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A free scan shows the junk files, broken settings and background clutter dragging Windows down - then fixes them in one click.Free scan · Windows 10 & 11There is no verified, operative Guernsey GST exemption schedule in the official material identified for this article. The States of Deliberation’s 2026 tax-reform proposition and Amendment 58 were still policy proposals in the latest meeting record identified (30 September 2026). They describe possible zero-rating, recovery and tax-base rules, but those proposals are not the same as enacted exemptions. Treat every category below as proposed unless you have checked the final legislation and its commencement notice.
What is actually exempt from GST in Guernsey?
The short answer is that the available official record does not establish any current, enacted list of GST-exempt goods or services in Guernsey. The 2026 States of Deliberation tax-reform proposition was recorded as active on 30 September 2026, and its operation was conditional on specified income-tax, social-security and benefit mitigations being in place. That means a policy proposal cannot safely be used as an invoice rule, an import rule or a basis for telling a customer that GST is not due.
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The proposal and its amendments use several different mechanisms. A supply can be exempt, taxed at a 0% rate, eligible for a refund or recovery of GST, subject to a low-value import threshold, or taxed only on a resale margin. Those outcomes have different effects for sellers, buyers and importers. Calling all of them “exempt” would give the wrong answer to a business or household trying to work out what to charge or pay.
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Before relying on any treatment, check the enacted Guernsey legislation, the commencement date and the detailed conditions. The extracts available for the 2026 proposition do not show a final schedule of exempt services or confirm that GST has commenced.
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Proposed treatments in the 2026 reform record
The following table separates the mechanism proposed for each category. None of these entries should be read as a current exemption without confirmation in enacted law.
| Category | Proposed mechanism | Who or what it covers | Status in the 2026 record |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food produced or grown by small independent suppliers | 0% rate rather than 3% | Food from a qualifying small independent supplier; the final definition and scope were not established in the extract | Proposal |
| Vehicles for disabled people | Zero-rating of supply or import | Vehicles designed or permanently adapted for wheelchair or stretcher users; a mobility scooter supplied to an eligible person was also contemplated | Amendment 58 proposal |
| Private residential construction | Recovery of GST incurred | A person constructing or commissioning a residential property otherwise than in the course of a business | Proposed recovery entitlement, not a general exemption |
| Unaccompanied personal imports | No GST below a de minimis threshold | Unaccompanied personal goods consignments; the proposed threshold was at least £280 | Amendment 58 proposal; final threshold and rules unconfirmed |
| Qualifying second-hand goods | Margin calculation | Goods acquired without GST and resold by a seller, whatever the goods’ description or the seller’s trade | Amendment 58 proposal; not an exemption |
Food from small independent suppliers: proposed 0%, not a blanket exemption
The 2026 proposition extract says food produced or grown by small independent suppliers should be taxed at 0% rather than 3%. A 0% rate is still a GST treatment: the supply is within the tax system, but the rate charged to the customer is zero. An exemption normally removes a supply from the taxable regime and can affect whether a supplier can recover GST on its own costs. The practical consequences depend on the final legislation, so a producer should not assume that “0%” and “exempt” will produce the same registration, invoicing or input-recovery result.
The extract does not provide a complete definition of “small independent supplier”, a turnover test, a list of qualifying foods or rules for mixed consignments. Those details must be confirmed before a farm shop, market seller, restaurant or wholesaler changes its pricing or accounting.
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Amendment 58 proposed zero-rating the supply or import of vehicles designed or permanently adapted for wheelchair or stretcher users. It also contemplated a mobility scooter supplied to an eligible person. The proposed conditions referred to the person who needs the vehicle, or a parent, guardian or carer acting for that person, and to an eligibility certificate.
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This is narrower than saying that all cars, vans, scooters or disability-related equipment would be GST-free. Eligibility, the design or permanent-adaptation test, the identity of the purchaser and the certificate requirement would all matter. A vehicle bought for general transport, or equipment that does not meet the final statutory description, could fall outside the rule. The amendment also addressed supply or import, so the final legislation would need to be checked for whether the same evidence is required in both situations.
Private residential construction: a possible recovery right
Another amendment proposed that a person who constructs or commissions a residential property otherwise than in the course of a business may recover GST incurred on goods and services used for that construction. That wording describes a recovery entitlement, not an exemption for building materials, architects, contractors or other services.
Under such a rule, a contractor might still account for GST on a taxable supply while the qualifying private owner seeks recovery under the prescribed process. The proposal’s wording does not establish the claim form, deadlines, evidence, treatment of renovations, or how mixed private and business use would be handled. A homeowner should therefore retain contracts, invoices and proof of payment, but should not deduct or reclaim anything until the enacted mechanism and commencement rules are published.
Unaccompanied personal imports and the proposed £280 floor
Amendment 58 proposed no GST on unaccompanied personal goods imports where the consignment value did not exceed a de minimis threshold of at least £280. “At least” is important: the extract does not fix the final amount, and the legislation could specify a different threshold or conditions.
The proposal concerns unaccompanied personal goods, not every parcel, commercial shipment or item carried by a traveller. Value calculation, multiple packages, gifts, prohibited goods, evidence of personal use and the point at which GST is collected would all depend on the final rules. Do not treat £280 as a guaranteed current allowance. If you are importing now, ask the carrier or the relevant Guernsey authority which rule is in force for your consignment.
