Egypt's cabinet approved on Monday a long-awaited value added tax (VAT) bill, which will be referred to the State Council for review before being sent to parliament for approval, the cabinet said in a statement on Monday.

Egypt embarked on a fiscal reform programme in July 2014 to clench on a growing state budget deficit through cutting subsidies and introducing new taxes including the VAT.

The VAT is set to replace the sales tax and widen the country's tax base, said the statement.

Earlier this month, the cabinet withdrew the bill, which was previously approved, from the parliament to make a number of amendments, according to local media reports.

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