The Minister of Finance, Hon. Colm Imbert, MP, has taken note of the latest diatribe from the Leader of the Opposition regarding the impasse which occurred in 2024 between public officers at the Ministry of Finance and the Auditor General over the 2023 public accounts. The Leader of the Opposition, Hon Kamla Persad-Bissessar, S.C. MP,…
As we are all aware, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are critical to the development of Trinidad and Tobago. At present, there are approximately 20,000–25,000 SMEs, representing roughly 95% of the registered businesses in the country, and they employ nearly 200,000 persons in the workforce. They also contribute significantly to employment and innovation in Trinidad…
The Minister of Finance, Hon. Colm Imbert, MP, wishes to advise that he has requested the Board of Inland Revenue to issue individual tax refunds to all eligible taxpayers that are owed these refunds in amounts up to $25,000.
The Minister of Finance, Hon. Colm Imbert, MP, wishes to advise that in January 2025, Trinidad and Tobago was deemed by the OECD Forum on Harmful Tax Practices to be free from harmful tax practices, and removed from the list of countries with such practices in February 2025. The OECD Forum on Harmful Tax Practices…
The Minister of Finance, Hon. Colm Imbert, MP, wishes to advise that as of Monday, January 27, 2025, the Tax Amnesty had raised $2.38 billion in revenue.Compared to previous years, the current Tax Amnesty is now on par with the 2019 tax amnesty, which was the most successful tax amnesty granted in the history of…
The Minister of Finance, Hon. Colm Imbert, MP, wishes to advise that the Government has given the UWI Administration, which is the Employer of the Academic Staff at UWI, and has the responsibility to negotiate collective agreements with the West Indies Group of University Teachers (WIGUT), an improved offer for a wage increase for the…
In keeping with the Ministry of Finance’s 2025 ‘VAT Bonds’ initiative, the Board of Inland Revenue (BIR) has announced that persons registered for VAT (“VAT Registrants”) can now apply for the payment of outstanding VAT refunds, via VAT Bonds. The BIR further advises that the VAT Bonds would be issued on a first come, first…
The Honourable Colm Imbert Minister of Finance along with the Honourable Pennelope Beckles-Robinson, Minister of Planning and Development met with a visiting mission from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) on Tuesday 21st January, 2025 at the Eric Williams Finance Building (EWFB), Port of Spain. The IDB Team was led by Mr. Jordan Schwartz – Executive…
The Minister of Finance notes concerns raised by the Daily Express in its editorial “Drowning in VAT bureaucracy” centred around the “tardiness in repaying VAT to companies” and wishes to address the issues raised.Cash flow constraints have resulted in a 1-month delay in completing this exercise, not bureaucracy.
On December 16, 2024, Moody’s affirmed Trinidad and Tobago’s rating at Ba2 with a Stable outlook. This affirmation is underpinned by the country’s return to sustained growth, primarily driven by the non-energy sector.Despite lower-than-projected energy revenues in fiscal year 2024, which have increased the fiscal deficit to 4.8% of GDP from 1.7% in fiscal year…