Investment Agreements
Barbados has an expanding network of double taxation agreements (DTAs), bilateral investment agreements (BITs) and tax information exchange agreements (TIEAs).
Double taxation agreements (DTAs)
Our network of double taxation agreements is ever-expanding. This means as an investor who uses Barbados resident entities to do business in other countries you can:
- be sure of your tax treatment for income and gains from cross-border investments
- pay less withholding taxes in the source country for certain types of income
- eliminate double taxation on your income.
“In Barbados our network of double taxation agreements is ever-expanding, with 40 agreements currently in place”
To date we have 40 double taxation agreements in force:
| COUNTRY | ENTRY INTO FORCE |
|---|---|
| The United Kingdom | December 19, 2012 (replaces the treaty that was signed March 26, 1970) |
| Canada | December 22, 1980 |
| Protocol to Barbados Canada DTA | December 17, 2013 |
| USA | February 28, 1986 |
| 1st Protocol US/B’dos DTA | January 1, 1994 |
| 2nd Protocol US/B’dos DTA | December 20, 2004 |
| Finland | August 20, 1992 |
| Protocol to Barbados Finland DTA | June 1, 2012 |
| Sweden | December 1, 1991 |
| Protocol to Barbados Sweden DTA | December 12, 2012 |
| Switzerland | Agreement extended to Barbados by virtue of Agreement between Switzerland and the U.K., 1963 |
| CARICOM [1] | July 07, 1995 |
| Venezuela | January 2001 |
| Cuba | March 16, 2000 |
| China | October 27, 2000 |
| 1st China/B’dos Protocol | June 9, 2010 |
| Malta | June 19, 2002 |
| Protocol to Barbados/Malta DTA | April 30, 2014 |
| Mauritius | January 28, 2005 |
| Protocol to Barbados/Mauritius DTA | Protocol signed December 6, 2017 |
| Botswana | August 12, 2005 |
| Protocol to the Barbados/Botswana DTA * | Protocol signed September 4, 2014 |
| Austria | April 1, 2007 |
| Kingdom of the Netherlands | July 12, 2007 |
| 1st Netherlands/B’dos Protocol | November 13, 2011 |
| Republic of Seychelles | April 21, 2008 |
| Republic of Mexico | January 16, 2009 |
| Luxembourg | August 8, 2011 |
| The Republic of Panama | February 18, 2011 |
| The Kingdom of Spain | October 14, 2011 |
| Czech Republic | February 24, 2012 |
| Iceland | February 24, 2012 |
| Kingdom of Bahrain | July 16, 2013 |
| State of Qatar | June 5, 2013 |
| San Marino | August 6, 2013 |
| Singapore | April 25, 2014 |
| United Arab Emirates | February 18, 2016 |
| Republic of Ghana * | Treaty signed April 22, 2008 |
| The Republic of Portugal | October 6, 2017 |
| Rwanda | May 22, 2015 |
| The Republic of Italy | October 17, 2017 |
| Slovak Republic * | Treaty signed October 28, 2015 |
| Cyprus | September 11, 2017 |
Bilateral investment treaties (BITs)
You may also have protection for your investment, because of Barbados’ bilateral investment treaties which are in place to promote and protect investment. To date, Barbados has concluded investment agreements with the following countries:
| COUNTRY | DATE OF SIGNATURE | ENTRY INTO FORCE |
|---|---|---|
| The United Kingdom | November 3, 2011 | April 1993 |
| Venezuela | November 3, 2011 | October 31, 1995 |
| Germany | November 3, 2011 | May 11, 2002 |
| Switzerland | September 17,2013 | June 26, 1995 |
| Italy | November 25, 2014 | July 21, 1995 |
| Cuba | November 25, 2014 | August 13, 1998 |
| Canada | November 25, 2014 | January 17, 1997 |
| China | November 25, 2014 | October 1, 1999 |
| Mauritius | November 25, 2014 | June 28, 2005 |
| Republic of Ghana | November 25, 2014 | Awaiting Ratification |
| Belgium – Luxembourg Economic Union | November 25, 2014 | Awaiting Ratification |
Tax Information Exchange Agreements (TIEAs)
Barbados is committed to the implementation of the OECD’s Global Forum standard on transparency and tax information exchange. To date, tax information exchange agreements have been concluded with the following countries:
| COUNTRY | DATE OF SIGNATURE |
|---|---|
| Denmark | November 3, 2011 |
| Greenland | November 3, 2011 |
| Faroe Islands | November 3, 2011 |
| South Africa | September 17,2013 |
| Colombia * | November 25, 2014 |
Source: Ministry of Energy and Business Development
* Not yet entered into force.
[1] The CARICOM DTA counts as 10 DTAs. These are with Antigua, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago.