Taxes to net R5 billion in revenue |01 December 2011

Presenting his Budget address before the National Assembly on Tuesday, Vice-President Danny Faure, in his capacity as Minister for Finance and Trade, gave details of revenues the government will collect through various taxes.

R645.8m is expected to be collected next year through income tax on all workers in the country. This tax, which is calculated based on a worker’s salary, is charged at a rate of 15%.

Trades tax will generate R446m. Trades Tax is greater than 0% on only 6% of the various types of products that can enter the country. 94% of items enter at a 0% rate.
 
Excise tax, which is levied on only four specific products -- alcohol, cigarettes, fuel and vehicles --  is expected to bring in R737.6m.

GST, which will only be in operation until the end of June 2012, will bring in R751.1m in revenue while VAT (Value Added Tax) – which will replace GST after June 2012 – will bring in R626m. Combined, these taxes will generate R1.377 billion.

The main change in policy in this tax concerns the tourism sector which commencing November 1, 2011 is charging a 15% like other services. This change is anticipated to account for an extra R130m in revenue in 2012.

Government forecasts collections of R778m through business tax, which is charged on the profits of a company. There is no significant change to the structure of this tax next year.

Government also forecasts that other taxes such as road tax, license fees for business or industrial fishing vessels, stamp duty, among others, will generate R287m next year, while contributions to the Seychelles Pension Fund will be R97m.

Non-tax revenues, which include fees and charges and other government receipts, are expected to generate R615m in 2012. This will include dividends from companies in which the government has shares, such as Nouvobanq, Sepec, STC and others.