– $100,000 cash grant for Guyanese 18 years, older
– Abolishment of net property tax on individuals
– Flat tax rate on double cab pickups
– Minimum wage for part-time workers, CSOs to be increased to $50,000
– Because We Care grant to increase to $100,000 over next 5 years
– Old age pension to increase to $60,000
– Public assistance to increase to $40,000
– Special investment zones with tax exemptions
– Home improvement assistance
With the aim of building individual and national wealth, President Dr Irfaan Ali on Wednesday detailed the vision, policies and plans that his Government will implement over the next five years to not only accelerate Guyana’s transformation but also ensure that the Guyanese people are placed at the forefront of the ongoing development.
In a near two-and-a-half-hour address to the nation from the lawns of the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC), the Head of State announced to scores of persons gathered there and those watching online a host of measures ranging from cash grants to tax reliefs to salary increases and welfare interventions that are all in keeping with the manifesto promises upon which the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) was re-elected to office at the September 2025 elections.
He explained that the aim is to build an even more resilient economy through further diversification of non-oil economic activities while ensuring that citizens’ interests and well-being are protected with
“Today, we stand on the cusp of a new dawn, a moment of unprecedented opportunity… This moment is now ours to seize, to shape and to transform. The plans I have laid before you provide a framework for doing just that, turning promise into progress, vision into reality. These plans represent a blueprint for transformation that will be tangible in your daily lives, in the work you do, the wages you earn, the communities that cradle your families, and the horizons of opportunities opening for your children,” the President stated.
Cash grant
Among those plans he detailed is the highly anticipated cash grant for Guyanese.
The Head of State revealed that “Budget 2026, which will be presented early in the new year, will make provision for a cash grant of $100,000 to be paid to every citizen in Guyana who is 18 years of age and older. And other cash grants will be paid during the course of the next five years.”
This point was reiterated by Ali during a brief interview with reporters following his address. He contended that this $100,000 is just the first tranche of a series of cash pay-outs that his Administration will roll out during its term but noted it is part of a collective mechanism designed to create wealth.
“[I just] elaborate about all of the incentives and mechanisms to grow personal wealth, to grow family wealth, to grow community wealth, to grow national wealth and to build a prosperous country. And the cash transfer…is just one component of that,” he stated.
Recognising that cash transfers are an important means through which specific policy objectives can be realised, President Ali said his Government is committed to increasing disposable income through such transfers to citizens and will continue to do so through a number of different instruments over the next five years.
These include increasing the Because We Care cash grant to $100,000 per annum during this term as well as progressively increasing the non-contributory old-age pension to $60,000 per month and the public assistance grant to $40,000 per month. The first instalment of these increases will be announced in Budget 2026.
Small businesses, SEND, animal welfare to also benefit
With the aim of providing opportunities to small businesses, the Government plans to remove corporate taxes on income earned by companies engaged in childcare provision services and elderly care facilities. In fact, funds will be allocated in next year’s budget for co-investment in child and elderly care facilities, on the condition that the facilities benefiting from tax and concessions agree to a suitable cap rate for their services.
“In relation to special needs education, we’ll establish Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) facilities in every region, with parents of special needs children to play an active role in the management and oversight of these satellite schools.
“That way, parents will be able to enjoy the assurance that their children are getting appropriate, good-quality emotional opportunity – educational opportunities, while also making it possible for the parents to seek employment opportunities for themselves,” the Guyanese leader emphasised.
Meanwhile, as part of a push for a more humane society and the safeguard of animal welfare, Budget 2026 will include financial support to NGOs involved in animal care and welfare and institutions providing such care.
Wages, taxes and abolishment of net property tax
Additionally, there is a proposal to hike the wages and salaries of persons employed under the Community Infrastructure Improvement Project (CIPP), the National Pathway Worker Programme (10-day workers), and the Community Service Officers (CSOs) to a minimum of $50,000 per month in next year’s budget.
Moreover, the Government is keen on giving back to those taxpayers who work and contribute to the national coffers through participation in the formal economy by ensuring that they are able to retain more of their earnings to enjoy their disposable income and accumulate a high level of personal savings.
“Over the next five years, we’ll continue to increase the income tax threshold with the ultimate aim of approximating the levels that obtain in more developed countries than ours by the end of this current term. Additionally, in pursuit of the objective of incentivising the accumulation of savings and assets by individuals, we will abolish net property tax on individuals,” the President announced.
Another measure that was disclosed by the Guyanese leader is tax-free incentives to encourage investments outside of the capital city, where the majority of the oil and gas-related activities have thus far been concentrated, especially in the mouth of the Demerara River.
“We would like to encourage investment in other areas so that Guyanese nationals can access good-quality jobs and meaningful opportunities to earn irrespective of where they live. We will therefore establish, in a number of areas to be detailed in the 2026 budget, special development zones where a tax-free incentive regime will apply. These will especially target the objectives of creating jobs where they are most needed, as well as promoting those categories of economic activities that generate export earnings or that fulfil demand that is currently met by imports,” he stated.
Agriculture sector
In relation to the agricultural sector, Ali pointed to his Government’s strong emphasis on food security and revealed plans to engage farmers on examining ways to encourage and incentivise diversification across the sector and diversification within crops.
Also important, he added, is the mega-scale opportunity available in livestock, dairy, mega farms, sugar, etc. To this end, the Government will be incentivising the private sector to form partnerships and consortiums to invest in these opportunities, making them sustainable, profitable, and resilient.
The President assured that the 2026 budget “…will allocate resources to advance diversification in agriculture and agro-processing, including through co-investment opportunities.”
Reduction of duties on double-cab pickup vehicles
Another manifesto promise that the Ali-led Administration will implement is the reduction of duties on the importation of double-cab pickup vehicles.
“Recognising also the widespread use of double-cab pickups in productive activity, as well as their durability and versatility in both business and household use, we will introduce a flat tax of $2 million on double-cab pickups up to less than 2000cc, irrespective of age, while we will introduce a flat tax of $3 million on double-cab pickups between 2000cc and 2500cc, irrespective of age. This will make it easier for businesses and households to renew or upgrade their transport capabilities,” he added.
Housing and home ownership
The Guyanese Head of State also announced a series of measures for the housing sector aimed at promoting homeownership, including the complete removal of the housing application backlog in all regions except Region Four, which continues to face peculiar demand.
“We are well on track to delivering our commitment of building 40,000 homes [in the next five years]. Additionally, Budget 2026 and subsequent budgets in this term will allocate sums of money to finance direct assistance to households to help them build and/or upgrade their homes. This facility will be used to deploy a differentiated approach with the nature of the assistance being customised to meet the circumstances of different regions and communities,” he explained.
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