We are being overly taxed now! We pay customs duty, VAT twice on whatever we bring in (the freight costs plus the paperwork costs), the National Ins, the property taxes, and VAT on everything else bought locally! The totals must be 40per cent. If Income Tax would be a one time only tax, under 40%, and eliminating all these others, we might be less burdened. I wouldn't grumble about a low sales tax around 3% for purchase of designated goods/services to be added for use in specific areas e.g. medical, education etc.

No way on the income tax! Screw the greedy IMF! They have become a tank of sharks and piranhas.

Lock me up now. If income tax is inforced, I will be dodging it like a prize boxer. VAT is bad enough and still no word where it disappeared to. Can you imagine income tax? The only ones this will prosper will be accountants.

Sp enforced

I have said time and time again that the IMF, OECD, IDB, World Bank, Moody's, S&P, etc. etc. all have a connected common agenda to destabilize and bankrupt the Bahamas so that the foreign corporate interests behind these so called international lending, regulatory and rating agencies can feast like vultures on our natural resources at bargain basement prices. The main hideous instrument of their destabilization efforts is the lending teat ("tit) put to the mouths of our incompetent, dumb and corrupt politicians who will suck on it like drunken sailors. This is the tried and time tested successful modus operandi of the developed countries when it comes to the global establishment devouring the resources of lesser developed countries on the cheap! Our new Minnis-led FNM government must avoid sucking on the debt tit as much as possible, notwithstanding being encouraged to do so by these very same international agencies whose advice is aimed at destroying our control of our own economy and destiny.

Well Mudda- are their agents also planting stories in bahamians head that it might be better to abandon southern islands affected by the hurricane? Because all that language does is devalue the land Bahamians ancestors fought and died for and left their children as a legacy, ensuring that foreign investors and governments scoop it up for pennies on the dollar- and that they are populated by Dominican fishermen and Haitians seeking some peace. I have never heard such stupid, short sighted talk from Bahamians in my life. They have no sense of their history and no sense of the value of their country. China is about to OWN Venezuela because of defaulted loans and the Bahamas aint too far behind because if this government brings income tax- 50 percent of the people who able to pay that tax will leave the country, ensuring the collapse of the economy, increased chaos and violence.

Substitute Third World countries for the Bahamas and we are in complete agreement.

**This reminds me of a discussion Zhivargo Laing had with Rupert Pinder. Mr Pinder made a point that tough decisions had to be made very soon and if the government didn't make them someone would do it for them this was just two weeks ago**..

He said, you remember when you were a child and Grammy send you outside to pick the switch to get beaten with? Now if you was smart, you went and pick the switch because at least you had the chance to find a small light switch. Because no matter who pick it, the end result was beatin' was coming.

Why haven't we engaged a TEAM of persons like Mr Pinder and Mr Laing as economic advisors to the Ministry of Finance?

Mr Pinder said at least if the government takes the initiative you have a chance to educate the people and ease the pain. But what has the government spent the first five months doing? -> "Creating drama". They didn't even have the foresight to prepare for a hurricane. **People kept asking for a plan and they and rabid supporters said, *'what wrong with y'all, we just get here you know*'...well guess what, the IMF just gave a very loud y'all taking to long**.

I have to scream, what is KP Turnquest doing??? I don't think he's suited for that ministry and Dr Minnis just sunk all hope with his appointment of a financial secretary who has no professional economic experience. They have no possibility of creating any comprehensive plans to get us out of the mess we're in because they do not have the ability to model the economic effects of their decisions. And we haven't even gotten to who will watch the back door, the space under the table and the contracts awarded. We were supposed to be moving away from this crap. Now we put Fox cousin to watch the chickens.

**I've seen a number of not so good predictions come to reality over the past five months, my next prediction is, if Dr Minnis doesn't remove KP and his second and appoint competent people to manage that .ministry, the Income tax money will go the same route as the VAT money and Hurricane Matthew money**. The IMF will then tell us what a wonderful job we did implementing income tax, they will then suggest that we prepare for devaluation. A word to the wise is sufficient. Move them people

If VAT is repealed as promised.

If they take away 7.5% VAT and introduce 15% income tax, what difference does it make?

