Over $4M in fees owed by 473 PRs
(CNS): The Department of Immigration said it is ramping up efforts to pursue outstanding permanent residency fees, as officials revealed that the DoI is attempting to collect more than $4.1 million in past-due fees from 473 permanent residents. Acting Chief Immigration Officer Bruce Smith said his team was working hard to collect on the debt and warned PR holders and their employers that the law allows for their permanent residency and work rights to be revoked if they fail to pay up.
The collection of outstanding PR fees has been a long-standing problem, but the department said it has collected $67.2 million in residency fees for the public purse over the last seven years.
“While the amounts of outstanding fees are declining, the remaining outstanding amounts are significant and we are ramping up efforts to pursue all outstanding debt with different approaches,” said Smith. “This challenge is by no means a new one, nor have we been simply waiting around hoping that the situation would sort itself out. We have had some notable successes with collecting more than $1.4 million of the $4.1 million of past due fees.”
Under Immigration Law, the annual permanent residency fees are owed by either the permanent resident or their employer and both parties should be aware of the need to pay on time.
“Permanent residency holders with outstanding fees should understand that by not paying the fees they are essentially putting themselves at risk, as well as their employer, as the potential consequence is revocation of the right to work in the Cayman Islands,” Smith warned.
Hiring staff who have not paid their annual right to work fees carries serious implications for small, medium and large employers, Smith said. In 2013 the law was amended to allow for revocation of permanent residency based on non-payments as well as the threat of prosecution and fines. The current law requires all permanent residency holders to pay their fees whether they are employed or not.
The immigration boss added that permanent residency holders with the right to work who are no longer working must formally notify the department if they want to stop their right to work facility, otherwise the right to work permanent residency fees will automatically be due on the anniversary of the issue date.
As well as the 473 individuals who owe PR fees to government, another 74 permanent residencies have been revoked or rescinded. This may happen when an individual fails to pay fees, spends a period of 12 months or more off-island, is charged with an offence, divorces or meets other grounds for revocation contained in the Immigration Law, officials explained.
Once permanent residency has been rescinded, an applicant cannot apply for permanent residency again in the future.
Category: Local News
‘divorces’??? Employment rights certificates have nothing to do with permanent residence – different part of the law.
What’s the historic debt relating to garbage fees and school book fees?
Give notice that in 90 days the unpaid will have their names published, then, we can all pitch in and track them down, maybe even getting a commission for efforts.
If you want commission let the IRS know about neighbors that have US passports. You can get a cut of tax recoveries.
May not be the case after Tuesday, if the Orangeheaded monster gets in I suspect he will abolish tax in the US…
LOL
These fees should be covered by the Needs Assessment Unit, just like status fees.
2:02 you are crazy, why put more burden on the government.
CIG is not exactly overworked
The writer was being sarcastic and making the point that the needs assessment unit are supporting hundreds of non Caymanians who are often here in breach of our immigration law and should have any immigration permissions they do have revoked on the basis that they are unable to support themselves and their families. The drain is growing exponentially and will bankrupt us if not stopped and reversed quickly.
OK, so take some of the other 6000 CS members not doing too much and use them.
Totally agreed.
Can we also deport the caymanians that owe money to the HSA?
No, we can take care of our Caymanians but we can get rid of those that want PR but not willong to pay up.
10.29, I am always willong. Ask my wife, she bitches about it all the time.
Should just start charging Caymanians taxes to offset the burden of the work permit and PR fees.
Yes
And make them pay their fair share? Not today Bobo.
Stop the pandering, clear the air, revoked, deport and cash in on their assets. Or, are they going to be our liability? Would they be able to flout the law in other countries? I don’t think so.
If I don’t renew my permit, and stay here and keep working, what would immigration do to me??
Just do the same. Easy peasey.
Police are doing a good job of rounding up criminals now. Round up 400 more.
Cheaper just to enter into a marriage of convenience.
This must be the most hilarious news I’ve heard in a very long time. We must be the laughing stock to the world? Come on guys, this one can’t be too hard to figure out and implement. You know who these people are or don’t you? You want get paid or not? Please stop running government like a mom and pops shop and run it like a business or we will eventually be bankrupt!!!
