisis has not only affected Adel Imam but also extended to his son, director Rami Imam, who has found himself required to pay about 600,000 Egyptian pounds, which is also under review by the Egyptian judiciary.
