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Exempt Supplies

Tax Policies

Exempt Supplies

July 26, 2019
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  • Guyana Revenue Authority

The Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) hereby advises taxpayers that based on the Amendments to the Value – Added Tax Act, Cap81:05, the following is the revised list of exempt supplies as contained in Schedule II to Act. This list shall be deemed to have come into operation on the 1st of February 2017, except:

  1. Paragraphs 10(a) 19, 20, 21 and 22 which came into operation on the 1st day of January 2018;
  2. Paragraph 3, sub-paragraphs (d) and (e); paragraph 7, sub-paragraphs (l) and (m) ; paragraph 8, the words ‘and goods qualifying under tariff heading 90.21 in the First Schedule of the Customs Act, Cap.82:01’; paragraphs (g) and (h); paragraph 12, sub-paragraph 13, sub-paragraphs (d) and (e); paragraph 19, the words ‘concrete blocks’ and the words ‘and housing’; and paragraph 23 which came into operation on 1st day of January 2019.

In this Schedule –

“ancillary transport services” means stevedoring services, lashing and securing services, cargo inspection services, preparation of customs documentation, container handling services and storage of transported goods or goods to be transported; “export country”means any country other than Guyana and includes a place which is not situated in Guyana, but does not include a specific country or territory that the President by proclamation in the Gazette designates as one that is not an export country; “foreign-going aircraft” means an aircraft engaged in the transportation for reward of passengers or goods wholly or mainly on flights between a location or locations in Guyana and an airport or airports in export countries, or between airports in export countries; “international transport services” means

  1. the services, other than ancillary transport services, of transporting passengers or goods by road, rail, water or air
    1. from a place outside Guyana to another; place outside Guyana where the transport or part of the transport is across the territory of Guyana
    2. from a place outside Guyana to a place in Guyana; or
    3. from place in Guyana to a place outside Guyana;
  2. the services of transporting passengers from a place in Guyana to another place in Guyana to the extent that transport is by aircraft and constitutes “international carriage” as defined in Article 3 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation
  3. the services, including any ancillary transport services, of transporting goods from a place in Guyana to another place in Guyana to the extent that those services are supplied by
    the same supplier as part of the supply of services to which paragraph (a) applies; or
  4. the services of insuring or the arranging of the insurance or the arranging of the transport of passengers or goods to which paragraphs(a) to (c) apply.

“residential dwelling”means a building, premises, structure, or any other place, or any part thereof, used predominantly as a place of residence or abode of a natural person or which is
intended for use as a place of residence or abode of a natural person, together with any appurtenances belonging thereto and enjoyed therewith, but does not include a hotel, guest house, inn, or other establishment that in the usual course of business provides lodging primarily to guests whose typical stay is less than thirty days.

