Bermuda has tabled the Payroll Tax Amendment and Validation Bill 2022, to give effect to the payroll tax measures announced in the territory’s recent Budget.
The Budget announced that Bermuda will continue to lower payroll tax burdens for those earning less than BMD48,000. Further, payroll tax reliefs for the hotels and restaurant industries will be extended by six months, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Clause 5 amends the table of standard rate bands in Section 3A(1) of the Payroll Tax
Rates Act 1995, to reduce from two percent to 1.5 percent the payroll tax payable on the annual
remuneration band up to BMD48,000, and to increase from 8.5 percent to nine percent the payroll tax
payable on the annual remuneration band from BMD48,001 to BMD96,000.
Further, the New Hire Relief incentive, which is due to expire on March 31, 2022, will be extended by two years for local and international companies with a payroll exceeding BMD500,000 that expand their workforces. The measure is extended to March 31, 2024, in Clauses 2 and 3 of the Bill.