The government has made significant changes to the administrative procedures of the Entertainment Tax.
A recent Cabinet decision outlined that events with gross ticket revenues of $0 to $50,000 (small promoters) are now exempted from the payment of the Entertainment Tax. However, a 2-percent tax will be applied to all-inclusive events with gross revenue of over $50,000, while 4 percent will be applied to non all-inclusive events with a gross revenue of over $50,000.
Promoters hosting church events, school charities, national festivities and sporting events – once they satisfy the requirements for exemption by the Minister of Sports – will also be excluded from paying the tax.
Additionally, a 4-percent tax would apply to all events that are not all-inclusive and grossing over $100,000. Artistes from outside of CARICOM will be subjected to a withholding tax of 25 percent.
Meanwhile, promoters organising a ticketed or paid event are still required to apply to the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) for an event certificate, be in good standing for all taxes with the relevant departments, and bring all paper tickets to be stamped before all events.
The measure, which took effect from January 1 this year, after a two-year moratorium, is a tax that is charged on ticket sales or the entrance fees paid at the gate to attend fetes or parties.
In the initial stages, officials at the IRD had announced that organisers of events making between zero to $100,000 would pay a flat fee of $1,500, while all-inclusive events making more than $100,000 will pay a 2-percent tax.