I keep wondering, why is there is nothing about the new Tax laws in the papers, does this administration own the newspapers too now? Are we going to get deported for speaking our minds?
Everywhere in the world now governments help their local economies recover after COVID. What is the Palau government doing? They make their own people suffer with a ridiculous increase in tax, when increased prices of goods and fuel, with no tourists, are already making life hard here. Palauans on a pension or relying on SS will not be able to survive next year, young Palauans are leaving the country, because our government and banks are not giving any incentive for them to stay, built their house or start their own business. Long time foreign employees will not be able to get their hard-earned SS. Why did we vote for these people?
Who is benefiting from these new tax laws? Only the government. There is not even a specific purpose for this tax, just for the government to increase their own budget, and pay off their loans. Why is the congress increasing their own salaries at a time they should be tightening their budgets and help their local economy?
Foreign consultants coming to Palau since the 1980s say the only way for this island to stand on its own financially is to decrease the government and their spending, and privatize, encourage Palauans to start their own business so local revenue will be higher than the government budget. But no, this administration wants to make it more top heavy, and take more loans, until there will be no private businesses left to pay the tax, and we will sell out to the highest foreign bidder…
I don’t think a lot of Palauans realize, including our congress people who voted for this, the impact this tax law will have on our daily lives. We start paying 10% tax on all imported goods coming into Palau, personal or business. Any item we will order over $400, a phone or a car, we will pay 10% tax on. You win pay tax on any land transfers and transactions for any purpose also, are we really going to allow them to tax us for giving a piece of land to our own kids? I thought this was not allowed by our constitution, and it seems there is a lot of double-taxing going on under this tax law too…
Business owners, required by law to provide housing for foreign employees, will be taxed on their barracks, even if it’s their own building, even on a car to bring employees to work. Small business making under 300K a year can’t deduct anything, so this tax will actually hit them harder than large businesses, who can at least deduct certain expenses. Their answer to all questions asked about this tax law, so complicated they do not seem to even fully understand it themselves, is, don’t worry, just pass on all the expenses to the consumer …Yeah, that consumer is you and me trying to live here…
We do not need to agree to this, these are officials elected by us! We need to stop this tax law before it will ruin our lives. Don’t allow the government to make us pay for their over-spending, especially at a time they should be helping us. At least postpone the tax for a few years, or start with a small 1% increase on the GRT and import tax, instead of going from 3 to 10%, this is unacceptable at a time like this…
Palau is not the USA, and should not try to be, we are a small island totally dependent on our imports and tourists, and the cost of living is already high here, don’t let them make it worse when it’s not necessary …
Concerned Citizen