ABB on Saba: rates, quarterly returns and deadlines

On Saba, the sales tax is the ABB (algemene bestedingsbelasting). A business on Saba charges 4% on services, 6% on goods it produces itself and 5% on insurance; exports by a producer are at 0%. The return goes to the Belastingdienst Caribisch Nederland per quarter, within 15 days after the quarter ends, in US dollars. This guide explains who charges what, when ABB is due and which mistakes are easy to make on a small island.

What is ABB, and what are the rates on Saba?

ABB is the general spending tax of the three BES islands: Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba. Bonaire has higher rates; Saba and Sint Eustatius share the same, lower ones. The tax is collected by the Belastingdienst Caribisch Nederland, and the currency on Saba is the US dollar, so your books, invoices and returns are all in dollars.

• Services: 4%. For most businesses on Saba this is the rate that matters: a dive trip, a guided hike, a guesthouse stay, a repair, design or IT work.
• Goods: 6%, but only when a producer supplies them (and on import).
• Insurance: 5%.
• Exports by a producer: 0%.
• Exempt supplies: no ABB at all. Which supplies are exempt is set by law; check the list with the tax office if you are unsure.

Who counts as a producer?

Only a producer charges ABB on goods. A shop that resells imported goods does not, because ABB was already paid on import. A grocery, a hardware store or a dive shop selling imported gear therefore charges no ABB on those sales; the dive shop does charge 4% on its dives and courses, because those are services. Whether your own activity counts as production is worth confirming with the tax office if you are in doubt.

A producer has one advantage: the ABB paid on raw materials, auxiliary materials and semi-finished goods, bought from another producer or paid on import, may be deducted on the return.

When is ABB due?

ABB becomes due when you issue the invoice, which must happen no later than 15 days after the month of supply. But if payment, or part of it, arrives earlier, ABB is due at that moment. That includes advance payments: a deposit for a dive package or a guesthouse booking months ahead counts in the quarter in which you receive it.

Reverse charge: services you buy from outside the BES

When you buy a service from a business outside the BES, that supplier charges no ABB. Instead, the ABB is reverse-charged to you: you report it yourself and pay it, in the column for reverse-charged ABB on your return. An example: a web designer on Curaçao invoices you USD 800 for a new website. On Saba you report 4% of that, USD 32. For a business that is not a producer, this ABB is simply a cost.

Services to customers abroad: business or tourist?

A service to a business abroad falls outside the ABB. If you are a freelancer on Saba working for a company in the Netherlands or the United States, you charge no ABB on that work. A service to a tourist is different: it is taxed, even though the customer lives abroad. The same goes for students who live on the island while studying at the medical school; they are private customers, so a service you supply to them is taxed like any other local sale.

How do the quarterly return and deadlines work?

• The law sets a monthly period, but the Belastingdienst Caribisch Nederland issues ABB returns per quarter. Monthly or yearly filing applies only if the tax office tells you so.
• Return and payment are due within 15 days after the quarter: the fourth quarter by 15 January, the first quarter by 15 April, and so on.
• The return is in whole dollars, with the cents rounded down.
• A nil return is required, even in a quarter with no sales at all.

Is there a small-business exemption?

Yes. A sole trader, or a partnership of natural persons, with turnover up to USD 32,000 a year (excluding ABB) can ask for an exemption. It applies only once the tax office has granted it. With the exemption you charge no ABB and file no periodic returns, only one statement a year. ABB reverse-charged to you, for a service bought from outside the BES, must still be reported and paid. A BV or NV does not qualify.

What must be on your invoices?

• Every business registered for ABB must issue invoices.
• Above USD 5,000 for goods, or USD 200 for services, the invoice must show the CRIB number of both you and your customer.
• Prices must include ABB: offering taxed goods or services exclusive of ABB is not allowed.

Profit tax, distribution tax and annual accounts

A company on Saba pays no profit tax, provided it has a residence ruling (vestigingsplaatsbeschikking). Without that ruling the company is treated as Dutch and pays Dutch corporate income tax. Instead of profit tax there is a distribution tax (opbrengstbelasting) of 7.5% on dividends, withheld by the company and paid within 15 days after the quarter of the distribution; dividends from a participation are exempt. Real estate is subject to property tax (vastgoedbelasting), which comes as an assessment. For a sole trader or partnership, the profit is taxed through the owner’s income tax.

Every company established on the BES draws up its annual accounts within eight months and files them, certified by a director, with the Belastingdienst Caribisch Nederland within nine months after the year end: 30 September for a calendar year. Keep your records for ten years.

Common ABB mistakes on Saba

• Charging 6% on goods you resell. Only a producer charges ABB on goods.
• Quoting prices “plus ABB”. Prices must include it.
• Skipping the nil return in a quarter without sales.
• Forgetting reverse-charged ABB on a service bought from Curaçao, Sint Maarten, the United States or the Netherlands.
• Treating a tourist like a foreign business. Only a business customer abroad takes the service outside the ABB.
• Counting a deposit in the quarter of the invoice instead of the quarter in which the money arrived.
• Leaving the CRIB numbers off an invoice above USD 5,000 for goods or USD 200 for services.
• Rounding the return to the nearest dollar instead of rounding the cents down.

How CORA helps

CORA is online accounting software built for the Caribbean, with the Saba rates and deadlines already set up. It prepares your ABB return; you copy the figures into the form of the Belastingdienst Caribisch Nederland and mark the quarter as filed, and CORA warns you if the books change afterwards.

• ABB at 4%, 6% and 5%, with 0% for exports by a producer and for services to a business outside the BES.
• Quarterly by default, by the 15th, in whole dollars as the form wants; reverse-charged ABB added to your return.
• A producer switch that takes the ABB on raw materials off your return, and a small-business setting with one statement a year and your turnover tracked against the USD 32,000 limit.
• A warning when an invoice above the thresholds lacks a CRIB number, and a warning when the residence ruling is missing.
• Your filing pack for the tax office at year end, and distribution tax on dividends booked for you.
• Bank statements and receipts read for you, and a free read-only login for your accountant.

CORA does not submit the return for you, and payroll and property tax are not part of it. More on CORA for Saba; plans start at $20 a month, and you can try it free for 14 days.

This guide is general information, not tax advice. For your own situation, check with the Belastingdienst Caribisch Nederland or an accountant.