Press Releases

Press Release -More exemption on basic commodities.

May 23, 2017

Tuesday 23rd May 2017, VICTORIA, SEYCHELLES: A list of seven basic commodities has been revised and will now be exempted from the Value Added Tax (VAT), as from the 15th April 2017.

The goods are as follows:

Liquid Milk

Milk/Cream not concentrated or containing added sugar or sweetening of fat <1%

 

Milk/Cream not concentrated fat >1% <6%

 

Milk and cream not concentrated reconstituted (e.g.UHT) of a fat content by weight > 6%

 

Fresh milk and cream of a fat content > 6 % by weight (whipping cream)

 

Other milk and cream of a fat content > 6% by weight

 

 

 

Coffee

Coffee not roasted or decaffeinated

 

Unroasted decaffeinated coffee

 

Roasted coffee not decaffeinated

 

Roasted decaffeinated coffee

 

Coffee husks and skins

 

Other coffee and coffee substitutes

 

Extracts, essences and concentrates of coffee and preparation with a basis of coffee

 

Roasted chicory/other roasted coffee subs extracts essences decaffeinated and not decaffeinated

Washing powder

Washing preparations put up for retail sale

 

Tea

Green tea flavoured or not, in packings not exceeding 3 kg

 

Black tea partly or fully fermented, flavoured or not in packings not exceeding 3kg

 

Mate

 

Herbal Infusions

Sauces

Soya sauce

 

Tomato ketchup and other tomato sauces

 

Mustard flour, meal and prepared mustard

 

Chilli sauce

 

Other sauces, mixed condiments and mixed seasoning

 

Cheese (Edam, Gouda or Cheddar)

Fresh (unripened or uncurd)

 

Grated or powdered

 

Processed cheese not grated or powdered

 

Blue veined cheese and other cheese containing veins

Cereals

Groats and meal of wheat, maize (corn), rice, oats

 

Cereal pellets

 

Rolled or flaked grains of oats

worked grains of oats, maize (corn), eg. hulled, pearled, sliced or kibbled

 

Germs of cereals, whole, rolled, flaked or ground

 

Bulgur wheat

 

Cereals pre-cooked

 

Prepared food obtained by swelling or roasting of cereal or its products in grain, flakes precooked

 

Prepared foods obtained from unroasted cereal flakes or from mixtures of unroasted or roasted cereal flakes and roasted cereal flakes or swelled cereals

Soups

Soups and broths

 

Homogenised composite food

 

 

Household detergents

Soap and organic surface-active products for toilet use (incl. medicated products)

 

Organic surface-active agent prep for washing in the form of liquid or bars

 

Organic surface, active agents products & prep. for washing skin in form of liquid

 

Anionic, Cationic, Non-ionic, organic surface-active agents, whether or not put up for retail sale, washing preparations & cleaning preparations

 

Healthy cooking oils

Soya-bean oil,

Crude oil,

 

soya-bean oil

 

Ground nut oil

 

Virgin olive oil

 

Sunflower-seed safflower oil

 

Maize (corn) oil

 

Castor oil

 

Sesame oil

 Upon exemption of the goods as from April 2017, it is estimated that the Government will incur a loss of approximately RS. 26.67 million.

 The revision of the basic goods follows the announcement made by President Danny Faure in his State of the Nation Address in February this year, stating that the government will revise the list of goods, which will not be subjected to VAT in its effort to reduce the cost of living. Government is therefore counting on private sector to ensure that the benefit accrued from the new exemptions is transmitted to the consumers through price reductions.

 The Minister for Finance, Trade and Economic Planning, Dr. Peter Larose also echoed the same message whilst delivering his budget speech for 2017. Minister Larose pointed out that; “our strategy is to start with State Owned Enterprises (SOEs), so that they reduce the cost of their goods and services offered to consumers. SOEs should set the example, and we expect that the private sector will join forces. We will do it because we have made a commitment to put more money in the people’s pockets”.

 The Ministry of Finance, Trade and Economic Planning has consulted the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for sub-groups of items 2014 – 2016, compiled by the National Bureau of Statistics as a baseline for goods presently not exempted from VAT.

Additional goods have also been proposed to the government for approval for publication and they comprised of healthy cooking oils, herbal fusion tea, cornflakes, all soups and broths.

You are welcomed to meet with us on Friday 26th May 2017, at 3.45 p.m at Liberty House, to provide additional details of the Press Release.

Thanking you

 

Marie-May Bastienne

Public & Media Relations Consultant

Ministry of Finance, Trade & Economic Planning

prm@finance.gov.sc

2822168

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