Hi Dwayne,

I ran across your blog ‘myabacoblog.com’ and I was hoping you could answer a question I had since you seem to be familiar.

I’ve read that to work in the Bahamas (I’m a US citizen) you need a work visa, which is somewhat of a difficult affair to secure. What about vacation rentals? Is it legal for me to purchase property in the Bahamas, and then earn income on it as a vacation rental without having a work visa?

Thanks for your help!

-Steve

___________________________________________________________________________________

Hi Steve,

Glad you found my blog useful. I don’t write as often as I should.

The short answer is no you don’t need a work permit to own and operate a vacation rental home. The Bahamas has no income tax. income from a rental property is not considered work although it is income. You would need a work permit if you wanted to work as a bartender or store manager or construction etc. etc. Non-Bahamians can buy/sell/own/lease etc. real estate with relatively little regulation from the government. The majority of the vacation rental homes and condos are owned by non-Bahamians. Many use VRBO.com or similar websites and most have property managers who deal with everything in return for a percentage of rental income.

It is very similar to the situation when a non-US citizen comes to the USA. They can get a 6 month visitor visa, they can purchase real estate in the USA and they could rent it (I believe they have to pay tax on the rental income) but the non-US citizen does not need a work visa to own and collect the rent. They would need a work visa if they were actually gainfully employed by a company though.

Best regards,

Dwayne Wallas