There are reportedly discussions on a 1% repatriation tax on money expats send back home. Les Horton in the GDN makes some valid points. To quote his figures, there are approx. 270,000 expatriates living in Bahrain, of which about 192,000 work. The expat population contributes a tremendous amount of spending power to the national economy, not to mention the cheaper labour in many sectors. Also, the repatriated money for the majority goes home to feed families back home. So it looks like putting this law in force may just discourage more foreign investment, plus add fuel to currently dormant 'hawala' or black money trails.