• You must complete a VAT registration form and submit supporting documents to the Inland Revenue Division at the address below.
• Sole proprietors must fill in the VAT 1 Form.
• Companies and partnerships must fill in the VAT 1 and VAT 2 Forms.
• All applicants will be interviewed and are required to produce some form of identification at the interview.

The following documents must be submitted with your application:

Sole Proprietors

• Completed VAT 1 application form.
• Certificate of Registration of Business Name if using a trading name.
• Board of Inland Revenue (BIR) file number.
• Projected Income Statement for the next 12 months signed and dated by the preparer or owner.
• Evidence to substantiate that the business intends to make commercial sales of TT$200,000.00 during the coming year. This could be in the form of a sales forecast.

Partnerships

• Completed VAT 1 application form signed by a partner.
• Completed VAT 2 application form, with the names, home addresses and signatures of all partners.
• If there is a partnership name other than the names of the individual partners, the certificate of registration of business name issued by the *Registrar General's Office.
• Board of Inland Revenue (BIR) File Number for the partnership.
• Projected Income Statement for the next 12 months (signed and dated by preparer/owner) to show that the business intends to make over TT$200,000.00 in commercial supplies in the year following its VAT Registration.

Limited Liability Companies

• A letter of representation, where the company is represented by someone other than the Directors, i.e. a third party who must have proper identification.
• Completed VAT 1 application form signed by a director.
• Completed VAT 2 application form, with the names, home addresses and signatures of all directors.
• B.I.R. and P.A.Y.E. File number.
• Certificate of Incorporation or Certificate of Continuance.
• Articles of Incorporation or Articles of Continuance.
• Notice of Directors or Notice of Change of Directors.
• Notice of Address or Notice of Change of registered office.
• Cash flow projection for 12 months - signed and dated by a director or the Company's Accountant.
• Evidence of commencement of business e.g. sales/income invoices, contracts, customs documents, purchases/expenses or bank statements.
• Statement of actual gross sales/income to date - signed and dated by the Company's Director or Accountant.
• List of assets of the business and proof of ownership.
• Name and address of banker.
• Accountant's name, address and contact numbers.
• Major customers' names, addresses and contact numbers.

Application forms and supporting documentation should be submitted to:

Ministry of Finance and the Economy

Inland Revenue Division

VAT Registration Unit

4th Floor, VAT Administration Building

St. Vincent Street

Port of Spain

Trinidad, West Indies

Tel. (868) 623-4735/4737

Opening hours: 8:00 am to 4:00 pm, Monday to Friday, except public holidays.

• Individuals or businesses that sell goods or services worth TT$200,000.00 or more in a twelve-month period must register for VAT. Individuals and businesses must also register if they forecast sales of TT$200,000.00 or more in a twelve-month period.
• Registered individuals or businesses that cease trading, dispose of or transfer their business must apply for Cancellation of VAT Registration. This also applies to individuals or businesses that no longer generate revenues above the threshold amount of TT$200,000.00.

There are no fees charged for registration.

Explain the time until which the certificate/document is valid.
e.g. Birth Certificate Valid Forever

Form 1A, Section A - For Individual Applicants - http://www.ird.gov.tt/uploadedfiles/SECTION%20A.pdf

Form AOI, Section B - For Applicants Other Than Individuals - http://www.ird.gov.tt/uploadedfiles/SECTION%20B.pdf

Form DP, Section C - Name and Addresses of all Directors or Members - http://www.ird.gov.tt/uploadedfiles/SECTION%20C.pdf

Please attach sample completed documents which would help other people who would like to follow this procedure.    

Please explain the processing your application.    

Videos explaining the procedure or to fill the applications. 
Attach videos using the following tag <&video type="website">video ID|width|height<&/video&> from external websites.
Please remove the "&" inside the tags during implementation.
Website = allocine, blip, dailymotion, facebook, gametrailers, googlevideo, html5, metacafe, myspace, revver, 
sevenload, viddler, vimeo, youku, youtube
width = 560, height = 340, Video ID = Can be obtained from the URL of webpage where the video is displayed.
e.g In the following url "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0US7oR_t3M" Video ID is "Y0US7oR_t3M". 
	

Please provide instructions on obtaining the certificate/documents.
e.g. The state office holds birth records since january 1908.

A list which displays the kind of information which is required to complete the procedure.
e.g.
1. Date of Birth.
2. City or County of Birth.

Value Added Tax, or VAT, is applied to both goods and services in Trinidad and Tobago and is included in the final price of the product. VAT is charged at a rate of 15%. VAT-registered businesses must collect VAT from customers, submit VAT returns and pay any VAT that they owe to the Inland Revenue Division of the Ministry of Finance and the Economy. VAT-registered businesses can deduct any VAT that they pay when purchasing goods and services for the business from the VAT that they collect from customers. If the amount of VAT that a business pays is more than they collect, the Inland Revenue Division will refund the balance.

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Please explain what are other uses of obtaining this document/certificate.
e.g. Birth Certificate can be used as proof of identity.

http://www.ird.gov.tt/load_page.asp?ID=28

More information which might help people.