You would be paying far less if you pay it only the one time! Do you not realise how many times you pay 7.5% on an item before you get it home? It is way more than we believe. Think about it...

Only if the middlemen are basing their markup on the VAT inclusive rate, which they are not supposed to. If they did the results would be evident. Importing items yourself is a mess yes, with tax on tax and confusing fees here there and everywhere.

Yeah, I know, I've been paying for two years and see the price spike:) what I'm saying is, you can rest assured that if the government announces they're "removing VAT", it will be a political ploy. Remember the IMF Is telling them they don't have enough revenue with VAT in place

Even the way they've structured VAT was done to be politically palatable. 7.5% sounded better than 15% but they structured it so they collect at every step in a non-manufacturing chain and that's not the way VAT was meant to work..

Thank your UBP, PLP and FNM pirate leaders for decades of collaborative corruption, excluding Bahamians from meaningful mainstream participation in the economic pie which stifled and stagnated growth and their total failure in governance for this one.

Had these greedy pirate bastards allowed more Bahamians to share in the economic pie instead of just their friends, family, lovers and foreigners, the average Bahamian and the country at large would have been in a considerably stronger economic position.

Every country in the Caribbean empowered their people as much as possible and out performed the Bahamas in Real Gross Domestic Product Growth **including Haiti with 5.5%-2011, 2.9%-2012, 4.2%-2013, 2.8%-2014, 1.0%-2015, 1.4%-2016**

What was Lynden Pindling, Hubert Ingraham and Perry Christie focused on? These men should be tried for treason!

They have to have money to operate and improve the infrastructure. The problem often misappropriation of the funds. They already have fees attached to everything. Even on tourism, they collect a fee on every tourists that comes in. What do they do with that money. On the hotel rooms the add a 35.00 fee every night your there. Where does this money go. Why can't they even clean up the trash.

The IMF is designed to lend more money to Nations than they can afford to pay back then impose heavy taxation. Nothing surprising here. Next step is bankruptcy then they come in and steal everything.

If things worked properly, everyone was held accountable, money wasn't being lost/stolen/diverted here there and everywhere, and people got value for money then maybe; but there's A LOTTTT more that must be fixed first. Having an income tax probably also means that The Bahamas needs to join in on the Totalization Agreements with the US IRS and other nations so that Foreign Residents can offset income taxes paid to country of residence vs country of citizenship.

Reduction in import duty is only effective if the savings are passed along and we all know that especially on the family islands many stores simply pocket the extra cash. As for the National 1Health anybody with half a brain knew that wasn't feasible. Take central Eleuthera where close to a million dollars has been spent simply to rip a hill to provide a hospital. Why do we practice jungle economics and start these grandiose schemes that cannot be afforded. If you can,t staff and stock regular clinics how the hell can you operate all these so called island hospitals. Time to get real.

As the day follows the night,the day that income tax is suggested for the Bahamas Government hto implement has arrived. I was told by several persons in the know this will happen.We collectively brought this on ourselves. Don't blame the IMF. Years of economic mismanagement by successive governments, a stagnant and outdated economic model and irresponsible populace.It is going to be rough.Add to that an inexperienced Financial Secretary and a Finance Minister who seems out of place.

Our taxation model is a real unfair mess .......... we tax the bottom 60% of the citizens until their eyes bulge with VAT and other service fees and taxes ....... the rich and upper middle class can survive ...... But if all of the population was being taxed fairly by using a staggered income tax rate system ..... 25-15-10% for the three income brackets (over $100,000 - over 40K - over 20K) with 5% VAT and no other fees on gas, customs etc, it will earn far more Treasury income .... and it will be more fair

Best of luck trying to collect income tax---People owe millions of dollars in Real Property taxes and that is not collected---Hell, some people don't even pay their power bills and they don't seem to have a problem!

Too much family connections between customers and office staff ..... low levels of professionalism and on-the-job accountability

Seems like you get the best discounts when you don't pay your bills. Reward those that don't pay while all else suffer...no interest on unpaid Real Property Tax Arrears, breaks on your high BEC bills...it goes on and on.

Income Tax is taken out before you get your check and the employer pays the government. You never see the money or your right people wouldn't pay it.

