As we told you last week, the rollout of Belize's new Trade Licensing Act has been officially deferred. But by the time it was put on hold, some businesses had already gotten and already paid their new calculated assessments.
We spoke via Zoom today with the Director of Local Government Clifford King who explained that the discrepancies with the bills will be handled and worse case scenario is, customers will have rollover "credit".
Clifford King, Director of Local Government
"The Act does provide provision for the minister to declare when any provision or when the entire Act comes into force. And that has not happened as yet. Incidentally, we were anticipating that that Act would have come into force on January 1st of 2026. As a result of that, we have been preparing for this imminent rollout of provisions. Number 19 of 2024, the new trade licensing regime, which would have made provision for rural trade licensing for the first time. And so we've been preparing significantly for that imminent rollout of the new Act. Incidentally though, we have had some delays with Parliament for some minor adjustments that we were making to 19 of 2024. And because we have had this, we have not been able to complete those parliamentary obligations, particularly through the House of Senate, we now have to defer the full rollout of Number 19 of 2024, the Act, Number 19, Trade Licensing Act of 2024. And so what has happened now, we find ourselves where we have to revert to the status quo, which is Trade Licensing Act Chapter 66, which makes provision for trial licensing only in towns and cities. So the applicable trade licensing legislation remains Chapter 66 of the Laws of Belize, which means that there is a hole, there is a deferment in the rollout for rural trial licensing. So that is the current case right now. And incidentally, also at the ministry, the towns and city councils have been preparing for the imminent rollout of the new regime, which provided a lot more clarity for how trade licensing is administered in the towns and cities, and in addition to how it would have been administrated in the rural space. So that is where we're at right now."
"Incidentally, persons, business persons have already received assessment fees. They received their bills, as we would call it. because those bills are due to be paid by or before the 1st of January. And so the towns and city councils have been sending out bills. We have trade licensing boards in all of these cities and towns that are very alive and active. And all those nuances relating to any discrepancies with the bills that persons have received, we anticipate that these boards through the towns and city councils be able to manage what those nuances are."
Reports are that the new regime should come fully into effect by February 2026.
