GCT-free on selected PC

[Anubis]

Ok thanks long time i haven't bought any parts

Haven't done it in years either.

[danthony]

...........
Including the GCT it is around 22-23% when I checked around a month or so ago.

how much % to clear computer and parts including the gct

its actually around 20%...........

[Thy]

In all fairness the reasoning was sound when it was removed according to the PM at the time the majority of computer imports were done by businesses either for resale purposes or to use within the business, so a lot of them were just getting away on the other hand it was just the minority of computer imports that were being used for educational purposes versus just straight up profit.



Including the GCT it is around 22-23% when I checked around a month or so ago.

Actually, the reasoning was far from sound. If businesses were doing most of the importing of the computers AND then these same computers are being bought by average citizens to do day-to-day computing tasks, educational purposes etc. it makes no sense.

What exactly is educational purposes anyway. Someone can buy a computer today for just social purposes and 9 months later their interest in computers in piqued and this person turns to application development etc.

Or further down the line the person finds the value of the computer and decreases the time spent on social activities and begins reading books through google books.

Even if the computers were not being used for educational purposes and being used in businesses so what? It is these computers that allow greater productivity, efficiency gains and reduce things like processing time and red tape in business processes which would cause the country to move up on things like the Doing Business Report.

The Government must stop being short-sighted. I heard an adviser to a Minister of Government in the previous administration saying that she does not believe that everyone in Jamaica should have a computer. Rather, she believes everyone should have access to one. So more libraries, computer centres etc should be built. When pressed she claimed that if everyone had a computer Jamaica's electricity consumption would increase and so would our fuel bill. I think this sums of the short-sightedness and ridiculousness of many of these policy decisions.

In the short-sighted pursuit of earning more revenue and saving in the long run...the Government is actually losing more money.

Placing GCT on computers was a retrograde step by a retrograde government.

Sadly though it looks like the GCT on computers is here to stay.

[jamrock]

Sadly though it looks like the GCT on computers is here to stay.

Perhaps you are mistaken. We were reliably promised by VRTECJA that GCT was going to be removed from computers by the current administration.

People rember FOR A GCT FREE PC VOTE PNP. How not one political debate never come up this time around, a so the tech people in JA just go with the flow.

Please read the entire thread carefully. If you continue to say things like this, I will ask the moderators to ban you from Tech Jamaica

[Anubis]

Actually, the reasoning was far from sound. If businesses were doing most of the importing of the computers AND then these same computers are being bought by average citizens to do day-to-day computing tasks, educational purposes etc. it makes no sense.

What exactly is educational purposes anyway. Someone can buy a computer today for just social purposes and 9 months later their interest in computers in piqued and this person turns to application development etc.

Or further down the line the person finds the value of the computer and decreases the time spent on social activities and begins reading books through google books.

Even if the computers were not being used for educational purposes and being used in businesses so what? It is these computers that allow greater productivity, efficiency gains and reduce things like processing time and red tape in business processes which would cause the country to move up on things like the Doing Business Report.

The Government must stop being short-sighted. I heard an adviser to a Minister of Government in the previous administration saying that she does not believe that everyone in Jamaica should have a computer. Rather, she believes everyone should have access to one. So more libraries, computer centres etc should be built. When pressed she claimed that if everyone had a computer Jamaica's electricity consumption would increase and so would our fuel bill. I think this sums of the short-sightedness and ridiculousness of many of these policy decisions.

In the short-sighted pursuit of earning more revenue and saving in the long run...the Government is actually losing more money.

Placing GCT on computers was a retrograde step by a retrograde government.

Sadly though it looks like the GCT on computers is here to stay.

You are spinning "possible scenarios" the current PM at the time was using facts.

Even if the computers were not being used for educational purposes and being used in businesses so what?

So they are a business and they are making a profit and thus should pay for the items and stop using "it is an educational item" as a shortcut, I can somewhat understand how a student or a loan individual may bootleg a copy of a piece of software but it is totally inexcusable for a company to do it, and I am not referring to a micro company who may can genuinely cannot afford the specific software that falls in the area of their business e.g. for a micro business to just fork out USD600-1000 for just the POS software and then have to purchase the Accounting aspect of the software which may run them another USD300-500 and then the will still most likely need to also purchase the hardware, I can see how that may be a bit of a stretch for them (and I am not promoting software piracy I am just stating I can understand).

I am referring to the small to large business who are making a profit or way above their profit margin who are bootlegging software, those people need to be sued, so if you are a "business" then it is utter BS to be importing and making a profit via the use of computers under the guise that they are "educational items" and you shouldn't be paying GCT on them.

As for what that adviser stated what just sad if these are the individuals advising our leaders no wonder we are having the issues that we are experiencing today.

[RZA]

So how exactly do you propose we police the use of computers & who is gonna do it?

Because this is it, a company like Intcomex, Royal Computers, One Stop Computers etc buys computers for resale & stock their shelves. Now two people walk into one of these stores to purchase a computer, one person buys it to burn cd's to make money while the other buys a computer to do homework & research for school, how do you know the difference of use?

Likewise another forum member stated that computer use can change so the same man who using the computer to burn & sell cd's may just start going back to school & the computer may be used for that as well. Educational use is not necessarily school use ONLY as educational can be just enhancing ones knowledge by reading stuff online.

The bottom line is you cant know what a computer will be used for so there should be no tax @ all.

[Anubis]

So how exactly do you propose we police the use of computers & who is gonna do it?

Because this is it, a company like Intcomex, Royal Computers, One Stop Computers etc buys computers for resale & stock their shelves. Now two people walk into one of these stores to purchase a computer, one person buys it to burn cd's to make money while the other buys a computer to do homework & research for school.

Likewise another forum member stated that computer use can change so the same man who using the computer to burn & sell cd's may just start going back to school & the computer may be used for that as well. Educational use is not necessarily school use ONLY as educational can be just enhancing ones knowledge by reading stuff online.

The bottom line is you cant know what a computer will be used for so there should be no tax @ all.

Well such is life we tend to make things bad for ourselves it just like customs when once your invoice was good enough until people starting making their own invoices, now even if you get a sale on an item if the customs officer decided to charge you the book value of the item that is what you will have to pay the duty on to clear it, its just consequences as per usual the few make it bad for the whole bunch. Buy clothes overseas with full intentions to sell it and don't declare and goes through scotch free, now the other person who genuinely received a lot of clothes from friends or family members with the intentions to used for personal use is the one that is charged.

I am not pleased myself there are things that I can barely afford to purchase and sometimes even find deals but when I calculate how much customs going to bring it to I just have to leave it alone. Don't know what it is going to be used for? True but the item most likely will not be used for educational purposes is also true it is all statistics and unfortunately the figures are no longer in our favor.

[RZA]

You have a point in that one set of persons make things bad for others but im not in agreement with the blanket effect. As you said you wanna get something for ur personal use but bcuz someone else has done wrong u now sufferring & thats not fair. Where customs is concerned they are just downright thieves, they remind me of insurance companies.

There is nowhere else in the world where a person has insurance, meets in an accident but opts to pay out of pocket for damages as they fear an increase in their premiums & the hassle of going thru insurance. So what is the point of insuring ur vehicle anyway?