Trinidad And Tobago Hikes Tax Rates

by Mike Godfrey, Tax-News.com, Washington

03 January 2018

Trinidad and Tobago has increased a number of tax rates, as announced in its 2018 Budget.

The standard corporate tax rate rose to 30 percent on January 1, 2018, up from 25 percent, and a new tax bracket of 35 percent applies to commercial banks.

Annual flat taxes now apply to slot machines, roulette machines in bars, and poker, roulette, and baccarat tables. The annual gaming tax was doubled to TTD6,000 (USD887). The territory also introduced a 10 percent tax on all cash winnings by the National Lotteries Control Board (from December 1, 2017).

A new property tax, calculated at three percent of the annual taxable value of chargeable land, is now in force.

Customs duty on car tires is now 30 percent, whether new or used, while the duty on the importation of new tires used on buses and lorries remains at 15 percent. An environmental tax of TTD20 per tire applies to all tires imported into Trinidad and Tobago.

Tax and duty exemptions for hybrid passenger vehicles with engine sizes under 1599cc is extended to compressed natural gas (CNG) passenger vehicles. Motorcycles with engine sizes under 300cc are free from all duties and taxes.

Incentives for passenger vehicles with engine sizes exceeding 1599cc have been repealed. Motor vehicle tax and customs duty on private passenger vehicles with engine sizes exceeding 1599cc and not exceeding 1999cc rose by 25 percent.

Efforts to create a single Revenue Authority, which will bring together the Board of Inland Revenue and the Customs and Excise Division, are ongoing.

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