Posted: Tuesday, August 5, 2025. 11:56 pm CST.
By Aaron Humes: The Government of Belize has confirmed the transition of land tax collection and enforcement from the Lands and Surveys Department to the Belize Tax Services Department (BTS). This decision, approved by Cabinet on April 1, seeks to enhance compliance and increase revenue collection in the country.
The Cabinet’s decision was publicly announced through a Cabinet Brief which highlighted, “With a view to enhance land tax collection and enforcement, Cabinet gave its approval for the transfer of responsibility for Land Tax collection to the Belize Tax Service (BTS) through a phased one year transition process involving inter-agency coordination between the BTS, Lands Department, and other relevant authorities and the use of the online IRIS platform for assessment, billing, and collection thereof,”, a statement issued today said in response to a social media post on Hot Off the Press. The post has since been removed.
This move is part of the Government’s broader tax reform strategy aimed at centralizing and digitizing tax administration in accordance with international best practices. Experts have noted that consolidating tax collection responsibilities within a single agency can lead to greater efficiency and improved compliance.
The Government says it collects just 15 percent of available land taxes annually – $7 million of an estimated $47 million due by landowners. “It is expected that the transition of collection and enforcement to BTS could substantially improve the compliance rate on land taxes, thereby providing much-needed financial resources to progress the Government’s Plan Belize 2.0 agenda, particularly in areas of education, health, citizen security, and infrastructure,” the Government statement remarks.
The phased transition will include the establishment of inter-agency agreements and legal amendments, comprehensive data cleansing, and matching landowner details with the BTS’s Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) registry. This will be followed by secure data migration to the IRIS platform. Additional phases will incorporate the development of IRIS modules, system testing, stakeholder consultations, and a robust public information campaign to ensure transparency and public engagement throughout the process.
With the implementation of this new system, the Government says it aims to create a more efficient framework for tax collection, ultimately benefiting all Belizeans by supporting essential services and development initiatives.
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