Belize Tax Service Clarifies MSME Tax Amnesty Ended in September

Belize Tax Service Director General Michelle Longsworth has clarified that the tax amnesty programme for micro, small and medium enterprises ended in September, and not October 31 as previously reported. Longsworth contacted Love News to correct the timeline she provided in an earlier interview, when she said the programme would end next week.

The programme helped seven hundred and thirty-one businesspersons enter the formal economy. Qualifying businesses received a one-year business tax exemption from the date their amnesty certificates were issued, along with waivers of accrued business tax penalties and interest.  Longsworth previously reported that eighty-eight percent of approved participants had met their filing obligations. She described that level of compliance as an encouraging result for small businesses receiving support from the Belize Tax Service and its partner agencies.  The department has also been reviewing participants who failed to meet those obligations. Longsworth said officials intended to contact those businesses to understand their challenges, noting that non-compliance could result in the loss of amnesty benefits and make taxes for the exempted period payable.  The initiative brought together the Belize Tax Service, BELTRAIDE, the Office of the Prime Minister’s Investment Policy and Compliance Unit, and the Economic Development Council. It was designed to help small businesses formalise their operations and improve their access to financing and other support./