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So, to provide you with a clear picture of what to expect, we went looking for answers from BTL. Here's what their Mobile Product Manager had to say about the changes in tax regime, and how it will affect the price of your data:

Britany Young, Mobile Product Manager - BTL
"So, it will not only apply to your 4G data service, it does encompass our mobile prepaid plan. So if you are a prepaid customer, several customers are prepaid, if you purchase our standard prepaid data plans; that is, for instances, your data S, data L and so on, those are affected. When you look at Digicel postpaid, if you are a lite, plus, elite or max costumer those are taxable. Then we go into our fixed products; so, our broadband services like diginet or highspeed internet. So, for residential customers and business customers, they will be taxed on those products as well."

Daniel Ortiz - Reporter
"I come in with $2 and I want to buy as much data as possible for my prepaid number, will that amount be the same, will I have to pay a dollar more, what will I have to do to get the same amount of data that I would have been able to buy before the taxes were applied to that bill?"

Britany Young, Mobile Product Manager - BTL
"So the plans don't change, what changes is the price because that $2 receives that 12.5% GST, your price will go up to $2 plus the 12.5% GST. Your plan remains the same, the allowance remains the same just that you have to pay GST on that purchased amount."

Daniel Ortiz
"Have you all been getting customers asking questions like these: how their new billing cycle will be like?"

Britany Young, Mobile Product Manager - BTL
"We have gotten a few but because it went into effect over the Easter weekend we haven't gotten an influx of calls; customers haven't received a monthly bill as yet. I'm certain that once we get that first cycle of customers on April 15th they will have questions just to figure out what is being taxed and what's not taxed; maybe for those customers that have bundle plans where they have something that has standard tax and now they are getting taxed on data. It will be broken down to show the reflection of what GST is; so, that is broken down properly on our bill. We want to make this transition as easy as possible for our customers. It essentially applies to all data services; so mobile data whether it is postpaid or prepaid, whether you have fixed internet services, if you are a resident or a business, once you are getting some form of internet then that will have the 12.5% GST applied to it."

But, if you are a BTL customer, you don't have to start worrying about the spike in your internet bill just yet. The company is offering a limited time promotion where it will absorb the cost of the GST tax on your data. So, that means that for the time being, your bill will remain the same. The company's mobile product manager told us that they are trying to assist their customers to prepare for the change that this new tax will bring:

Britany Young, Mobile Product Manager - BTL
"Well the taxes are in effect as of April 1st but what BTL is doing is offering lower data rates for our Diginet residential customers, our mobile prepaid customers and our mobile postpaid customers. So, you, as a Diginet residential customer, if you have the 179 plan- the 20 mg speed- your bill will actually be $179 because of the lower data rate that we are offering. Let's say you are a mobile prepaid customer and you purchase your data M plan for $4, you'll pay $4 right now. This is a limited time offer. Now let's say this lower data rate promotion ends, you will actually pay 12.5% GST on that monthly bill. So, that will be for a full month that you will get the 12.5% GST on that."

Daniel Ortiz - Reporter
"How long can costumers say: yes, I am getting a little ease from BTL?"

Britany Young, Mobile Product Manager - BTL
"Well it is a limited time offer but right now we don't have specific days to give out. It is effective April 1st, so customers can enjoy the promotion at this time. Should anything change we'll be sure to notify customers in a timely manner so they can prepare for that change in the promotion."

Daniel Ortiz
"There will be a cut-off point in which this promotion ends?"

Britany Young, Mobile Product Manager - BTL
"Correct because it is a limited time offer so there will be an end date once one has been determined."

So, while BTL customers will be getting this slight ease, it won't be the same for the customers of other internet service providers. We understand that other ISP's will be passing that tax hike to their customers, as of April 1, when the change took effect. That means that non-BTL customers should see an increase in their next billing cycle.

We've heard of at least 1 owner of another internet service provider who is viewing BTL's promotional rate of absorbing the GST as an unfair competition.

As the biggest telecoms company, BTL is better able to absorb the financial hit of such a move, which could negatively affect smaller companies.

The BTL spokesperson told us their intentions were honest. She said that they are simply looking after their own customers:

Daniel Ortiz - Reporter
"We understand that other companies are offering, well, they will be applying this particular GST change immediately or it takes effect as of April 1st and they don't have this promotional rate. Is this a tactic to possibly entice those customers who would be paying more from those other telecommunications companies."

Britany Young, Mobile Product Manager - BTL
"We like to offer our customers more value in our plans and I think that is our main focus- to have our customers be our priority. And we want to remain competitive in this market. So with it becoming effective April 1st some customers might not have time to plan for that so we want to offer them more value during this limited time offer and I mean there is more value in that."

Daniel Ortiz
"Are you able to address the concern that maybe this is a calculated attempt to undermine your competitors?"

Britany Young, Mobile Product Manager - BTL
"I would not say that at all it is just that we are offering our customers more value in their data plans because as you know data plans can run expensive so it is just giving customers more value for what they are paying for."

BTL customers who would like to see how this new data tax regime will affect them can visit the company's website at belizetelemedia.net. You can also call their customer service hotline.