By SANCHESKA BROWN
Tribune Staff Reporter
sbrown@tribunemedia.net
THE final Value Added Tax (VAT) Bill will be presented to Parliament by the end of the month, according to Minister of State for Finance Michael Halkitis.
Speaking to The Tribune this week, Mr Halkitis said preparations for the bill are in the final stages. He said the legislation will be completed and presented to the House of Assembly before August and government will reveal the new list of exemptions at that time.
“We have plans to have it (the bill) laid in Parliament by the end of this month and debated shortly thereafter. Meanwhile the education process is ongoing but will accelerate when we lay the bill straight through implementation,” Mr Halkitis said on Wednesday.
VAT is expected to be introduced on January 1, 2015 at the substantially reduced rate of 7.5 per cent from the originally proposed 15 per cent. The new rate will apply across the board, excluding a zero rate for exports. The government had initially planned to introduce VAT on July 1, however delayed the start of the tax until next year.
New Zealand VAT experts, who advised the government in April, have said that a strong education programme and clarity about the details of the tax are crucial to its successful implementation.
Last week, John Rolle, the Ministry of Finance financial secretary, told Tribune Business that the Ministry of Finance is aiming to kick-off a renewed VAT education campaign this month, but is still waiting for Cabinet to approve the revised Bill and regulations.
He said that VAT preparation/readiness efforts were being delayed by the wait for “final directions” from the government. “That you will see very shortly,” Mr Rolle replied, when asked when the government would re-start its campaign to educate the private sector and Bahamian public on the finer details of the 7.5 per cent tax.
“That is something we are agreed to begin to deliver this month,” the Financial Secretary added. “I can say that the government is currently reviewing the draft of the legislation, and that sets the tone for a well-informed education campaign.
“We will await the final directions from the government. We anticipate getting our directions very soon, and we’ll be prepared to act once we get those. We have mapped out a plan that will take us through January and beyond. There will be a lot of action there.”
Start date a “joke”, see Business page one
Comments
ohdrap4 10 years, 5 months ago
dejavu all over again
Well_mudda_take_sic 10 years, 5 months ago
FORGET VAT HALKITIS AND START FOCUSING YOUR EFFORTS ON OBTAINING ADDITIONAL REVENUE BY: (1) Aggressively pursuing real property tax arrears on all properties with a current value in excess of $1 million; (2) confiscating the assets (proceeds of crime) of all the known numbers' bosses like Craig Flowers; (3) introducing a National Lottery to help fund a large portion of our public education system; (4) clamping down on the enormously costly corrupt leakages in our current system of customs duties; (5) discontinuing the grant of concessions to foreign investors which are not contingent on or tied in some reliably measurable way to the value of the expected benefits to be derived by the country as a whole; (6) doing away with the corrupt practice of government leasing property from political business cronies at outrageous rents rather than fixing up and properly maintaining existing government owned properties; (7) shutting down Bahamasair and BCB; (8) privatizing BEC with a maximum 10-15 year limited monopoly period tied in some meaningful way to an obligation to generate affordable electricity for all consumers on the 8 most populated of our islands; (9) privatizing of W&S Corp. with a maximum 10-15 year limited monopoly period once again tied in some meaningful way to an obligation to provide affordable potable water for all consumers on the 8 most populated of our islands; (10) doing everything possible in concert with the U.S. government to reduce the number of illegal immigrants that our suffocating our country today; (11) revisiting the overly generous "cost plus 10%" concession and 20+ year monopoly granted to the Arawak Cay Port Development owners of the Nassau Container Port facility which are wreaking inflationary havoc on food and everything else imported to our country; (12) doubling the existing taxation of all tobacco, liquor, wine and beer products which are responsible for a very large component of our country's healthcare costs today; (13) stopping the grossly abused free gas allowance that many senior civil servants and their family members currently enjoy; (14) ending the policy of buying anything but economy automobiles for the most senior civil servants, members of parliament, senators, judiciary members and the police; (15) down-sizing our grossly bloated public sector payroll by sacking non-productive workers who do nothing but peddle political patronage; and so on and so on.
jlcandu 10 years, 5 months ago
Yeah, right. Never will happen with this government -- makes too much sense!!!!
