Barbados/China Tax Treaty Underutilised, Says Minister

by Amanda Banks, Tax-News.com, London

05 October 2004

More firms from China and Hong Kong could be persuaded to establish offshore entities in Barbados, and the tax treaty between Barbados and China is currently being under-utilised, according to Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Kerrie Symmonds.

“My research tells me that regrettably, coming out of Barbados, there have not been that many companies utilising the China/Barbados double taxation treaty,” observed Mr Symmonds, according to the Barbados Nation News.

“I believe there are about 2,000 offshore companies many of whom would satisfy the test of being respectable and transparent in their business dealings but who are using the British Virgin Islands as the place of incorporation as opposed to Barbados,” he added, responding to recent concerns that the tax treaty was underused.

Mr Symmonds believed that the firms incorporated in the BVI by Hong Kong clients could be persuaded to “look at Barbados as an attractive destination.”

“There are things about Barbados’ international reputation and quality of business that we do, the respectability and transparency of the way in which our offshore legislation works that make us attractive,” he noted.

He argued that the Barbados/China tax treaty offered firms from the Hong Kong and the mainland “an excellent window of opportunity,” to take advantage of the jurisdiction’s offshore regime.

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