The island’s top committee, Policy & Finance, has revealed Budget proposals for 2026 which include increases in personal and property tax and the doubling of the licence fee to own a tractor.
Sark will spend £2.5m. in 2026 – up by £306,000 or 13.98% – and aims to make a £30,000 surplus.
The spending is primarily driven by the need to spend more than £150,000 on essential works on La Coupee, increasing costs in supporting vulnerable islanders, and locum GP and paramedic cover.
The island is continuing work on its Strategic Island Plan and on reforming its Personal Capital Tax to come up with ‘a system of revenue collection which is fairer and better able, longer term, to meet Sark’s needs’. Proposals on reform of this tax will be presented over the course of the next 12 months.
The island’s areas of largest spend are on maintenance and repairs (14%), education services (13%), medical services (13%) and staff (12%).
Chief Pleas is looking to take a further £318,667 off islanders over the course of the year. If approved, the new Budget will see 55% of Chief Pleas’ income coming from direct taxation on islanders. 14% of its income will come from import duties and 7% from rubbish charges. Minimum personal tax would be set at £630 and maximum will rise to £12,619.
The island’s douzaine are responsible for a number of tax proposals, including the doubling of a licence for a tractor to £300.
Douzaine chairman Conseiller Mike Locke, said that all the douzaine’s licence fees had been reviewed.
‘In an ideal world, there would be no increases in licences,’ he said. ‘But in the real world, no increases means that our income will fall further behind our costs, which will, inevitably, rise by at least RPI.’
Licence increases will see the cost of yearly bicycle licence increase from £14 to £18, and from £25 to £33 for a horse.
The island has no income tax and Chief Pleas has been holding a review into future taxation.
P&F has also allocated £30,000 to develop the Strategic Island Plan.
The lack of a clear financial plan had been raised as an issue by a number of conseillers who had resigned earlier this year.
The budget also revealed that P&F envisages that the compulsory purchase of Sark Electricity Limited will be completed by the end of September 2026.
The Budget meeting is scheduled for Wednesday 19 November at 5pm.
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