• Jamaica's HEART tax helps residents find work and train for jobs.jamaica flag icon. (with clipping path) image by Andrey Zyk from Fotolia.com
  
  Benjamin Franklin once noted that death and taxes are the only two things you can be sure of in life, and both parts of this idiom still hold true even if you live in the sunny, Caribbean island nation of Jamaica. The country's Inland Revenue Department, which began operating in 1985, is responsible for levying and collecting taxes. As Jamaica Tax Administration Online notes, this governing body replaced the Collector General's Department, which had overseen taxing duties since 1869.
  
  

Property Taxes

• All property owners in Jamaica must pay property taxes, with the exception of specific, exempt organizations that include churches and the Crown, or the British Monarchy. According to the Jamaica Tax Administration Online, the Jamaican government uses the revenues from property taxes to fund public services such as garbage collection, and to fund civic improvements such as street and street light maintenance and expansion.
  
  

Consumption Taxes

• There are two types of consumption taxes in Jamaica: the General Consumption Tax and the Special Consumption Tax. As the Jamaica Tax Administration Online notes, the General Consumption Tax applies to all goods and services for sale in Jamaica. It is a value added tax, meaning that the government adds the tax on at the final stage of distribution or production, immediately prior to sale.
  
  And although everyone in Jamaica must initially pay the General Consumption tax, if you are a tourist, or otherwise not a registered Jamaican taxpayer, you can appeal to the Inland Revenue Department for a refund. The Special Consumption Tax only applies to manufacturers and importers. They must pay this tax to legally produce and import "special" consumer goods, such as alcoholic beverages and tobacco products.
  
  

Statutory Taxes

• Statutory taxes are taxes that apply to employers, employees and/or businesses that work or operate in Jamaica. According to the Jamaica Tax Administration, they include the Education Tax, which helps provide the country's Ministry of Education with financing, and the National Insurance Scheme Tax, which raises money to financially protect those who are unable to work. Similarly, the statutory HEART agency tax, which stands for Human Employment and Resource Training/National Training, raises funds to provide job training for unemployed or underemployed workers. Perhaps the most well-known of all statutory types of taxes, both in Jamaica and abroad, is the income tax, which applies to all of an individual's or business' emoluments. These include any salaries, profits, wages, fees, payments or provisions that a taxpayer, or taxpaying entity, collects.
  
  

Gambling Taxes

• Gambling taxes in Jamaica apply to all legal forms of lotteries, betting and other games of chance. However, instead of the gambler having to incur the loss, racing promoters, gambling machine owners and bookies, or bookmakers, must pay the taxes.