Bermuda's Business Leaders Warn Against Increasing Taxes

by Amanda Banks, Tax-News.com, London

19 April 2004

Business representatives in Bermuda have urged the government not to increase taxes or face a possible exodus of firms from the jurisdiction.

The warning comes following the publication of a long awaited report last week which examined ways in which the level of taxation could be increased as a percentage of the economy from 18% of GDP to 24% of GDP.

"A lot of businesses are here purely because they can save money here because of the tax structure. If they are not saving much compared to the costs, they will look at relocating elsewhere," observed the president of the Bermuda Chamber of Commerce, Charles Gosling.

He added: "Bermuda is an expensive enough jurisdiction as it is."

Gosling suggested that the government could raise additional revenue by reducing customs duties in order to stimulate demand from both residents and tourists for locally sold goods.

The Chairman of the Bermuda International Business Association, Greg Haycock, also expressed concern about the implications of the report on the future level of taxes on the island.

“We must be careful not to price ourselves out of the market and have potential investors go to our competitors because it costs them less to do business from those jurisdictions," he warned.

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