The Tribune

By KORTNEY RODGERS

WITH Value Added Tax set to be implemented in less than four months, citizens of the Bahamas are concerned about the impact a broad based consumption tax will have on daily living.

VAT, a consumption tax of 7.5 per cent charged on goods and services, has been proposed by the government as part of a reform of the country’s tax system. According to VAT Bahamas’ official government website, VAT should assist in “bolstering revenue collections to meet the increasing demands to provide efficient public services to its citizens and meet other financial demands of the Government”.

However, a number of Bahamian citizens view VAT as being more harmful than helpful to the country and several expressed their concerns about the disadvantages of this form of taxation to The Tribune.

“I think it’s going to affect us in the worst way possible. It’s scary because we don’t know what is going to happen in or after January,” Sales Representative Rudolph Brown said.

One of the major concerns presented by the public was the affect VAT will have on small businessmen and the less advantaged in society.

Glen Shepherd, a self-employed electrician, said that 7.5 per cent implemented across the board is “unfair”.

“They make it seem as if they are helping small business persons, but they’re not because if I’m not getting a return, how is it helping me? It’s put in a tricky way. It helps the big business person but the small business person goes down the drain as usual,” he said

Kristen Pratt, a 23-year-old accountant, told The Tribune that she believes a better idea would be to implement “income taxation”.

“I don’t think it’s the way we should tax because we have different classes of people, so by adding VAT you’re putting everybody in the same plane. The Bahamas has never had VAT before, so we need to be careful how we introduce it. We cannot over shoot or go above our heads and the 7.5 per cent is way over our heads,” she said.

“I think there will be a great increase in crime because it’s going to be even harder for people to survive out there,” mall employee Carlrita Robinson said. “I suggest they raise minimum wage so we can still survive.”

In some cases, Bahamians are unaware of the implementation of VAT and its possible affects on society. Make-up artist Talya Bain, who referred to VAT as an “impending disaster,” feared that the government may not be providing sufficient information to the public about what is to come.

“Bahamians don’t read a lot, so everything that they’re printing on it, Bahamians aren’t seeing it,” she said. “There probably needs to be much more commercials and town meetings where people can come out and listen and become more familiar with it before it’s introduced.”

VAT, which was originally scheduled to be introduced in July, has been delayed until January 1, 2015, and will be brought in at a “substantially reduced rate” of 7.5 per cent.