All organized group trips abroad have been cancelled until May, the number of tourists has dropped drastically, and basically tourists from abroad show no interest to visit the country as precaution. The citizens have started cancelling Easter trips abroad.
The situation is alarming. The tourism industry records losses varying between 40% and 80%. Concerns grow that it could result in shutting down of capacities. Tourism workers demand emergency assistance from the government to prevent layoffs and to overcome the situations almost without consequences.
One of the demands of hospitality workers, travel agencies and transporters includes state financial assistance. They are yet to calculate how much it could cost.
They demand that they should be exempted for six months from paying contributions and personal income taxes and that VAT for meals in restaurants should be reduced from 18% to 5%.
Cancellations of trips of foreign tourists to North Macedonia are more than 70% and 90% of Macedonian tourists cancelled going abroad in the coming period, according to the chambers of tourism workers.
