Caribbean Tax Update

What you receive

Every edition is organised in fixed sections. Case law covers the decisions of the Courts of First Instance of Sint Maarten, Curaçao, Aruba and the BES islands, the Joint Court of Justice and the Supreme Court of the Netherlands in Caribbean tax matters, including customs, social security premiums and tax collection. The sections Sint Maarten, Curaçao, Aruba, Caribbean Netherlands and Suriname report on new and pending legislation, publications in the official gazettes, announcements of the tax administrations and ministries of finance, and parliamentary developments. A closing section covers Kingdom and international developments that affect the islands, such as tax treaties, OECD initiatives and Dutch legislation with Caribbean effect.

Frequency

The Caribbean Tax Update appears every Monday morning. When nothing of substance has been published in a given week, no edition is sent.

Sources

All items are based on publicly available sources: the case law database of the Dutch judiciary (rechtspraak.nl), the official gazettes and government websites of Sint Maarten, Curaçao, Aruba, the Caribbean Netherlands and Suriname, the tax administrations, the parliaments, the Board of financial supervision and international organisations. Summaries are written in English; most source documents are in Dutch.

Editor

The Caribbean Tax Update is published by Aalbers Private Tax Advisory, a boutique tax firm in Simpson Bay, Sint Maarten, and is edited by Marco Aalbers, tax adviser and former tax inspector of Sint Maarten, co-author of Selected Topics in Caribbean Tax Law and author of the Sint Maarten section of the Vakstudie Caribisch Koninkrijksdeel (Wolters Kluwer).

Disclaimer

The summaries are provided for general information only and do not constitute tax advice. No rights can be derived from this publication and no liability is accepted for any reliance on it. For advice on your own situation, please contact us at info@aalbersprivatetaxadvisory.com.

Previous editions

All editions of the Caribbean Tax Update, most recent first. Each edition can be read in full online.

No. 2026/08 | 19 October 2026

• Inspector ordered to issue a profit tax refund assessment of NAf 27,877 after missing the six-month term without a reasoned notice
• Opposition to enforcement orders and attachment of a home rejected; pending tax appeal does not stop collection
• Joint Court declares the Inspector's appeal inadmissible after he failed to state grounds for almost two years
• No step-up in acquisition price for shares in an Antillean N.V. received from an Antillean foundation, because the attribution stop was never actually applied
• Tax Administration congratulates its new adviser Wim Nijdam on a doctorate about the rise in Curaçao's tax revenue
• Receivers Office partially closed on 19 October; only the Cashiers Section remained open
• Deadline for requesting the wage tax exclusion of overtime pay extended from two weeks to three months
• SER annual report 2025 recalls its critical advice on the tax reform, the minimum tax, fees and the property tax initiative
• Tax administration asks taxpayers to use its online contact form for digital questions
• Excise on petrol and gas oil temporarily lowered by Afl. 3.24 per hectolitre until 31 December 2026
• Economic Affairs Department reorganised to absorb consumer protection and the tasks arising from mandatory UBO registration
• Revised 2027 draft budget of Bonaire estimates local levies at USD 43.0 million
• Tax administration publishes a new form to request a three-month extension for filing annual accounts
• Temporary unemployment benefit for the BES islands starts on 1 January 2027; information sessions on Saba and Sint Eustatius
• National Assembly continues debate on the Collection Act; government announces a memorandum of amendment
• Tax debt settlement scheme provisionally yields SRD 1.25 billion, more than twice the estimate
• Committee of rapporteurs hears the tax administration and the customs union on the draft General Customs Act 2026
• Tax-exempt child allowance doubled to SRD 250 per child per month
• OECD tax report to the G20 counts about 65 jurisdictions introducing the global minimum tax and confirms Suriname's Global Forum membership
• Global Forum completes its first accelerator programme on cross-border assistance in the recovery of tax claims
• Sigmar Carmelia installed as president of the Joint Court of Justice

