No Vat-Free Day for St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG)
St Vincent and the Grenadines prime minister Ralph Gonsalves says the islands’ economic policies will not be dictated by what other islands do.
Barbados was recently praised by many Vincentians for offering a Vat-Free Day on December 21, 2022.
Gonsalves stated on Sunday, February 5, that the way tax is managed, it is extremely difficult to have a VAT-free shopping day.
“I see people talk about Barbados, but they don’t look at the conditions and the restrictions under which it is being done.” “Everybody wants to imitate everybody else.”
“It is two months from the middle of November to the middle of January, with about 20,000 containers, barrels, and so forth, with all sorts of things that came in duty-free.” “Given the practical difficulties, I’m not supporting any VAT-free day,” Gonsalves said.
In Barbados, eligible goods had to be available for immediate sale or delivered to the customer on the same day, and orders for goods that were not in stock did not qualify.
Hire-purchase sales qualified; however, credit purchases, goods on consignment, or purchases from wholesale distribution centers were not eligible. Automobiles, gasoline, LPG, diesel, firearms, ammunition, cigarettes, and alcoholic beverages were not permitted.
