Documents Required:
- All Vehicles – Importers are required to apply for an import license before shipping a vehicle.
- If used – The owner’s logbook and insurance policy for the period of ownership plus any other supporting documents which provide proof of period of ownership.
- If new – A commercial invoice is required for all new vehicles.
Restrictions & Requirements:
- If client is not a diplomat or returning national – Vehicles must be four (4) years or under with an odometer reading of 50, 000 km or less.
- If client is a returning national – There are no restrictions on age or mileage provided the candidate meets all other requirements outlined in the Returning National Guidelines. The vehicle is free of all normally applicable import duties and taxes.
- If client is a diplomat – No restrictions apply in this case, and the vehicle is free of all normally applicable import duties and taxes.
Rates of Duty on Vehicles:
1. Import duty is 45% on all vehicles.
2. Environmental Levy is $156.00 per vehicle
3. Value Added Tax (V.A.T.) is 15%
4. Port FAS charge
5. Excise Tax
Excise Tax on Vehicles:
1. Where the chargeable value does not exceed $30,000 – rate of excise tax is 46.95%
2. Where the engine capacity is not more than 1600cc and the chargeable value exceeds $30,000 – rate of excise tax is 64.35%
3. Where the engine capacity is not more than 1600cc and the chargeable value does not exceed $30,000 – rate of excise tax is 76.34%
4. Where the engine capacity is more than 1600cc and the chargeable value exceeds $30,000 – rate of excise tax is 93.73%
Clearance of vehicles by returning nationals
Returning Nationals are permitted a period of three (3) months before and three (3) months after the date of arrival in the country to import (not purchase) their personal and household effects, whether used or new, under the Programme.
The Comptroller of Customs shall retain his discretionary power in respect of household and personal effects imported outside the three month period. Applications for extension to this period must be made in writing to the Comptroller of Customs before the expiration of said period. Extensions are not automatic and are based on the merits of the particular case.
The clearance of personal and household effects (and vehicles) on behalf of persons who qualify as Returning Nationals, but have not yet entered the country, may only be facilitated by the posting of a bond for the total amount of the duties and taxes assessed. The bond can be arranged with any commercial bank but must include the payment of stamp duty at the rate of one-quarter of one percent (0.0025) of the assessed duties and taxes. (A bond for the assessed duties of BBD $ 100,000 will carry a stamp duty of BBD $250.) The bond is released when the Returning National has presented the necessary documentation attesting to the eligibility under the Programme.
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