  1. The following supplies are specified as exempt supplies for the purposes of section 18–
    1. a supply of financial services to the extent provided in regulations issued by the Minister
    2. a supply of international transport services;
    3. a supply of – kerosene oil; liquid propane gas; gasoline; and diesel.”
    4. a supply of–
      1. accommodation in a residential dwelling; or
      2. leasehold land by way of lease (not being a grant or sale of the lease of that land) to the extent that the subject land is used or is to be used for the principal purpose of accommodation in a residential dwelling erected or to be erected on that land; or
    5. a supply of any goods or services by the State, a local authority, or a charity where the consideration for the goods or services is nominal in amount or not intended to recover the cost of such goods or services.
    6. a supply of all goods and services by budget agencies named in the Schedule to the Fiscal Management and Accountability Act 2003 and by state agencies that perform regulatory functions by statute; or
    7. a supply of locally mined raw gold or diamonds certified by the Guyana Gold Board, the Geology and Mines Commission or other approved authorised dealers in gold and diamond.
  1. The following educational materials are exempt for the purposes of section 18-
    1. printed books, including children’s picture books, children’s drawing books, children’s story books, coloring books, instructional newspapers and newsletters, textbooks, dictionaries, atlases, music manuscripts, recipe books, religious books, novels, exercise books, notebooks (spiral and composition), graph books and graph paper;
    2. educational charts, alphabetical charts, numbers charts, maps, globes
    3. school supplies of student-use quality, including file paper (loose leaf ruled three-holed filler paper), crayons (wax and wooden), dividers and compasses for school use, erasers, chalk (white and colored), chalkboard erasers, hand held pencil sharpeners, simple protractors used by students, scientific calculators only, rulers, pencils, student’s paints(whether in tablets, tubes, jars, bottles, sets or similar forms and packages), lunch kits, lunch packs, lunch bags and geometry sets;
    4. educational robot kits
    5. a supply of locally produced school uniforms for the nursery, primary and secondary levels of education.
  1. The following food items are exempt for the purposes of section 18 –
    1. bread made with wheat flour or whole wheat flour whether plait or sliced and tennis rolls
    2. raw brown rice, raw white rice and parboiled rice
    3. raw brown sugar
    4. cooking oil – vegetable, corn and coconut oil
    5. cow’s milk and milk powder, evaporated milk, liquid cow’s milk including Ultra High Temperature (UHT) milk and fully and partially skimmed milk, powdered milk (skim and cream) but not including other milk such as flavoured milk
    6. baby formula
    7. baby cereal
    8. fresh fruits, but not including apples, grapes, dates, prunes, peaches, plums, strawberries and other assorted berries
    9. fresh vegetables, including onions, garlic, potatoes but not including olives, radishes, broccoli and cauliflower and similar assorted vegetables
    10. dried split peas, pigeon peas (not including canned pigeon peas), dried kidney beans (not including canned kidney beans), dried chick peas (not including canned chick peas), dried black-eyed peas (not including canned black-eyed peas)
  1. unprocessed wheat;
  2. wheaten flour;
  3. barley flour;
  4. plantain flour;
  5. roti-mix;
  6. self-rising flour;
  7. cassava bread;
  8. casreep;
  9. cheddar cheese but not including grated, powdered or single sliced cheese;
  10. farine;
  11. margarine;
  12. uncooked bird’s eggs;
  13. baking powder, including Champion, Lion and all other brands of baking powder;
  14. cooking salt such as Iodine, Dec, Kosher, black, table salt etc
  15. uncooked fresh, chilled or frozen chicken;
  16. baby chick and live chicken;
  17. fresh, chilled or frozen pork, beef, shrimp, prawns, mutton; fresh, chilled or frozen fish, salted fish, but not including canned products.
  1. The following consumer items are exempt for the purposes of section 18 –
    1. diapers such as pampers for adults and babies;
    2. kerosene stoves;
    3. sanitary napkins or panty liners;
    4. toilet tissue in rolls;
    5. bleach;
    6. soap powder;
    7. laundry soap;
    8. matches; and
    9. mosquito nets.
  2. The following domestic services are exempt for the purposes of section 18 –
    1. funeral services;
    2. human remains.
  1. The following agriculture items are exempt for the purposes of section 18 –
    1. paddy;
    2. vegetable seeds (used for garden purposes);
    3. fertilizers;
    4. fish hooks, sheet lead, fishing floats, cotton and styrofoam for use in the fishing industry;
    5. harrows, cultivators, scarifiers, ploughs, weeders and hoes;
    6. ice for fishing purposes;
    7. knotted netting twine, cordage or rope made up of fishing nets and other made up nets, of textile materials;
    8. machinery used for preparing animal feeding stuffs;
    9. machinery, equipment or components used in the generation of renewable energy in the agriculture sector using agricultural by-products;
    10. a supply of poultry feed, cattle feed, pig feed, other animal feed, and ingredients of poultry and animal feed as determined by the Commissioner-General, but not including pet feed;
    11. hatching egg;
    12. equipment and chemicals for water treatment and production plants;
    13. pesticides
  1. Exempted for the purposes of section 18 are a supply of medical, dental, hospital, optical or paramedical services, other than veterinary services, and goods qualifying under tariff heading 90.21 in the First Schedule of the Customs Act, Cap. 82:01.
  1. Exempted for the purposes of section 18 are a supply of computers, including internal hardware devices, computer accessories, notebooks, laptops and ink-jet printers.
  1. The following supplies of import of motor vehicles are exempt for the purposes of section 18 –
    1. importation of motor vehicles that are at least 4 years and older from the date of manufacture; except coaches and buses which transport more than 21 persons but not exceeding 29persons;
    2. motor vehicles for persons qualifying for exemption from customs duties under section 23 of the Customs Act;
    3. motor vehicles when imported by any diplomatic mission or consulate or diplomats accredited to Guyana -who qualify under the First Schedule, Part III B2 item 6 made under the
      Customs Act;
    4. all-terrain vehicles for use in the mining industry and by Toshaos from Amerindian communities, approved by the Commissioner;
    5. motor vehicles imported by or for the use of the President;
    6. motor vehicles imported by or for the use of the Prime Minister;
    7. total exemptions for vehicles for re-migrants, settlers and returning students shall be in accordance with the provisions of section 23 of the Customs Act, Cap. 82:01;
    8. motor vehicles designed for use by differently-abled persons, or converted for use by such persons, subject to the satisfaction of the Commissioner, on the conditions that-
      1. the authority representing differently-abled persons certifies that the person and the motor vehicle are eligible; and
      2. the motor vehicle cannot be transferred, leased or sold for a period of five years from the date of registration.
  1. The following supplies of sports gear and sports equipment are exempt for the purposes of section 18 –
    1. a passenger vehicle as shown to the satisfaction of the Commissioner to have been won abroad, or bestowed as an honorary or prize to a sports personality; and
    2. a supply of cup, medal, shield or similar trophy, which is shown to the satisfaction of the Commissioner not to be of general utility, not bearing any advertisement, not imported or stocked for the purpose of trade, imported for the purpose of bestowal as an honorary distinction or prize, either won abroad or awarded by a donor resident abroad.
    1. Exempted for the purposes of section 18 are a supply of machinery and equipment for obtaining, generating and utilizing electricity from renewable energy sources, including solar panels, solar lamps, deep-cycle batteries, solar generators, solar cookers, solar water heaters,(DC)solar refrigerators, direct current (DC) solar freezers, direct current (DC) solar air-conditioners, power inverters, water turbines, wind turbines, energy efficient lighting, including compact fluorescent lamps and light emitting diode (LED) lamps.
    2. a supply of items including machinery and equipment for utilizing alternate energy technologies, renewable energy options such as gasifiers to use biomass, and harnessing renewable energy through wind, solar and water, as determined by the Commissioner.
  1. The following supplies of transportation and travel are exempt for the purposes of section 18 –
    1. bicycles;
    2. river and land crossing services subject to the signing of an agreement between the provider of the service and the Government of Guyana;
    3. services of transporting passengers or goods by air from one place in Guyana to another place in Guyana subject to the signing of an agreement between the Government and the provider of the service for persons living in rural areas;
    4. boats used in rural and riverain areas designed for the transport of goods and persons not exceeding 7.08 cubic metres (250 cubic feet), proven to the satisfaction of the Commissioner.
    5. aircraft engines, main components and parts, as determined by the Commissioner.
  1. The following are exempt for the purposes of section 18 –
    1. deleted by order No. 40 of 2017
    2. coins, bank notes and other monetary instruments imported by or on behalf of the Government;
    3. importation of personal effects by re-migrants who qualify for exemption from customs duties under section 23 of the Customs Act;
    4. goods imported for non-commercial purposes and contained in a passenger’s baggage or imported in gift parcels sent by air or sea or by parcel post, of which the cost, insurance and freight (CIF) value does not exceed the Guyana dollar equivalent of US$200.00, subject to the provisions contained in Annex I of the First Schedule Part I of the CustomsAct;
    5. a supply of goods and services to or for use by persons qualifying under the First Schedule Part III B(ii) Item44(i) and 44(ii) of the Customs Act;
    6. a supply of goods for use by persons qualifying under the First Schedule Part IIIB(ii) Item 6 of the Customs Act.
  1. Exempt for the purposes of section 18 are supplies of items, as approved by the Commissioner, (excluding motor vehicles and all-terrain vehicles), imported or acquired for use by charitable organisations or nongovernmental organisations or for free distribution to the lessfortunate.
  2. Exempt for the purpose of section 18 are supplies of goods that have been or will be re-imported into Guyana by the supplier.
    1. Exempt for the purposes of section 18 are supplies of postal services rendered by the Guyana Post Office Corporation.
    2. For the purpose of sub-paragraph (a), a supply of postal
      services means –