"I have said time and time again that the IMF, OECD, IDB, World Bank, Moody's, S&P, etc. etc. all have a connected common agenda to destabilize........."
Yes Wellmudda, and we have been borowing an average of 50 million/year from the IMF alone, for the last 40 years. Plus grants and funding from all the others. So all of Minister Mitchells cries of sovereignty could only have been for Local consumption......
VAT, Income, capital gains, all have been on the schedule since at least 2007, but our successive governments have kicked the can down the road while treating the public like mushrooms.
"This reminds me of a discussion Zhivargo Laing...." And who do you think "negotiated" and signed onto to all of this on our behalf Thisisours?
But wait, it gets better! Remember all those TIEAS we signed with 40 odd countries?
And remember a finance Ministry official saying words to the effect" while there is no benefit at this time to the Bahamas...." He gave the game away, but no one even noticed!
Do you not think the Bahamas Government has been asking all those countries what assets Bahamians own in foreign lands? I can tell you they have. And they see a huge pot of taxable $$.
Reciprocity, I tell you, you tell me. So, where you gonna run to now? Nicaragua? North Korea?
There is a financial storm coming that will make Irma seem like a summer squall !!
(with no slight or minimization intended to those countries so devastated)

I think you're agreeing with me somewhat, I said they're afraid to make the tough decision because it's unpopular. Now someone's come along and made it for them. Made another comment that I don't want income tax but I have a feeling we're at the end of the road with no other option. Bahamians think the options are "tax" or "everything stays the same". I think the options are "tax" or "be like Greece". But no one's saying it. I'm not sure not signing onto information exchange agreements would change anything...our economy would still be in the dumps.

I don't think our problem is collecting money. I think the problem is money escaping through holes in the ministry of finance. More money won't make a difference. It's the money management. FNM supporters need to ask some serious questions about the appointment of the financial secretary. Serious questions. How will we get a different result if we use the very same approach?

I know an expat who bought a condo on PI. Hasn't paid property taxes in 10 years and no one is chasing him, probably because they don't know that his condo even exists. There are some serious structural flaws in the data collection for property taxes. There are silos of information that do not talk to each other.

Brazil’s president charged with leading a criminal organization made up of senior members of his PMDB party with the group allegedly taken $190m (£140m) in bribes in return for contracts at public companies.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-ame…

Politicians worldwide suspected as bribery scandal unfolds and almost a third of Brazil's current government ministers are facing investigation.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-ame…

Politicians were having a field day **tiefin an ting** while the average Joe suffers!

Story sounds familiar, Is that Brazil or the Bahamas, sometimes they get these "B" Latam countries mixed up.

except for those who were asleep, we've seen this push coming for years... poor management of public service, too many lousy gov't corporations propped up by Treasury, lack of accoutability so you have a building burn down, contractor does not have insurance that was a prerequisite to contract award and nothing happens, etc , etc. now you would give the same folks even more money to manage/waste? its going to happen sooner or later unfortunately since we let things get out of control, but dont believe for a minute imposition of income tax will make a difference for the better...

Bugger off IMF

I strongly believe that this FNM administration, under the stewardship of Prime Minister Minnis, is very serious about making a difference in how the people's money is handled. Their first order of business, involving holding to accountability those who previously handled/mis-handled the country's finances, seems to bear this out. The removal of the former Financial Secretary, under whose watch a number of misfeasances occurred, and the replacement with a qualified, and well-groomed, Marlon Johnson, does give me hope that we will see changes.

PRIME Minister Sheriff Minnis CARICOM pledge to root out corruption in the Bahamas has taken on a life of its own with Trinidad and Tobago PRIME Minister Dr. Keith Rowley echoing “PNM or not, all persons who engage in corrupt activities anywhere in society must be held accountable".

http://www.newsday.co.tt/news/0,248993.…

The UBP, PLP and former FNM so-called "elites" who are the architects of an apartheid to cement their control over Bahamas economic and social system that systematically destroyed our country and people are scampering to hide any number of skeletons in overflowing closets and graves. These people have a whole lot to answer for!

Thank GOD for PM Sheriff Minnis!

Cat Island Boy, you don't know what you are talking about. There are other persons who should be removed ,who are still in the OPM.