Bahrain: Expatriate remittances reach BD500m a year

2 July 2007MP against taxing money transfers
Foreign workers in Bahrain remit around BD400 to BD500 million every year, according to a report by International economists."The figures could be more than BD500 million considering that more expatriates are coming to work in the Kingdom," said MP Jassim Hussein from Al Wefaq bloc. "There is no restriction on the remittances sent by the expatriates."The Deputy said that according to the figures of the Western Union Money Transfer, 24 per cent of the world's remittances is from the Gulf which is about $59 billion for 2005."The total amount of remittances by the Western Union transfer was about $249 billion. The findings of the report stated that seven per cent of the world remittances were from Saudi Arabia which stood in second position after the United States. The figures for Bahrain were not available but economists say that it is about BD500 million." [Read more]