Read the full edition 2026/08

No. 2026/07 | 12 October 2026

• Bookkeeper of a construction company sentenced to twelve months, six suspended, for tax fraud, habitual money laundering and forgery
• Director of an accountancy firm convicted of culpable money laundering for passing on tax payments of a client that were not remitted to the Belastingdienst
• Former partner of the bookkeeper acquitted of laundering USD 110,000 received on his account
• Council of Advice asked to advise on an initiative ordinance turning the Road Fund into an independent administrative body
• Minister Plenipotentiary meets Cft representatives on institutional capacity and long-term resilience
• Tax inspectorate takes part in multidisciplinary checks of garages and scrapyards
• Council of Advice asked to advise on converting a receivable on Free Zone Aruba N.V. into equity
• Government proposes to phase out the BES petrol excise reduction gradually and let it end on 1 January 2029 instead of 2028
• Government explains why diesel is not subject to excise on the BES islands and confirms it will pay the higher mileage allowance as employer
• Tax office on Saba closed on Monday 12 October 2026
• Customs among the services carrying out joint maritime checks during the 59th Bonaire Regatta
• National Assembly starts its public debate on the new Collection Act, into which the act on collection costs has been merged
• Partial import duty exemption for qualifying business assets extended for twelve months
• Minister of Finance aims to reduce the 2027 deficit through spending control and more efficient collection by the tax and customs authorities
• Court of Justice opens its judicial year with 45 judges and plans multi-judge first-instance hearings, including in tax cases
• EU Council removes Panama and Viet Nam from its tax blacklist; Anguilla, the Turks and Caicos Islands and the US Virgin Islands remain listed
• Kingdom list of treaties in preparation includes tax treaties for Curaçao and information exchange agreements for Aruba and Sint Maarten
• OECD and CARICOM report on regional cooperation as the Caribbean tax-to-GDP ratio edges down to 22.3 percent
• Global Forum publishes practical guidance on confidentiality and information security and on the secure use of AI by tax authorities

Read the full edition 2026/07

No. 2026/06 | 6 October 2026

• Opposition to the tax collector's writs fails; an opposition cannot dispute the tax debt and the attachment of the director's home is not disproportionate
• Inspector of Taxes sets out the tax obligations of promoters and event organizers engaging foreign artists
• Rental income from real estate is in principle subject to 5 percent turnover tax, with a limited exemption for permanent residential lets
• Minister of Finance promotes the 24-month payment plan for outstanding income tax assessments; applications close on 31 December 2026
• Parliament's Central Committee questions the Council of Ministers on the draft 2027 budget
• Tax Administration visits four primary school classes during Literacy Month
• Tax Administration explains record-keeping and tax obligations to starting entrepreneurs at Qredits
• Belastingdienst checks the authenticity and validity of identity documents
• Temporary fuel excise reductions applied between April and August 2026 formally laid down with retroactive effect
• Minister of Finance discusses budget revisions, fiscal priorities and a new revenue forecasting model with the IMF
• Prosecutor issues summonses in the Kwihi case, which includes suspicions of tax fraud
• Eerste Kamer adopts the Fiscale verzamelwet BES eilanden 2027 without debate
• Tweede Kamer factions ask why the BES islands levy no excise on diesel and how many employees will receive the higher mileage allowance
• Annual address: better compliance and collection and a broader tax base instead of higher tax burdens
• National Assembly consults professional bodies on the new general tax act and collection acts; public debate on the Algemene Wet Belastingen resumes
• New tax treaty with Bangladesh submitted for tacit approval; it will apply to the Caribbean Netherlands but not to Aruba, Curaçao or Sint Maarten
• OECD publishes the full version of the 2025 Model Tax Convention

Read the full edition 2026/06

Older editions (click to expand):

No. 2026/05 | 28 September 2026

• Assets gifted to a Curaçao SPF are not separated private assets where the father directs the foundation; the SPF was effectively managed from the Netherlands
• 2026 ground lease bills can now be paid at the Departamento di Impuesto; final payment date is 13 November 2026
• Tax office holds BOi registration sessions in the districts in October
• Centraal Dialoog Bonaire opposes extending the BES transfer tax to economic ownership and real estate shares without a broader review of the tax system
• Cft asks Sint Eustatius to substantiate its tourist tax and other revenue estimates in the 2027 draft budget
• Cft questions the realism of Saba's tourist tax estimate after a 2025 outturn of USD 18,425 against USD 75,000 budgeted
• Global Forum concludes four regional workshops on the amended Common Reporting Standard ahead of the first exchanges in September 2027

