Saint Lucia tax system - taxation of Saint Lucian companies and individuals: VAT, income tax and capital gains. Tax treaties of St Lucia.

Domiciled tax residents pay income tax on their worldwide income, non-domiciled tax residents – on income sourced in Saint Lucia and on income sourced abroad but remitted to Saint Lucia, and non-residents – on income sourced in Saint Lucia.

Income tax is levied at progressive rates:

• Income up to XCD 10,000 – 10%;
• XCD 10,000 to 20,000 – 15%;
• XCD 20,000 to 30,000 – 20%;
• Over XCD 30,000 – 30%.

Capital gains are tax exempt. Dividends from corporations and interest from banks are not taxed in Saint Lucia.

Since 2019, Saint Lucia has applied the territorial principle of taxation. Resident companies pay tax on income generated in Saint Lucia and non-resident companies on income sourced in Saint Lucia. The transitional period for IBCs (International Business Companies) incorporated before 2019 that have opted to pay 1% tax, expires on 30 June 2021 / in 2022.

The income tax rate is 30% (for companies with tax arrears – 33.3%).

Dividends are tax exempt.

Gains from the sale of assets are tax free, unless they are profits from ordinary business, in which case the profits are included in the corporate income tax base.

None.

Dividends are exempt from tax.

Royalties and a number of other types of income are subject to 25% withholding tax.

Interest is subject to withholding tax at the rate of 15%.

The standard VAT rate is 12.5%.

A reduced rate of 7% applies in the hospitality industry.

Social security contributions are paid on employment remuneration at the rate of 5% by employers and at the rate of 5% by employees.

The maximum monthly earnings on which contribution is charged is XCD 5,000.

Property tax is payable on residential property at the rate of 0.25% of the property’s market value and on commercial property at the rate of 0.4%.

Stamp duty is levied on various transactions and documents. It is either a fixed amount or a percentage of the transaction value. For example, buyers of real estate pay stamp duty at the rate of 2%, and sellers at the rate from 2.5% to 10%, depending on the transaction value and whether the seller is a resident.

Saint Lucia has 11 Double Tax Treaties (DTC) and 17 Tax Information Exchange Agreements (TIEA) with the following jurisdictions:

11 DTC: Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Switzerland, Trinidad and Tobago.

17 TIEAs: Aruba, Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Germany, Greenland, Iceland, Ireland, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, United Kingdom.

Foreign exchange transactions can generally be made without restrictions.