Do they do anything right there? Maybe fire a few of them and give the job to expats?
Why would anybody pay the fees if the immigration department doesn’t send out a bill!!!! If CUC doesn’t send the bill nobody would pay it either, get your head out off your xxx,s and send out bills!!!
I didn’t pay my residency fees for 5 years and only paid it when I got status….. had I not got status I would have left cayman without paying. Why would anybody pay if they are not organized enough to send out a bill!!!
Why do they have to send a bill. It’s your responsibility to pay not the immigration dept to remind you. Yours should have been revoked and shipped your assistance of the island!
Because responsibility. Not everyone goes through life trying to sneak a free ride. Some do, but not all.
5:52 pm very ingenuious aren’t you. No wonder we have so many imported crooks.
Nobody likes crooks, imported or otherwise
Not paying a bill you know you have to pay is irresponsible and dishonest.
Last month I didn’t receive my phone or internet bills. A few months back my CUC bill did not come in the mail either. I didn’t wait around, month end I went around paying bills as usual and told the cashiers at both establishments I hadn’t received my bill.
I was given the the amounts then paid them.
I used my phone and internet also electricity for that month so I have to expect that it is my responsibility to pay the bills. Same should go for PR fees. You get to stay in Cayman with the right to work and that comes with a fee. You don’t pay you shouldn’t get the privilege.
Had I not paid Flow and CUC I would at some point still have to pay them to keep service. If I didn’t pay they would eventually cut me off, then I would have had that against my name and debt collector out looking for me, so why not sooner than later. Exactly what is happening with the PR individuals now.
They or their employers must have known the grant of their PR came with a cost. Any honest civilized individual or company would have follow up asking for the bill or the amount and paid it. Just because someone (immigration) is slack you don’t have to stoop to their standards. Further more I am certain not every single person that was granted PR can say, they did not receive the bill.
Honesty is the best policy every time, that’s an old age saying and still one of the best virtue I was taught at a very young age. In life we must always strive to do what is right. Integrity should be of utmost importance to everyone, it shouldn’t matter how rich or poor we are.
The acting Chief Immigration Officer must follow through on his promise. Those fees must be collected and if not the individuals and employers dealt with accordingly.
Thank you!
let’s not forget how useless CUC are about sending out bills and taking payment.
I have set up my CUC bill, so every month they can take the money owed to them direct from my account, as I never used to receive the bill, only the disconnection notices.
Even giving them a direct debit they still have cut me off twice (on friday nights on long weekends), as they have not bothered to request payment.
Their accounts receivable team is the laziest, worst run department outside of the Cayman Government.
As for the outstanding PR fees, it would be good to see how many of these PR’s have simply left Cayman. I know of 2 families that had PR, but left Cayman 2 and 3 years ago, as they did not want to be suddenly told to leave within 2 weeks, and have to move their children out of school mid term with little notice. They fully informed the Gov of this and they still get invoice for PR fees, even though the government know they self revoked, informed immigration, left and haven’t been back.
With the standard of th civil serivce, you will probably find many of these PR non payers are dead, just noone has bothered to update their system.
FYI In the very near future you will have to pay your CUC bills at gas stations etc and your electricity bill cut off on demand and of course expect to get them electronic in the near future. whach you gonna do then ?
This is the most sensible reading I have read in a long time! After all we still have people with morals and decency who sees it as the old saying days….Honesty is the best Policy.
All the chat in the press every week about outstanding permanent residency applications and yet those who have been given PR, can’t comply with paying their annual fees for such.
Where is the chatter fron the Compass on this matter? They ran out of ink.
are they not two different sets of people?
1) those awaiting any decision on their PR application after paying over the last 5 years, but ares still in limbo
2) Those who had PR, became so annoyed at the system, that they left, fully informed immigration of their decision, but the CS being as it is, never updates their system so send out $4m in invoices out to people they know are no longer in the country.
All either due to laziness or just massaging the budget income figures (ie over invoicing to bulk up PR income.
Anyone wonder why the Compass takes a particular interest in the PR backlog issue?
Approx 9,000 per person? What’s is the annual fee?
But over the last 7 years cayman goverment has taken over 67 million in residency fees. Most have paid the fees
Same as their work permit
This would seem to have a simple fix. First, prior to PR being granted, the fees should be paid.
