Clearing a Tax Backlog
Syria's Ministry of Finance is working to clear a large accumulation of unresolved tax files through settlements and procedural facilitations intended to ease the burden on industrialists and traders. Finance Minister Mohammed Yosr Barnieh announced the plan on 2 November 2026, describing it as a comprehensive treatment and systematic closure of the backlog.
The effort is being carried out jointly by the ministry and the General Authority for Taxes and Fees, which is grouping taxpayers into categories to process their cases.
Decades of Arrears
Economists trace the backlog to structural weaknesses built up over decades, including weak collection, understaffed tax offices, and bureaucratic delays. Many businesses that closed or went bankrupt during the conflict remained on the tax rolls, inflating the volume of unresolved files.
Ali Kanaan, dean of the Faculty of Economics at Damascus University, estimated that fully resolving the accumulated files could take two to three years.
A Lower Corporate Rate
Alongside the settlement drive, a draft tax law under discussion would reduce the income tax rate on industrial firms and non-joint-stock companies to a maximum of 15 percent, down from about 34 percent at present.
Mohammed Ayman al-Mawlawi, head of the Damascus Chamber of Industry, said the chamber is cooperating with the ministry and urged businesses to disclose their profits honestly and pay what they owe.
Relief for Damaged Firms
Proposals under consideration include installment plans spread over three years, longer payment deadlines for affected traders, and the gradual exemption of destroyed shops from part of their tax liability.
Kanaan also called for firm measures against tax evaders, paired with targeted support for industrial facilities damaged during the war.
Reviving Production
Officials and business representatives present the measures as a way to rebuild trust between the state and the private sector and to encourage industrialists to resume or expand production. The outcome will depend on how quickly the categorized files are processed and whether the draft rate cut is enacted.