Bahamian VAT Registrations Explained

Updated 3 months ago

Once you have determined that you have a VAT obligation in the Bahamas, the next step is registration. This article explains the registration schemes available, who qualifies for each, and what you can expect from the process.

Registration Schemes

There are two main registration schemes available in the Bahamas for businesses supported in Kintsugi:

Standard Registration
Flat Rate Accounting Scheme (out of scope for the current version, included here for reference)

Standard Registration

Standard Registration is the primary VAT registration scheme in the Bahamas. It applies to all business types, including resident businesses (both digital and non-digital) and non-resident remote sellers.

Detail	Standard Registration
Who qualifies?	Resident businesses (SaaS and non-digital) and non-resident remote sellers
Threshold (SaaS residents)	Zero; registration required before first taxable sale
Threshold (non-digital residents)	BSD 100,000 annual taxable turnover
Threshold (non-residents)	Zero; registration required before first sale to Bahamian customer
Voluntary registration allowed?	Yes, for resident non-digital businesses below BSD 100,000
Temporary registration available?	No
Fiscal representative required?	No

When Does Tax Collection Begin?

The answer depends on your business type:

SaaS residents and non-residents: Tax applies from the very first taxable sale. Registration must be in place before that sale occurs.
Non-digital resident businesses: Tax collection begins from the VAT registration date. The first tax period starts on the registration date.

IMPORTANT

You cannot wait until after you cross the threshold to register and then back-apply tax. For zero-threshold business types, your registration must be active before the first transaction.

Voluntary Registration

Resident businesses supplying non-digital goods or services may register voluntarily even if their turnover is below the BSD 100,000 threshold. This can be beneficial if you want to claim input VAT credits on business purchases.

TIP

Registering voluntarily may allow you to reclaim input VAT on purchases, which can reduce your overall tax costs.

Filing Frequencies After Registration

Once registered, your filing frequency is determined by your annual turnover:

Annual Turnover	Filing Frequency	Filing Deadline
Over BSD 5 million	Monthly	21st of the following month
Under BSD 5 million	Quarterly	21st of the month after the quarter ends

Nil Returns

Even if you have no taxable activity in a given period, you are still required to file a nil return. Kintsugi flags nil-return periods so nothing slips through the cracks.

Weekend and Holiday Filing Rule

If a filing or payment deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or national holiday, the deadline automatically extends to the next working day.

Kintsugi handles this

Kintsugi tracks your filing calendar, adjusts for weekends and holidays, and sends reminders ahead of each deadline.

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