Regarding the ‘past-due’ PR fees, give the recipients three months. Pay or go. I think that is fair.
Three months to pay! No, they had enough time to sort themselves out. If they were due money, they would’ve excersied their human rights by collecting through the Courts. Line them up at the Court House,, then to their flight.
You cannot pre pay PR fees given its an annual fee and absent a crystal ball no one knows how long they will remain in island before either being granted status or leaving. Its really a lot simpler. Don’t pay the annual fee, served with a warning, don’t pay after notice, PR withdrawn.
I wonder how many of the overdue PR holders are even still on island, because you have to assume they haven’t filed their annual returns either? Bet you immigration doesn’t even know – just keeps cranking out the annual fee and recording the revenue (and the receivable) to make the departments accounts look sharp, even if the prior years haven’t been paid. Another HSA write off in the making.
This is exactly what I was thinking! I would bet any money that a significant % of these people left the island but government departments too dumb to reconcile their own records. It was the same when the pensions office was using the stupidest possible method to calculate unpaid pension amounts – they were including hundreds of businesses who had closed and no longer had trade and business licenses but hadn’t informed the pension provider. The govt could have easily checked with trade and business licensing to clean up a huge amount of those estimated arrears.
Permanent residence fees are illegal discrimination against settled residents on the basis of national origin and contrary to Cayman’s ECHR obligations.
ECHR give me a break…, this is a taxation policy.
The average cost of raising a child in the US is US $304,000 to the age of 18. Each Caymanian child likely costs about 35-40% more due to the high cost of goods and services.
That means that each Caymanian contributes by the time he/she is 18 about 25-30% of that amount in Tax. Whilst a PR applicant in most situations has contributed nothing at 18. Therefore, the cost of 1 right to be Caymanian should be equal to the average amount of taxes paid for each year by a Caymanian. At the age of 18, that amount is over $100,000.00 and it keeps increasing each year and at death it is likely over CI $1 million.
And that does not even start to account for the time element for generations prior who built roads and infrastructure the cost of which isn’t baked in to this figure.
From a strictly mathematical perspective it is Caymanians for being Caymanian who automatically pay unless we were to live in Caves which we clearly don’t. Also, after the PR’s have worked for 40 years and on retirement grab their pension and go it is the Caymanian that spend till the end on funeral and burial plot paying tax to the end.
Anyways, I hope everyone considers that and how Caymanian rights come at a cost too one which we cannot just not pay…But, this is likely the first time many have seen this argument and that testament to what we feel like is a way of life and we have accepted it. I hope that everyone can except it too and if they wish to join us here for 40 years or forever, to appreciate that it all comes at a very dear costs.
The cost of living on Cayman is dictated by greedy local businesses who ramp up thier prices beyond levels of expected shipping, duty and employment overheads.
The thieves that call themselves businessmen are creating proverty amongst their own people and an artificial level of inflation that will inevitably become unsustainable.
PR is a joke, as is status, what does it mean anyway, it’s not a nationality, it’s just a description with a worthless passport?
The people of these islands are clueless when it comes to the limitations of their worth. You have no real industry, you export virtually zero goods, you have too few hotels, no interest in encouraging 500 million European tourists and an appalling work ethic. Even the financial industry isn’t Cayman owned!
Add to that a seething envy of those who actually serve your economy and enable you to have a 1st world lifestyle on a 3rd world island, and you get a recipe for disaster.
So keep PR and the incompetence that allows every institution on this island to be defrauded out of billions of dollars. Caymanians are by far and away the masters of defrauding their own government, so no lectures please until you pay up for the free ride you’ve been taking for decades. You could start with healthcare, mortgage default, secured loans, unsecured loans or even garbage disposal, to name a few areas in need of attention.
3:25pm. The only ones who have Rights are the imports. The locals have no Rights.
PR’s are not Caymanian, so have no rights under ECHR, as you have to be human
Really, how difficult is this. They don’t pay, revoke. Of course, its is a little bit ironic that Immigration is bitching about people granted PR not paying but taking advantage of the benefits, whereas Immigration is more than happy to take fees in advance from those applying for PR and then do square root of eff all about dealing with the application. Pot calling kettle black.
yet people are complaining about the government delaying their PR. I can see why!
