–workers to benefit from $4.8 billion increase in disposable with increase in ‘threshold’ to $100,000
–$7B set aside, zero per cent excise tax remains in effect on petroleum products to address cost- of-living issues
–education grant moves to $45,000; old-age pension increases to $36,000; public assistance moves to $19,000
=
IN a move to continue putting money back into the pockets of citizens, the government on Monday announced significant measures to benefit citizens, including the increase of the income tax threshold along with increases in old-age pension and public assistance.

These and several other measures were announced by Senior Minister within the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance and Public Service, Dr Ashni Singh, as part of Budget 2024.

He said: “The measures proposed in budget 2024 are all aimed at improving the welfare of our citizens, creating opportunities for our citizens, facilitating and promoting job creation and income generation.”

According to the minister, the income tax threshold was increased from $65,000 to $75,000 in 2022 and subsequently to $85,000 last year.

“I now wish to announce an increase of the threshold to $100,000 monthly with effect from year of income 2024,” Dr Singh said.

This adjustment, he related, will see some 13,000 persons being removed from paying income taxes, and further result in some $4.8 billion being transferred to workers across the country as an increase in disposable income.

Dr Singh said that since the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government assumed office in 2020, the old-age pension has been increased from $20,500 to $33,000 last year.

To this end, he said that the government remains committed to improving the benefits received by pensioners and in this regard, with effect from January 2024, the old-age pension will be increased from $33,000 to $36,000.

This reflects a 75 per cent increase in old-age pension since 2020 and is set to benefit some 76,000 persons, placing some $2.7 billion in the hands of senior citizens.

As part of the package for supporting the vulnerable population, Dr Singh further announced that in 2024, the monthly public assistance received by persons with disabilities will be increased from $16,000 to $19,000.

This, he said, more than doubles the public assistance provided to citizens since the government entered office in 2020, as it had stood at some $9,000 prior to that year. This will place some $1.2 billion in additional disposable income into the hands of over 35,000 persons.

Dr. Singh added that the Because We Care cash grant which was restored by the PPP/C government was increased to $35,000 last year.

This year, the grant will be increased to $40,000 per child and will benefit over 205,000 children placing an additional $1 billion into the hands of parents.

Further, amidst the El Nino phenomenon, the government has provided significant support for drainage and irrigation along with the distribution of fertilisers to farmers to maintain production, while also aiding in mitigating price increases to consumers.

He added: “In this regard, Budget 2024 allocates $7 billion for measures to be determined after consultations with stakeholders aimed at containing and cushioning the impact of price increases.”

Among the cost-of-living measures, Dr Singh said that as global fuel prices remain relatively elevated, the government has maintained a zero per cent excise tax on petroleum products since March 2022.

While world market prices remain volatile, the government, he said, remains responsive in absorbing the impact of fuel prices as a means of mitigating the transfer of higher fuel costs to the people of the country and the productive sector.

This measure of zero per cent excise tax on petroleum products will be kept in place, even as fuel prices remain elevated. At current prices, he disclosed that this measure results in the government foregoing an estimated $40 billion annually.

Additionally, at a cost of some $6 billion, the government in this budget will extend a measure which was in place from August 2021, which saw the adjustment of freight charges to pre-pandemic levels to compute import taxes and to combat the increase in shipping costs.

Dr. Singh further said that an increase in freight prices associated with bottlenecks at both the Panama and Suez canals have been observed and as such, the extension of this measure will mitigate the transmission of escalation of freight prices.

The budget was crafted without the addition of any new taxes, and the government even sought to further remove taxes.

This was evidenced by another measure which seeks to promote access to both sports and technology to the young people in the country by removing Value Added Tax (VAT) and duty from sports equipment and essential technology accessories such as chargers, charging cables and headphones, among other things.

These and other measures, Dr Singh said, will provide over $70 billion of relief to businesses and individuals as they try to contain the impact of imported price increases and provide relief to the most vulnerable and promote expansion of the productive sector, job creation and opportunities.