Second-hand goods: a proposed margin calculation
The amendment proposed that, where a seller acquired second-hand goods without GST, “GST is chargeable only on the amount by which the consideration for the supply exceeds the consideration for which the goods were acquired.” This is a tax-base calculation: GST would apply to the seller’s margin rather than the full resale price.
The extract says the proposal would apply whatever the goods’ description and the seller’s trade. That does not make second-hand goods exempt. A dealer would still need records showing acquisition cost and resale consideration, and the final legislation could impose eligibility, documentation or invoicing conditions. A second-hand item bought by a consumer is not automatically GST-free merely because it has been used before.
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There is no verified blanket food exemption in the material identified. The 2026 proposition instead describes a proposed 0% rate for food produced or grown by small independent suppliers, replacing a proposed 3% rate for that category. The supplier qualification and the exact food categories remain unresolved in the surfaced wording.
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That distinction matters to both sides of a transaction. A customer might see no GST added to the price, while the supplier could still have registration, invoicing and input-tax obligations under the final 0% rules. Retailers reselling food from a supplier that does not qualify would not be entitled to extend the proposed treatment merely because the product is food. Until the law is enacted and effective, use the rule that the official authority confirms for the date of supply.
Are books and clothes sold by charity shops exempt?
A 2022 States proposition described an earlier broad-based GST model at 5% with exemptions for retail food and for clothes and books sold by locally registered charities. That is historical context, not evidence of the 2026 proposal’s final treatment or of current Guernsey law.
The 2022 proposal should not be used to tell a charity shop that its books or clothing are exempt today. The 2026 extracts do not reproduce a finalized charity-shop exemption schedule. If a charity is preparing prices, point-of-sale settings or donor information, it needs the enacted 2026 rules and any guidance defining “locally registered charity”, the goods covered and the effective date.
Are second-hand goods exempt?
No general second-hand exemption is established. The only specific treatment identified is the proposed margin calculation for qualifying goods acquired without GST. If the final rule follows the amendment, a seller could calculate GST on the difference between resale consideration and acquisition consideration rather than on the entire resale price. That is different from charging no GST and different again from a 0% rate.
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For a business, the decisive questions would be how the goods were acquired, whether GST was actually absent from that acquisition, whether the seller is within the relevant trade rules and what records the legislation requires. For a private buyer, the seller’s margin treatment would not turn the purchase into a universally exempt transaction.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How the proposed categories differ
When reading a future Guernsey GST rule, classify it on four axes:
- Mechanism: exemption, 0% rate, recovery entitlement, de minimis exclusion or margin calculation.
- Event covered: a supply in Guernsey, an import, or both.
- Eligible person or use: for example, a small independent producer, an eligible disabled person, a private homeowner or a personal importer.
- Legal status: an enacted provision that has commenced, or a proposal that may still change.
Applying those tests prevents common errors. A 0% food rule cannot automatically be applied to all food; a vehicle rule cannot automatically cover every mobility product; a construction recovery rule cannot be converted into a claim that builders’ invoices are exempt; and a £280 import proposal cannot be treated as a current parcel allowance.
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What to do before charging, paying or reclaiming GST
- Confirm commencement. Find the enacted GST legislation and the official notice stating when it takes effect. The 30 September 2026 meeting record identified the reform propositions as active, not as a completed exemption schedule.
- Read the definitions. Check terms such as small independent supplier, food, permanently adapted vehicle, eligible person, personal goods, consignment value and qualifying second-hand goods.
- Identify the transaction type. Decide whether you are making a domestic supply, importing goods, commissioning construction or reselling goods. The proposed rules do not use one universal test.
- Collect evidence. Keep supplier invoices, import declarations, acquisition and resale prices, eligibility certificates, proof of private ownership and construction contracts where relevant.
- Use the confirmed rate or mechanism for the date. Do not backdate a proposal or apply a future threshold to an earlier shipment. If the final rule is unclear, obtain written guidance from the responsible Guernsey authority or professional tax adviser before filing or invoicing.
- Correct errors promptly. If you charged the wrong amount, preserve the original invoice and transaction record and follow the correction, repayment or adjustment process in the enacted rules rather than silently editing accounts.
Why the final law matters
The 2026 proposition expressly linked bringing GST into operation to income-tax, social-security and benefit mitigations. That condition means the tax rate, exemptions and commencement cannot be separated from the wider implementation package. Even if a category appears in a proposition, the operative date and the final drafting may depend on those measures.
The available official extracts also do not establish a complete list of exempt services. They identify targeted proposals for food, adapted vehicles, private construction, personal imports and second-hand goods, but they do not prove that professional services, accommodation, healthcare, education, finance or any other broad service class is exempt. Do not infer treatment for an unlisted service from another jurisdiction’s GST or VAT system.
Bottom line for Guernsey residents and businesses
As of the latest official record identified for this article, you cannot rely on a settled Guernsey GST exemption list. The 2026 material is a set of proposals: 0% food for qualifying small independent suppliers; possible zero-rating for specified adapted vehicles and mobility scooters; a proposed recovery route for qualifying private residential construction; a proposed de minimis threshold of at least £280 for certain unaccompanied personal imports; and a proposed margin calculation for qualifying second-hand goods. The 2022 charity-shop treatment for books and clothes is historical and does not establish the 2026 result.
Use the words “exempt”, “zero-rated”, “recoverable”, “de minimis” and “margin scheme” only when the enacted Guernsey legislation uses the relevant mechanism and its commencement and conditions have been confirmed.
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