EGYPT Law and Practice Contributed by: Sherif El Hosseny, Malak El Amiry and Farida Degheidy, Matouk Bassiouny & Hennawy
Leases With the Domestic Aircraft Registry and 2.3.5 Requirements for a Lease to Be Valid and Registra- ble . 1.2.4 Registration, Filing and/or Consent From Government Entities A flat fee of EGP35,000 shall be due on filing of any document, including the bill of sale. The bill of sale shall be either filed against the aforementioned filing fee or a notarised and legalised certified true copy should be deposited with the ECAA, which does not require the payment of any fees to the ECAA. An application should be submitted to the ECAA. The document will be reviewed by the ECAA prior to filing. There is no specific timeframe for this and the process differs depending on whether the aircraft is new or used. Generally, there are no government consents required. However, please see section 2.6.13 Other Relevant Issues . 1.2.5 Taxes/Duties Payable Upon Execution of a Bill of Sale If the seller does not have a permanent establishment and the sale is not considered as part of its commer - cial activities, then no taxes should arise as a result of the sale. Otherwise, if the seller is based in Egypt, there could be tax implications. The ECAA filing fees are EGP35,000.
provided that such law does not contravene or violate Egyptian public order. 2.1.3 Restrictions Concerning Payments in US Dollars There are no material restrictions that are imposed on domestic lessees making rent payments in US dollars. In practice and due to a shortage of foreign currency, payment in foreign currency or the transfer thereof by domestic lessees may prove to be somewhat difficult and time consuming. 2.1.4 Exchange Controls There are no exchange controls that could prevent rent payments under a lease or repatriation of pro - ceeds. However, Egyptian banks require evidence for such payment, such as a contractual arrangement or an invoice. 2.1.5 Taxes/Duties Payable for Physical Execution of a Lease To file a lease, there is governmental registration flat fee of EGP35,000 although certain government opera - tors are exempt from these fees. Physical presence is required through valid powers of attorney to file the lease before the ECAA. Since 2016, the ECAA has only required the amount of EGP35,000 for the entire package of documentation (excluding mortgages and bills of sale) if the registra - tion of such documents is made on the same day. 2.1.6 Licensing/Qualification of Lessors A lessor does not have to be licensed or qualified to do business in Egypt with a domestic lessee. 2.2 Lease Terms 2.2.1 Mandatory Terms for Leases Governed by English or New York Law There are certain mandatory terms that are required to be in a lease such as the term of the lease, rental value, aircraft registration marks and manufacturer’s serial number, the type of aircraft, the number of engines and their manufacturer’s serial number, the date of manufacture and the name and address of the manufacturer, together with subleasing, insurance, applicable law and jurisdiction clauses.
2. Aircraft and Engine Leasing 2.1 Overview 2.1.1 Non-Permissible Leases
There are no specific restrictions on types of oper - ating/wet/finance leases or leases concerning only engines or parts. To date, any transactions related to engines or spare parts that are treated separately from an aircraft and are not filed with the ECAA. The Egyptian Registry held by the ECAA is aircraft based and the ECAA acts as the competent notarial office
for all transactions related to aircraft. 2.1.2 Application of Foreign Laws
A lease involving either a domestic party or an asset situated in Egypt may be governed by a foreign law
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