The definition of a Permanent Establishment (PE) is introduced by the Income Tax (Amendment) Act, 2015 and includes a fixed place of business through which the business of an organization is wholly or partly carried on. A fixed place of business includes:

a place of management;
a branch;
an office;
a factory;
a workshop;
a mine, an oil or gas well, a quarry or any other place of extraction of natural resources;
a building site or construction or installation project if it lasts for more than 3 months;
an agent (other than an independent agent) acting on behalf of the other person in the country, if the agent:
- has and habitually exercises an authority to conclude contracts on behalf of the other person, or
- habitually maintains a stock of goods or other merchandise from which the agent regularly delivers goods or merchandise on behalf of the other person.

However, the following places are not considered as PE of a foreign entity in Jamaica:

Using facilities for the storage or display of goods or merchandise belonging to the organization;
Using the stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the organization for storage or display or delivery;
Using inventory of goods or merchandise belonging to the organization for the sole purpose of being processed by another organization;
Using a fixed place of business for the sole purpose of purchasing merchandise or collecting information for the organization;
Using a fixed place of business for the carrying out of activities of preparatory or auxiliary character;
Using a fixed place of business for the combined exercise of the activities listed above, on condition that the combined activity remains of a preparatory or auxiliary character.

The law does not specifically define a ‘Service PE’. Some of the Jamaican treaties (e.g. those with Mexico, USA) provide specifically for service PEs, but they require the physical presence of an individual for a prescribed period (ranging between 3 and 12 months).

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