883.5122/1
The Egyptian Minister for Foreign Affairs (Afifi Pasha)37 to the American Chargé in Egypt (Wadsworth)38
Mr. Chargé d’Affaires: Referring to this Ministry’s circular No. 48–2/1 (2572) of March 20, 1924,39 transmitting to you the text [Page 959] of the Decree of February 16, 1924,40 relative to the contribution for ghaffirs, I have the honor to inform you that the Egyptian Government, after a renewed study of the question has deemed it preferable to apply, in regard to the contribution for ghaffirs on the whole of the Egyptian territory, a uniform rate and to levy this contribution on the buildings and land subject to, or to be subjected to the tax on built-up property or to the land tax.
Therefore, I am sending you herewith the text of the Decree which the Government proposes to promulgate40 and I have recourse to your obliging intervention to request of your Government that it be good enough to consent that the provisions of this Decree become applicable to citizens of the United States from January 1st next.
According to the terms of this Decree:—
The ghaffir contribution shall be levied on the whole of the Egyptian territory on buildings and land subject to or to be subjected to the tax on built-up property or to the land tax.
The amount of this contribution is fixed at 20% of the annual amount of the tax and shall be levied at the same time as the quarterly installments of the tax and in accordance with the rules established for the collection thereof.
The owner cannot in any case, and even temporarily, be held to the payment of a contribution exceeding that indicated above.
In transmitting to you the proposed Decree, I am asked to assure you that no other contribution for supervision will be claimed by the Government, which, in return for this contribution intends to take chargé of the entire cost of supervision of whatsoever nature it may be.
It is, therefore, understood that should the Government think it necessary to reinforce the Ghaffir force[s] or to designate private watchmen for properties in certain localities, the cost thereof will be defrayed by the Treasury and that the contributor will not have to assume any part whatsoever of the expense thereof.
As regards the collection of this contribution, the Government has adopted the same provisions as those relative to the collection of taxes.
I hope, Mr. Chargé d’Affaires, that your Government will recognize that this Decree is more in conformity with a fair distribution of the contribution for ghaffirs and that it will be willing to accept that it be applied to its nationals.
Kindly accept [etc.]
- Hafez Afifi Bey’s promotion to the grade of Pasha was announced August 6, 1929, while he was with the Egyptian Royal mission in Great Britain.↩
- Copy transmitted to the Department by the Chargé in Egypt in his despatch No. 252, August 26; received September 23, 1929.↩
- Foreign Relations, 1924, vol. i, p. 711.↩
- Not printed.↩
- Not printed.↩