Barbados: your prime near-shore option for targeting the US market
by Invest Barbados
BARBADOS is an independent English-speaking democracy with a long history of economic and political stability and a business-friendly environment.
Well developed with modern and reliable infrastructure, the island maintains a high UN human development rating among developing nations.
Companies looking to thrive in a competitive global market invest in Barbados to also capitalise on strong human capital, tax advantages and a good quality of life.
Barbados especially provides an attractive location for UK outsourcing firms seeking solutions for themselves or their clients, if they are targeting the north American market. Barbados is on a similar time zone to the eastern USA, therefore can provide customer service to companies during their working time. The Barbadian accent is quite acceptable to north Americans as there are at present fewer than a dozen foreign owned call centres in Barbados employing approximately 2,000 people.
Call centre operations well-suited to the Barbados value proposition include customer service and helpdesk, sales, financial services, travel, collections, health care and insurance and telecommunications.
Welcoming government
The government of Barbados actively encourages investment in this sector and offers an attractive incentive package to international business companies which include:
§ Low corporate taxes on profits
§ Full exemption from import duties on components, raw materials, production machinery and equipment
§ Full and unrestricted repatriation of capital, profits and dividends
§ No minimum capital requirement
§ A training grant
§ Available office accommodation in well planned business parks at competitive rates
§ An English speaking, loyal and productive workforce
§ World class physical infrastructure
§ Daily connectivity to major international gateways
§ Network of double taxation treaties with an expanding range of countries, including the UK, the USA, Canada, China and the Netherlands.
One-stop shop for foreign investors
Investors are not alone as they go about the process of getting started in Barbados. The economic development agency of the government of Barbados, Invest Barbados (IB), has special responsibility for attracting and facilitating foreign direct investment in Barbados. Its dedicated team of professionals provide a virtual one stop shop and assists investors through:
§ Provision of social, political and economic information.
§ Guidance on registration requirements and provision of relevant legislation.
§ Co-ordination of strategic alliances and joint ventures with private sector organisations.
§ Introduction and ongoing liaison with relevant government agencies.
§ Facilitation of a comprehensive itinerary of relevant business meetings in Barbados.
For further details, contact Invest Barbados: 0207 299 7195; london@investbarbados.org