As the government ramps up its training initiatives within the business community, the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation (BCCEC) - through its educational wing, the Chamber Institute - is offering training courses on the value-added tax (VAT) registration and other aspects of VAT readiness.
Keshelle Davis, executive director of the Chamber Institute, said: "Our first official VAT seminar will be held on September 30 at the British Colonial Hilton on Bay Street. The initial session is a full day workshop from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. with a focus on pre-registration training for VAT - basically, it's everything business owners and entrepreneurs should know before registering for VAT."
The training team will include Davis; CSR business advisory lead at Bahamas Development Bank Montgomery Miller; College of The Bahamas School of Business lecturer Glenn Davis; insurance expert Nadine Fraizer and chartered quantity surveyor and construction cost consultant Raeh Roker-Williams.
Financial Secretary John Rolle and Minister of State for Finance Michael Halkitis will also speak at the seminar.
The institute notes that all the trainers have completed a rigorous training process led by Dean Wootten, a U.K.-based VAT consultant and trainer.
"With merely a few short months to train staff in the area of VAT compliance, many business owners are stressed and overwhelmed by the herculean task of ensuring that their businesses are prepared and VAT compliant," the institute said in a press release announcing the training.
"The chamber's courses are designed to alleviate the stress that business owners are facing in the complex field of tax compliance."
The course is organized into three separate parts with registration workshops running weekly in morning, afternoon and evening sessions. Part one begins September 30, 2014 and includes training on how VAT works, what it is, who should register and why and other VAT basics.
The second series of sessions focuses on providing a comprehensive guide through the VAT registration process. The third part follows with operational procedures, recordkeeping, returns and best practices. Members of the BCCEC pay $160.00 per course while non-members pay $190.00.

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