p. 35 · PDF p. 35
The year-on-year employment comparison
The Minister states that 5,100 more persons were employed in Q1 2026 than in Q1 2025, taking employment to 564,000, and compares participation of 55.1% with 54.3% a year earlier. He says the budget will create an ‘explosion of economic activities, hyper-growth, and a boom in job opportunities’.
p. 36 · PDF p. 36
TT$250 grant increases
Proposed monthly increases of TT$250 in the Senior Citizens’ Grant, every Public Assistance tier and Disability Assistance for adults and eligible children. The speech identifies 124,000 senior citizens, 13,637 public-assistance recipients and 28,000 disability-assistance recipients. Twelve months of a TT$250 increase equals TT$3,000.
pp. 154–157 · PDF pp. 154–157
Fiscal 2027 forecasts and headline allocations
Revised fiscal 2026 revenue TT$54.247B, expenditure TT$61.247B and deficit TT$7B. Fiscal 2027: revenue TT$59.729B, expenditure TT$63.368B and deficit TT$3.639B. Oil assumption US$77/barrel; gas US$5/MMBtu. Revenue comprises oil TT$14.355B, non-oil TT$45.062B and capital TT$0.312B. Headline allocations: education and training TT$8.033B; health TT$8.061B; national security TT$7.321B; public utilities TT$4.087B; rural development and local government TT$2.323B; agriculture TT$0.987B.
pp. 158–166, 176–177 · PDF pp. 158–166, 176–177
Proposed revenue measures
Carried-forward business losses limited to 75% of chargeable profits, projected TT$430M additional revenue; petroleum unemployment levy from 5% to 8%, projected TT$155M; both proposed for 1 January 2027. Foreign digital/remote services proposed for standard-rate VAT from March 2027, projected TT$18M. Selected supplies would move from zero-rated to exempt; the distinction changes recovery of associated input VAT.
Newsroom summaries, checked 13 October 2026. Page references use the statement’s printed page numbers, which match PDF pages. Budget proposals retain their stated implementation dates; a speech is separate from enacted tax legislation.