VAT can't be implemented by Jan 1st -- that's less than 6 months! They are still in la-la land!!!
Well_mudda_take_sic 10 years, 5 months ago
HALKITIS SHOULD JUST SAY NO TO VAT, PERIOD! If it makes him feel any better, he can start pushing for a very progressive income tax or wealth tax that will leave at least 85% of the already severely impoverished in our struggling country unscathed. The last thing we need is a horribly regressive VAT without a much more diversified progressive tax structure. Besides, the current government's fiscal track record is such that we know the revenues from a VAT will only be used by them as fuel for bigger government and more pay to useless consultants. Revenue needed by Government must be obtained by doing the types of things suggested in my previous post above. WE SIMPLY NEED TO STAMP OUT AS MUCH CORRUPTION AS POSSIBLE WHILE SIMULTANEOUSLY PUTTING IN PLACE SENSIBLE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL POLICIES FOR THE LONG-TERM AS OPPOSED TO THE SHORT-SIGHTED ONES WE HAVE TODAY THAT CHANGE WITH EACH AND EVERY CHANGE IN GOVERNMENT. At some point within the next 5-7 years we will need to introduce a highly progressive system of income tax for all residents of the Bahamas and business activities within the Bahamas in order to properly diversify the tax base of our economy (we should be planning for this now as it will be necessary whether we like it or not). TAKE YOUR BLINDERS OFF MR. HALKITIS AND GET WITH THE RIGHT PROGRAMS FOR KEEPING OUR COUNTRY FISCALLY AFLOAT OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL YEARS!
B_I_D___ 10 years, 5 months ago
...by the end of WHICH month??
proudloudandfnm 10 years, 5 months ago
My God these guys are amateurs!! It's fascinating to watch. I keep trying to imagine having to do business with any of these guys.... Must be beyond frustrating.....
TalRussell 10 years, 5 months ago
Comrade Bahamalander's unite as a peoples power block to force within the next 12 months the tabling and passing of a House & Senate Bill that says, you can only collect your parliamentary salary as long as you remain an elected or active parliamentarian ... cause the only way you will receive a pension is, if you do what all other private Bahamalanders are forced to do, pay for it your damn self. Why should you serve in any government appointed position, often just for a couple of years, and be guaranteed a pension and benefits, for not only the rest of your natural life but the benefits also passes down to your living spouse?
sheeprunner12 10 years, 5 months ago
I cant believe we pay these fools............. and they asking for more!!!!!!!!!!!!!
asiseeit 10 years, 5 months ago
No matter how much they tax the nation, it will make no difference as the political elite will squander it away as they do today and will do tomorrow. The problem is not the amount of taxation, the problem is THE POLITICAL ELITE!
sheeprunner12 10 years, 5 months ago
AMEN!!!!!!!!!!! Now just define who the political elite is................ do you also include the pre1967 merchants aka Bay Street Boys???????
B_I_D___ 10 years, 5 months ago
I think you will find that the 'Bay Street Boys' are all, if not the majority, in compliance of ALL taxes...they are totally under the PLP microscope for any mistep, while the 'sunshine boys' get a free pass. All any of the Bay Street boys need to do is miss one BEC bill or one NIB or not pay any RPT and all hell breaks loose from the 'enforcers'. Just saying.
ohdrap4 10 years, 5 months ago
plus, this is a red herring. just like when people talk about illegal numbers, some will bring up rumm running. and when people bring up illegal haitians, they bring up stephen dillet. Seems the only example they can find of exceptional contribution by haitians to society, they have to name a man who was born in haiti and lived over 100 years ago. the guy was actually the son of a frenchman and entiltled to a french passport. red herrings.
ohdrap4 10 years, 5 months ago
the present political elite has been dubbed "the sunshine boys", the heirs to the all for me babe generation
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