GREAT BAY--Minister of Finance Marinka Gumbs announced in Parliament today that the Council of Ministers has approved the draft 2027 budget, marking an early step toward restoring discipline, predictability and timely delivery to St. Maarten’s budget process.
According to Gumbs, the draft 2027 budget was approved by the Council of Ministers on June 25, 2026, and has since been submitted to the Board of Financial Supervision, Cft, and the Department of Legal Affairs for further review. Any comments received will be incorporated before the budget proceeds to the Council of Advice.
The Minister said the aim is to submit the 2027 budget to Parliament on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, which is the second Tuesday of September. Under St. Maarten’s budget rules, the draft national budget is required to be submitted to Parliament no later than the second Tuesday of September of the year preceding the budget year.
Gumbs described the early approval as an important achievement, especially given the long-standing delays that have historically affected St. Maarten’s budgetary process.
“This is no small achievement,” Gumbs told Parliament. “It reflects this government’s commitment to restoring greater timelines, discipline and predictability to the public finance cycle.”
The 2027 budget projects total revenues of approximately Cg. 670 million, an increase of about Cg. 23 million compared to 2026. Expenditures are projected at approximately Cg. 662 million, an increase of about Cg. 26 million, resulting in a projected surplus of approximately Cg. 8 million.
The Minister said the 2027 projections are based on the same methodology used for the 2026 budget. Certain revenue categories are calculated as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product, while others are estimated using a prudent approach until greater certainty is available.
Gumbs explained that updated information during the preparation process, particularly regarding funding from the TWO and the Trust Fund, resulted in both revenues and expenditures increasing by approximately Cg. 23 million when compared to the multi-annual outlook presented in the 2026 budget. Since those increases largely offset each other, she said there is no material impact on the overall financial position and the projected surplus remains unchanged.
Breaking down projected revenues for 2027, Gumbs said taxes remain the foundation of government’s revenue base, projected at Cg. 497 million, or approximately 74 per cent of total revenue. Permits and licenses are projected at Cg. 25 million, fees and concessions at Cg. 65 million, and other revenues, including project contributions, at Cg. 84 million.
The Minister stressed that the 2027 projections do not include new revenue-enhancing measures that have not yet been finalized. She specifically noted that the planned tourist tax, estimated at approximately Cg. 18 million, has deliberately been excluded because the enabling legislation has not yet completed its passage through Parliament.
Gumbs said once there is greater certainty regarding implementation, the measure can be incorporated into future budget amendments.
The Minister also told Parliament that the tax-to-GDP ratio is projected to remain stable at approximately 14.2 per cent through 2029. She said this provides confidence that projected tax revenue growth is being driven mainly by underlying economic growth rather than one-time effects.
Gumbs further noted that the TWO program is currently expected to run only through the first quarter of 2027, with no extension included in the current projections. If an extension is agreed upon, the corresponding revenues and expenditures will be reflected in future budget updates.
According to the Minister, the 2027 outlook reinforces the broader message of government’s multi-year financial planning: projections are prudent, revenue growth is structural rather than incidental, and additional measures will only be incorporated once they are fully confirmed.
She said the consistent methodology used across both the 2026 and 2027 budgets strengthens the reliability and comparability of the figures.
The announcement formed part of Gumbs’ wider budget presentation, during which she emphasized policy-based budgeting, fiscal discipline, transparency and the need to end the recurring cycle of late budget submissions.
