Senate Bill 8-126 aims to overhaul the current foreign investment laws to entice foreign investors.
Earlier the Olbiil Era Kelulau (OEK) rejected the foreign investment bill introduced by President Johnson Toribiong.
The president and the lawamakers in an earlier meeting agreed to re-introduced a new foreign investment measure.
“The Olbiil Era Kelulau further finds and declares that one of the best available means of lessening the expected economic hardship is to enact legislation that will encourage the expansion of Palau’s private economic sector so as to help create a more broad-based and sustainable economy,” the measure said.
The measure calls for the creation of a Foreign Investment Authority 13 which function is to advise and assist the President in the promotion and encouragement of foreign investment in Palau and to act as a liaison between Palau government agencies and private business in the promotion of foreign investment in Palau.
The 17-page measure also stated that the FIA will be composed of five appointed members who shall be Palauan citizens residing in Palau and who have sufficient knowledge, experience and expertise in the areas of business policy affairs or related fields.
The investor will be issued a PFI charter in which at least 51 percent of the corporation’s common stock is owned by citizens, shall not be required to have their PFI charters reviewed by the Foreign Investment Authority, and shall be permitted to engage in business without a PFI Approval Certificate.
The new measure will require a minimum investment of $250,000. Current law requires $500,000.
Businesses reserved for citizens are wholesale or retail sale of goods, all land and water transportation services, including bus services, taxi services, car rentals, boat rentals, and other water equipment rentals,laundry and dry cleaning services not associated with and contained within a hotel complex; restaurants not associated with and contained within a hotel complex, construction of projects with a value not to exceed $1,000,000, apartment rental businesses, radio, newspaper and television businesses; and commercial fishing, other than fishing for highly migratory species.
