Gibraltar

Budget summary

Below is a summary of the key taxation changes to existing legislation as a result of the Chief Minister’s Budget speech on 11 July 2023.

Personal tax rates

The tax rates on all bands under both the Allowance Based System and Gross Income Based System will reduce by 1% for individuals with gross assessable income not exceeding £100,000 per annum.

Tax rates will remain unchanged for individuals with gross assessable income exceeding £100,000 per annum. It was also announced that the Commissioner of Income Tax will undertake a review of the personal tax system in Gibraltar with a view to simplifying the current rules where possible.

Tax credits 

The following new tax credits will be introduced:

• 10% of the verified costs for individuals who are enrolled in a gym or who contract a personal trainer who is registered with the Income Tax Office.
• 10% of the cost of private school tuition in Gibraltar.
• 75% of the LSRA fees for lawyers who are single practitioners.

Stamp Duty

From 11 July 2023, the allowance for first time buyers will increase from £260,000 to £300,000.

It is also proposed that the stamp duty rate applicable to property sales over £800,000 will increase from 3.5% to 4.5% with the effective date to be confirmed at the time of publication.

The Commissioner of Stamp Duties and Financial Secretary will undertake a consultation prior to 30 September 2023 on whether to introduce stamp duty in relation to the assignment of purchase contracts for real property.

Statutory minimum wage

The statutory hourly minimum wage increased from £8.10 to £8.60 (a 6.2% increase) from 1 August 2023.

Import duty

The following measures relating to import duty were announced:

• Existing measures reducing import duties to mitigate the effect of higher fuel prices will remain in place until 31 December 2023.
• Duty rates for private vehicle importations and importation of vehicles by dealers will be aligned. No details were provided as to when this or other import duty measures (below) will take effect. 
• The vehicle duty cap relating to the importation of petrol or diesel cars will be increased from £25,000 to £35,000.
• A new cap of £35,000 will be introduced on the importation of pleasure vessels.
• Duty on tobacco will increase by £25 per master case (50p per carton / 5p per box of 20 cigarettes). Duty on vapes and associated products will be set at 50% of the rate of a packet of 20 cigarettes. 
• Import duty will be reduced to zero in relation to the following health & fitness related items: fitness trackers, bicycles, bicycle accessories or spare parts, treadmills and all other gym or fitness equipment.