The Administration today asked Congress to tax American tourists who spend more than $7 a day on visits abroad to various lands, including Israel. The tax is aimed mainly at European and Mediterranean travel but will be applied to all countries outside of the Western Hemisphere.
Treasury Secretary Henry Fowler told the House Ways and Means Committee that the tax should be approved by Congress in time to inhibit travel this Spring. It was pointed out that students would, in effect, be exempted because student hostels and modest food cost less than $7 daily. Persons spending from $7 to $15 a day would be taxed 15 percent. The tax on expenditures over $15 a day would be 30 percent.
The present $100 exemption on duty for goods bought abroad would be reduced to $10. The duty free $10 gift items mailed from abroad would be terminated and a $1 maximum substituted. Five percent taxes would be applied to airline tickets.
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