Trinidad and Tobago Ministry of Finance published talking points for the Finance Supplementary Appropriation Bill 2025 and the 2025 Mid-Year Review, seeking parliamentary approval for an additional TTD 3,143,983,761 in spending and updating fiscal projections for fiscal 2025. Using end-year commodity price assumptions of USD 66.00 per barrel for oil and USD 5.00 per mmbtu for natural gas, the ministry projected total revenue to be TTD 556.7m lower than budgeted and the overall deficit to widen to TTD 9.67bn, to be financed principally through local capital market borrowing and drawdowns on existing multilateral facilities. The supplementary sum is split between TTD 2,865,046,761 in recurrent expenditure and TTD 278,937,000 for the development programme, with the largest recurrent additions for the Ministry of Health at TTD 728.5m to meet arrears, the Ministry of Public Utilities at TTD 489.5m, the Ministry of Education at TTD 296.1m, the Ministry of Public Administration at TTD 275.8m and the Ministry of Works and Transport at TTD 266.3m. Development allocations include TTD 159.0m for education laptops and school repairs and TTD 58.9m for works and transport. For 1 October 2024 to 31 March 2025, the mid-year outturn shows a deficit of TTD 3.44bn compared with a projection of TTD 3.97bn, alongside a TTD 485.5m revenue shortfall and expenditure TTD 1.01bn below plan, which the ministry linked to the accumulation of arrears. Other announcements include an additional TTD 134m for the Tobago House of Assembly, including TTD 32m in the supplementary package, and finalisation of a USD 15m or TTD 102m loan from CAF to fund coastal protection projects in Tobago. The ministry also flagged further policy work ahead of the 2025/2026 National Budget, including transfer pricing legislation, steps to implement international tax standards linked to EU delisting, consideration of a qualified domestic minimum top-up tax for multinational enterprise groups with global revenues of at least EUR 750m that pay under a 15% effective rate, and measures to address foreign exchange shortages such as a Foreign Exchange Allocation Committee and reporting obligations for high-volume importers.
Ministry of Finance (Trinidad & Tobago) 2025-06-18
Trinidad and Tobago Ministry of Finance requests TTD 3.144bn supplementary appropriation and projects a TTD 9.67bn fiscal 2025 deficit
The Trinidad and Tobago Ministry of Finance seeks parliamentary approval for an additional TTD 3.14bn in spending under the Finance Supplementary Appropriation Bill 2025, projecting a fiscal deficit of TTD 9.67bn. The budget allocates TTD 2.87bn for recurrent expenditure and TTD 278.9m for development, focusing on health, public utilities, and education. The ministry announced a USD 15m loan for Tobago's coastal protection and outlined policy work, including transfer pricing legislation and measures for foreign exchange shortages.