As households across Antigua and Barbuda gear up for the start of a new academic year, the national government has rolled out targeted temporary tax relief to ease growing back-to-school costs for local families. The country’s Cabinet has officially greenlit a zero percent Antigua and Barbuda Sales Tax (ABST) on a curated list of education-related and essential food items, set to take effect on August 28 and 29. This policy covers nearly all core supplies students need for the classroom, ranging from uniforms, footwear, and backpacks to stationery such as notebooks, pens and pencils, calculators, geometry toolkits, and art materials. It also extends to specialized equipment for information technology and home economics courses, ensuring even niche learning needs are covered. The Inland Revenue Department is currently finalizing formal guidance that will clarify which specific products qualify for the exemption, as well as outline clear protocols for retail businesses to correctly apply the zero tax rate at checkout. Government officials emphasized that the core goal of this initiative is to cut the heavy financial strain placed on households, which routinely face soaring costs when preparing for the new school term. This is not the first time the administration has implemented this kind of measure: a nearly identical two-day tax reduction was rolled out in April ahead of schools reopening following the Easter holiday break, demonstrating the government’s ongoing commitment to supporting family budgets. The tax holiday forms one piece of a broader suite of government assistance programs for families with school-aged children, which also includes the long-standing School Uniform Grant Programme and the national School Meals Programme, both designed to reduce barriers to access education for all students across the twin-island nation.
Antigua and Barbuda to Waive Sales Tax on School Supplies for Two Days
