NHI’s 10% auto tax plan ‘inappropriate’
Proposals to part-finance National Health Insurance (NHI) via a 10 per cent tax on auto insurance premiums were yesterday branded “inappropriate” by a leading underwriter, who warned it would undermine a key Government policy objective.
‘Concern’ on last minute VAT filings
Top private sector executives yesterday said there was likely to have been a significant Monday rush to meet the Value-Added Tax (VAT) filing deadline, while admitting “some concern” that so many businesses had waited until the last minute.
Task Force urges ‘automatic’ VAT accounting qualification
The Government-appointed Value-Added Tax (VAT) Education Task Force has recommended that qualifying businesses automatically be permitted to use either flat rate or cash-based accounting to calculate their tax liabilities.
Quarterly VAT filers are urged: Be more frequent
Companies that have to submit quarterly Value-Added Tax (VAT) returns should seek to make advance payments, a member of the Government-appointed VAT Education Task Force recommended yesterday.
Freeport accuses Gov’t of breaching two laws
The Government was yesterday accused of breaching two laws with its new demand that Value-Added Tax (VAT) be levied on bonded fuel sales to Freeport businesses, who slammed its “my way or the highway” approach.
Gov’t ignoring own advice in push for NHI
The Government appears be ignoring its own decade-old advice not to proceed with National Health Insurance (NHI) until there is “real growth” in jobs and its own finances, the private sector yesterday agreeing these conditions had not been met.
‘Enormous savings’ for firms, NHI report says
The proposed National Health Insurance (NHI) scheme will “create enormous savings for firms of all sizes”, the plan’s consultants tout in their October 2014 report to the Christie administration.
Retailers: Gov’t ‘drops the ball’ on VAT pricing
The Bahamas Federation of Retailers (BFR) yesterday accused the Government of “dropping the ball” on the Value-Added Tax (VAT) pricing, adding that it was “out of touch” with the reality of doing business in the Bahamas.
Cable’s ‘grave concerns’ on URCA facilities share plan
Cable Bahamas has “genuine and grave concerns” that mobile competition market could be thwarted by regulatory demands mandating that the second operate co-locate its network on the Bahamas Telecommunications Company’s (BTC) existing infrastructure.
Doctors chief: NHI a ‘last straw’ for many businesses
National Health Insurance (NHI) and its costs could be “the last straw for many a business”, Doctors Hospital’s president said yesterday, adding that too many questions remain over how the scheme will be implemented.
BTC seeks more time on facility-sharing deals
The Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) is urging the sector regulator to give it more time to both develop a list of its infrastructure facilities, and negotiate facility sharing agreements with rival operators.
S&P ‘wants more’ from Gov’t on spending curbs
Standard & Poor’s (S&P) wants “more detail” from the Government on how it plans to curb its spending, its lead Bahamas analyst describing 2015 as “a pivotal year” for this nation and its economy.
AID blames VAT for 41% drop in sales growth rate
A leading retailer is blaming Value-Added Tax (VAT) for a 41 per cent drop in the sales growth rate at its Nassau stores, while calling on the Government to extend ‘exclusive’ pricing beyond hotels and dine-in restaurants.
VAT to hit CIBC operating costs
CIBC FirstCaribbean believes the factors that drove a 74.8 per cent first quarter profit increase will remain present throughout 2015, even though Value-Added Tax (VAT) will grow its Bahamian subsidiary’s operating expenses.
CIBC regional chief ‘more optimistic’ on Bahamas recovery
CIBC FirstCaribbean’s regional chief executive is “certainly more optimistic” about the Bahamas’ immediate recovery prospects compared to many of its local rivals, describing the Caribbean economy as having reached “a tipping point”.
