Benefits of indulging in an immigration Investors Program in St. Lucia.

Saint Lucia citizenship by investment program or immigration investors programs in St. Lucia was brought on January 1, 2016. In the year 2016, 38 applications were sanctioned by the government and 65 passports were given to foreign investors and their family members. Why Saint Lucia? This is because in this region, you can apply for citizenship for the entire family within a retro of 3-5 months, being self-assured in the complete option of the process. Saint Lucia has signed visa-free travel agreements with 120+ countries and provides promising tax conditions. The tax system of Saint Lucia will be in the center stage of this article.

Taxation

Inhabitants of Saint Lucia are bound to deposit a tax on global income and profits extracted from internal activities. People who are not residents of Saint Lucia pay taxes only on income received from local sources.

There is aadvanced PIT scale:

·         up to 10,000 East Caribbean Dollars (XCD) – 10%;

·         10,000 to 20,000 XCD – 15%;

·         20,000 to 30,000 XCD – 20%;

·         over 30,000 XCD – 30%.

The existing law on international firms provides for special tax treatment. Companies listed in Saint Lucia pay only corporate income tax at the smallest rate of 1% (in some cases, a zero rate applies) or an annual license fee, the amount of which relies on the size of the firm’s charter capital. If the company deposits the license fee, it is not appreciative to provide annual reports to the concerned state authorities and carry out an audit.

VAT Payment Terms

Taxes are levied on the transactions in regard to the sale of goods and interpretation services in the territory of the state and importation of goods to Saint Lucia. The putative VAT rate is 15%. In case of a hotel business, an abridged rate of 8% applies.

Registration for VAT payment is needed under an immigration investors program in St. Lucia if the total annual cost of supplies surpasses the verge of 180,000 XCD. There is also an option of intended registration with tax authorities. The payments should be done, and the reporting documentation should be prepared through the 21st day of the month after the reporting month.

As per the terms of the immigration investors program in St. Lucia, foreign investors are given four options for investing:

·         Non-refundable contribution to the national fund. The smallest amount of donation is $100,000 per applicant. The amount of the donation upsurges depending on the number of applicants comprised in the application – from $165,000 per investor and spouse; from $190,000 for a family of 4 people.

·         Purchase of real property. There is a string of objects accepted for investment by the government. The minimum cost is $300,000. The holding period is 5 years.

·         Investment in a business project. The project can be chosen from the objects sanctioned by the government – restaurants, medications, roads and freeways, research firms and others. An investor must invest minimum of $ 3.5 million and develop at least three new jobs.

·         Investment in government bonds – at least $500,000. The investment is reciprocal, but there is an extra $ 50,000 of non-refundable administrative charge that needs to be paid by an applicant. Other nations of the Caribbean region do enable for such a choice.