The 0.1% Catastrophe Fund within the National Insurance scheme will be abolished and replaced with a 0.25% Resilience and Regeneration Fund that will not be subject to the insurable earnings ceiling and therefore will be calculated on the full amount of a person's salary.
Effective from June 1st, 2025, a 20% Excise Tax will apply to salted products such as pringles, lays, salted nuts, tortilla chips and salted crackers (e.g. ritz).
It is proposed that the Corporation Tax rate on profits derived from residential mortgages valued over BBD $250,000 which are offered pursuant to the Mortgage Insurance Act, Cap. 233 will be reduced to 9%. This brings the standard rate of Corporation Tax rate under that Act in line with the standard rate of Corporation Tax for other companies under the Income Tax Act, Cap. 73.
It is also proposed that Corporation Tax on profits derived from residential mortgages not exceeding BBD $250,000 which are offered pursuant to the Mortgage Insurance Act, Cap. 233 shall be reduced to 4.5%.
Effective from Income Year 2025, the Personal Allowance will be increased to BBD $50,000 for persons of retirement age who are in receipt of a pension.
Effective April 1st, 2025 for a period of three years, the Property Transfer Tax will be zero-rated for real estate not exceeding 1 acre in size that is transferred via a deed of gift to the child or children of the homeowner.
Effective July 1st, 2025, the Visitor Driving Permit regime will be abolished. In its place, a daily car rental fee will be introduced, at a rate of BBD $10 per day.
It is proposed to expand the remit of the Barbados Deposit Insurance Corporation to hold the security deposits on behalf of tenants and landlords, and to act as a neutral third party in the event of claims on security deposits at the end of a tenancy agreement.
This scheme will likely not apply to existing tenancy agreements, but will be compulsory for new tenancy agreements once the scheme is brought into force.
Any person who is 18 years of age or older who:
is eligible for a one-off solidarity allowance of BBD $300, as long as the person has been ordinarily resident in Barbados for the past 12 months (i.e. since April 1st, 2024). It must be claimed by June 30th, 2025.
Between July 1st, 2025 and June 30th, 2026, the Airport Service Charge for regional travel within CARICOM will be reduced from USD $35 to USD $20.
Restaurants not on a hotel compound which earn more than 60% of their income in foreign currency will be eligible to register as a tourism provider under the Tourism Development Act, Cap. 341. Such restaurants will be eligible for food and beverage concessions in respect of wines and proteins.
The reduced rate of Value Added Tax of 7.5% on the first 250 kWh of electricity for residential properties will be extended until March 31st, 2026.
Effective April 1st, 2025, Import Duty and Value Added Tax will be zero-rated on pears (not avocados), mandarins, grapefruits and plums.
Effective April 1st, 2025 until March 31st, 2027, Value Added Tax will be zero-rated on commercial kitchen equipment that falls under Tariff Heading 7321.8418 for restaurants and cook shops.
The Income Tax allowance for union membership fees will be increased to BBD $360 and will retroactively apply to Income Year 2024. Therefore, taxpayers will be able to claim the increased allowance during next month’s filing period.
Effective January 1st, 2026, the National Minimum Wage will automatically increase by a minimum of 2% each year.
Maternity leave will be increased to 14 weeks for a woman who gives birth to a single child, and 17 weeks for a woman who gives birth to more than one child during a single pregnancy. The eligibility criteria will change so that a mother will still be eligible for maternity leave even if the child is born outside Barbados as long as the mother is ordinarily resident in Barbados.
Paternity leave for fathers will be introduced from June 1st, 2025. Men will be entitled to three weeks' paternity leave.
Effective June 1st, 2025, it will no longer be a requirement for both parents to be living together when the child is born in order to access these benefits.