30% Corporate Tax Rate? 3% IVSS? 1% Tax on Personal Assets?

[Fabio J. Guzman]

These are some of the ideas being talked about in government circles to raise funds to plug the Baninter "hole".

The corporate tax rate would be increased from the current 25% to 30%.

3% IVSS (property tax on homes and residential properties in the cities) would mean tripling the present rate.

We would also be adopting a tax common in South America: a tax on all personal assets ("impuesto sobre el patrimonio"). Every individual would pay 1% of his net worth every year.

[Timex]

In the Aug, 5th, letter of intent to the IMF, signed by the 3 Stooges, I'm wondering about Section VI, article 21.

See Below.

Mr. Horst Köhler
Managing Director
International Monetary Fund
Washington, D.C. 20431



Dear Mr. Köhler:

The deterioration in the external environment and the failure of a large private bank have adversely affected confidence, put pressure on the peso, and weakened the public finances.
XXX
XXXXX
XXXXXXX
signed by
Sincerely yours,
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jose Lois Malkún, Governor, Central Bank /s/
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rafael Calderon, Secretary of, Finance /s/
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carlos Despradel, Technical Secretary, of the Presidency

VI. Exchange Rate and Monetary Policies

21. The government is committed to a freely floating exchange rate. Intervention is being limited to what is necessary to achieve the net international reserves targets and to prevent excessive exchange rate volatility. However, if in the remainder of 2003 the net international reserves fall below the continuous monthly floor specified in the TMU, a general discussion of monetary and intervention policies will be initiated with IMF staff. A mechanism will be developed by end-November 2003 for the central bank to competitively access the private foreign exchange market. For this purpose, IMF technical assistance is being sought.




I'm waiting to see what that mechanism turns out to be.
Anybody have, some ideas???????

Thanks
Tim H.

[Hillbilly]

Pedro Silverio Op-Ed article in today's El Caribe.

These proposals will cause a total disruption of the country.

And you imagine a friend of mine with $60,000,000 dollars in real estate in Bávaro payiing $600,000 a year in taxes???

Or José Hernández, the owner of Caribe Tours and the largest money changer in the country paying??? million...

Or the guy that has ofver 2,000 "Bancas" or betting offices???

This is crapola to the nth degree.

And I can just imagine the imaginative bookkeeping that will be created to avoid those extra 5%...Just imagine 5% of Codetel's bottom line??? or Grupo Leon Jimenes?????

No freaking way...

HB

[Texas Bill]

Hillbilly

I imagine we'll see a rapid and exceptionally high increase in "business expense" columns of all tax returns to the (?)Government!

BTW, how do businesses file and what forms are required to file business tax returns in this country???

Texas Bill

[mondongo]

In October, the IMF posted a letter (on its website) to the DR authorities, this is an excerpt of what the IMF proposed. The terms in parentheses were added by yours truly:

"(IMF) Directors urged the authorities (DR) to advance approval of a tax reform to broaden the base of consumption and income taxes, and to seek prompt approval of budgetary reforms to improve the efficiency of public spending (re-arrange the spending deck chairs). They also noted that the sale of public assets (are there any left?) could contribute to the reduction of public debt over the medium term."