      1. sale of domestic and overseas postage stamps; commemorative stamps and revenue stamps;
      2. delivery of all types of mail but does not include packages;
      3. delivery of all types of registered mail but does not include packages;
      4. delivery, tracking and tracing of mail utilizing the express mail service;
      5. the advice of delivery services rendered for domestic and overseas mail tracking.
      1. Exempt for the purposes of section 18 are supplies of Common User Terminal Equipment (CUTE) Fee, Airport Security Fee and Passenger Screening Fee.
      2. For the purpose of sub-paragraph (a), a supply of CUTE fee, airport security fee and passenger screening fee means-
        1. CUTE Fee – fees charged for using the Airport Check In Counters, Flight Information Display System, Conveyor System, and the Airline Check In Systems inclusive of the Boarding Gates;
        2. Airport Security Fee – fees charged for use of staff and equipment to screen passengers at all access control points and gates inclusive of the Hold Baggage Screening;
        3. Passenger Screening Fee – fees charged for screening of all departing passengers at the main screening point of the airport.
  1. Exempt for the purposes of section 18 are supplies of locally produced concrete blocks, plywood, logs and lumber of a type and quality used in construction and housing, or any other material which is proven to the satisfaction of the Commissioner-General to be similar.
  2. Exempt for the purposes of section 18 are supplies of private educational services provided by private educational institutions.
  3. Exempt for the purposes of section 18 are buses less than four years old used to transport more than 21 persons but not exceeding 29 persons.
  4. Exempt for the purposes of section 18 are supplies of complete housing units
    costing less than 6.5 million dollars and built by or on behalf of the Central Housing and Planning Authority or any other approved entity.
  5. Smartphones and handsets with special applications and accessibility features for differently abled persons, as certified by the authority representing differently-abled persons, proven to the Commissioner.

Contact Us:
Tax Advisory Services Section
Communications & Tax Advisory Services Division
Guyana Revenue Authority
200 -201 Camp Street
Georgetown
Guyana
Tel: 227-6060 | 227-8222 Ext: 1201-1204
Email: gravat@gra.gov.gy
Website: www.gra.gov.gy

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