Read the full edition 2026/05

No. 2026/04 | 21 September 2026

• Mounting material for solar panels is not classified as parts of solar panels; only the cables keep the 2 percent rate
• The tax court may not dismiss an appeal for lack of interest on the ground that the Receiver is barred from collecting
• Minister of Finance says the systems of the Inspectorate and the Receiver still do not communicate, so the total amount outstanding is unknown
• New licence plates announced for 2027 and personalised plates for 2028 to support road tax enforcement
• 2027 draft budget projects just over XCG 2 billion in tax revenue, XCG 187 million more than in 2026
• Cft reports profit tax, turnover tax and property tax above budget in the second quarter, but repeats that information on the tax administration is missing
• Ministry of Finance publishes Mini Mòni, a plain-language guide to the national budget
• Motor vehicle tax for 2027 can now be paid; the deadline is 1 February 2027
• Belastingplan 2027 raises the untaxed kilometre allowance and temporarily lowers petrol excise on the BES islands
• Tweede Kamer adopts the Fiscale verzamelwet BES eilanden 2027 without a vote
• Prosecution demands prison sentences of 9, 12 and 18 months for tax fraud and money laundering
• Dutch 2027 budget reserves funds for a two-year extension of the Landspakketten to 2029

Read the full edition 2026/04

No. 2026/03 | 14 September 2026

• Director is liable by operation of law for the companies' tax debts; no assessment in his own name is required
• Budget 2026 adopted by Parliament; draft 2027 budget with a Cg 8.1 million surplus handed to the Governor
• Deposit guarantee scheme of the Central Bank takes effect on 28 September 2026
• 2027 budget counts on XCG 82 million from the tourist entry tax while the legislation is not yet in place
• MAN-PIN member asks for tax incentives on solar panels and batteries after power outages
• Tax exemptions for local farmers and fishermen continue and are to be laid down in law from 2027
• Draft 2027 budget submitted to Parliament with a surplus of Afl. 84.1 million
• Tax Administration helps non-entrepreneurs set up their BOi account
• Prosecutor closes tax fraud case after both suspects accept and pay a transaction
• Minister reopens the discussion on replacing BBO with a VAT on the basis of an IMF study
• Island councils take no position on EU outermost region status without further expert advice
• Netherlands publishes 2026 policy decree on international tax law in the profit sphere, including the tax arrangement with Curaçao
• Inclusive Framework releases revised GloBE Information Return and new administrative guidance
• OECD Tax Policy Reforms 2026: reforms aimed at growth, revenue measures remain modest

Read the full edition 2026/03

No. 2026/02 | 7 September 2026

• Tourist tax postponed to 1 January 2027; compliance work yields XCG 30 million in additional collections
• Tax revenue passes XCG 1 billion at mid-year, XCG 83 million above budget
• CAft advises on the 2027 draft budget: surplus of 2.3 percent of GDP and tax revenue up 3 percent
• Boards of financial supervision publish half-year report covering all six Caribbean jurisdictions

Read the full edition 2026/02

No. 2026/01 | 4 September 2026

• Bookkeeping problems and changing accountants do not excuse a late objection; penalties reduced by 15% for undue delay
• Dutch resident renting out three villas on Curaçao is a taxable person for turnover tax; assessments upheld under reversed burden of proof, penalties reduced
• Crypto mining device classified as an electrical apparatus with its own function (10.5%), not as a data processing machine (0%)
• Receiver entitled to close a restaurant after payment arrangements were not honoured
• Severance payment is income from former employment: full AOV/AWW and AZV premiums for the employee's account
• Severance payment counts as personal employment income; personal deductions must be taken by the spouse with the highest employment income
• Student returning from Florida met the six-month requirement for the removal goods exemption on his car; exemption wrongly refused
• Customs value of an imported motorcycle set at the declared USD 3,200; online reference prices insufficient to prove a higher price
• Vessel imported by a commercial fisherman is, on its objective characteristics, a pleasure craft: no exemption from import duties
• Inspector of Import Duties and Excise, not the Inspector of Taxes, is competent to decide objections against BBO/BAVP and BAZV paid on import
• Late-payment penalties of Afl. 125 per period for BBO/BAZV upheld; tax must be paid on time without invitation or reminder
• Objection against penalties for November and December 2020 filed too late; Court does not accept that the penalty notices were never received
• Gain on the sale of shares is fixed at the moment of sale: the agreed price counts as the transfer price even if the buyer later fails to pay
• Objection by a Netherlands resident against a Bonaire motor vehicle tax assessment inadmissible; tenants throwing away mail is at the owner's risk
• Minimum tax bill amended: new OECD safe harbour can reduce the Curaçao top-up tax to zero
• Tax Administration publishes management reports Q1 and Q2 2026 and a digital handbook for start-ups
• Tax Administration grants Saba residents leniency after months of limited mail delivery

Read the full edition 2026/01