~ Justice Minister tells SHTA ~
PHILIPSBURG--According to the St. Maarten Hospitality and Trade Association (SHTA), Minister of Justice Roland Duncan informed the association in a meeting on Thursday that the validity period for Brooks Tower Accord (BTA) permits has been moved to November 2012 instead of the end of November this year.
The minister also announced that three-year extensions could be granted after November 2012, after which the holders of the permits would be granted permanent residence, subject to good behaviour.
The SHTA also said the minister had confirmed that by September 15 he should begin issuing permits to those persons who had been accepted through the BTA process.
In addition, the association said consensus had been reached in the meeting that "bogus employers" should be prosecuted for trying to defraud the system, a position already taken by Duncan when he announced recently that documents in support of some 1,610 applications for BTA residence permits had been filed by bogus employers.
The SHTA met with the minister after the latter had called on bodies representing businesses such as the SHTA, St. Maarten Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Indian Merchants Association, St. Maarten Chinese Association and the Bankers' Association to call on their members to do the right thing.
"SHTA knows of its members who have people who are illegal. Here's your chance," Duncan said last week. The SHTA responded that it did not know what the Minister was implying.
The SHTA said the minister had explained his statement on Thursday. "He clarified that he was referring to the actual employers who have not signed for these applicants and asked SHTA to assist by encouraging its members and the entire business community, the real employers of these rejected applicants, to come in and sign for these persons."
The SHTA added that in the interest of reducing illegal employment the ministry was looking into a method to give employers involved in the BTA process an opportunity to come forward and legalise their staff without fear of prosecution.
SHTA president Emil Lee stated that the SHTA's perspective had always been to promote good business practices. He referred to SHTA's mission statement, which is to bring quality to all aspects of life in St. Maarten by promoting sustainable economic development for its members in cooperation with the social partners and the creation of a fair competitive marketplace.
Lee further stated, "In general, our members come together because they are looking to create a fair and transparent level playing field vs. businesses that have adopted a business model based on shady business practices."
Also discussed were the plans for stricter controls at the border. "Minister Duncan confirmed that the Immigration system at PJIA [Princess Juliana International Airport, ed.] will be linked to the Immigration Department, to be able to better monitor the movement of passengers in and out of this island. He is also working on revising the Immigration policies, which he stated are outdated, and hopes to have the Immigration system revamped by mid-2012," said the SHTA.
Regarding the permit process, which the SHTA reiterated was strenuous, lengthy and cumbersome, the SHTA said Duncan had informed it that this was being revised. The plans are to synchronise work and residence permits, to create a one-stop-shop where both permits can be requested and to update the application requirements.
The SHTA said, "He is also looking into changing the validity period of permits to three years with an annual renewal fee. If the fee is not paid, the permit will no longer be valid.
"This, along with online application and tracking possibilities in the future, is part of his vision to make the department more efficient, which is in line with SHTA's perspective of reducing red tape and improving transparency. As for the processing fee, the Minister informed that the monies were collected by the Labour Office and it is up to that ministry to decide if it will issue refunds to the rejected applicants."
SHTA members that are uncertain of the status of their employees' applications can contact the SHTA at
info@shta.com for more information.
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