20 Jul 2017

Vanuatu ministers to consider income tax

4:49 pm on 20 July 2017

Vanuatu's controversial plan to introduce income tax has been submitted to the Council of Ministers.

Vanuatu income tax consultations

Vanuatu income tax consultations Photo: Heather Maraki

The proposal, vehemently opposed by the private sector, was mostly unchanged from an earlier draft.

The government of prime minster Charlot Salwai pushed for income tax to increase government revenue and transparency.

But opponents in the business community said it would be detrimental to Vanuatu's fragile economy and cost a lot for little gain.

A draft proposal was released late last year before a series of consultations.

The [Vanuatu Daily Post http://bit.ly/2u8MLUc] said the final proposal was largely unchanged from the draft although the date for the tax to be imposed was altered to 1 July, 2018.

It said the proposal lacked analysis on how the tax would affect inflation, employment, GDP, or the basis of its projected revenue.