Try reading the article
Read it? And spoil the chance for a good racist rant? Come on….
How much does a Permanent Resident have to pay annually?
Good luck!…..some of them already left the cayman island….similar problem with car plate number when police said about $8 millions is owned and sure it is the caymanian are owned to DLVC ………
Maybe rescinding them will free up jobs for Caymanians? but lets not do that we need the fees!
Umm, if they haven’t actually paid the fees rescinding the PR is not going to make a difference….
Deport 1 or 2 of them, and see how fast the debt shrinks.
as in all likelihood they have already left Cayman, finding them in another country, extraditing them back to Cayman, to then deport them back again will be a bit of a waste of time, resources and money.
Immigration needs to decide if working female spouses are still considered dependent “chattels” or equal separate bona fide applications in their own right. Currently both spouses are encouraged to apply, but are eventually told that only the application of the male spouse really matters. My Naturalised BOTC wife’s Residency with Employment Rights was actually cancelled while we awaited outcome on my family’s CI Status Application. She and my kids, all Naturalised BOTC residents in Cayman (15yrs+), had to suffer the indignity of having their Passports stamped every 3 months with rolling visitor permits. There is a reason why people are not keen to advance more fees to Immigration than necessary. There are never any refunds on the duplication of fees and costs and there is no apparatus for complaint or recourse after the cheque is cashed.
I always understood it that PR fees were the responsibility of the individual to pay. If Government want their money they should make the individual and employer jointly liable and send an annual bill, that way if the company is forced to pay they can deduct it from their wages and effectively outsource the collections. The company would have been paying permit fees before PR, so what’s the difference? Now, where do I pick up my cheque for a percentage of the fees?
Absolutely all efforts should be made to collect PR fees that have not been paid, particularly in cases of wilful non-payment. However, I worry that there is an HSA-like angle to this, where fees have been paid but not recorded, incorrectly assessed, etc. It’s hardly a perfect system – Immigration doesn’t send out an annual invoice telling you what you owe, it is up to the PR holder and/or their employer to remember to pay on time and sort out the proper fee and the goalposts are constantly moving. I have PR without right to work and the fee charged (as assessed directly by an Immigration officer on each occasion) has varied from year to year, sometimes is it zero, sometimes it isn’t. The inconsistency makes me worry that one day I’ll be nabbed for failure to pay, when I’ve really done all I can to get it right.
Cancel their PR status for non payment and DEPORT THEM!!!
And jail all the outstanding debtors that owe for healthcare, mortgage default etc…
Well that’s WB taken care of, now let’s move on to money laundering by local businesses who encourage foreign property ownership without financial checks, or ‘paper ownership’ deals that enable foreign partners to hide illicitly gained funds from their home revenues.
Thiefs and robbers, all of you.
“ramping up efforts” – I think I am going to use this statement in my next performance review and see how my employer will view this statements
They will ‘ramp up’ their effort to get rid of you, have a ‘crack down’ on that type of behavior anda ‘blow out’ sale on your cubicle.
Considerably less than Caymanians owe the HSA.
12:25 pm. Caymanians are in their country, you are in my country. Join the line at ORIA. Have an enjoyable flight.
Caymanians are the biggest exponents of fraud and indebtedness on these islands. They are masters of taking, and impotent to stop it. You are obviously so proud of your dishonesty and incompetence.
Oh yes, The Cayman Islands are a territory, not a country, just like Caymanian isn’t a nationality, it’s a description.
Nah man, it could never be a son of the soil. Show me the policy where dishonesty and incompetence are not required!
Or in pension deficit!
Just wondering if the ongoing fees that the several hundred waiting for their PR applications to be heard and are still having to pay over and over again are ever going to get paid back? Should be a one time application fee, not many times….works both ways…
Geez, how are they still running around? Pick them up and send them back where they came from. Time to make Cayman great again!
You mean..time to make Cayman “Grand” again
Ha
Serve the delinquents 30 days notice to comply. After 30 days round them up and deport. Seize the unpaid fees from their assets left behind. Simple and fair right? But then again maybe there’s not enough teeth in the law nor balls to enforce it as usual.
If they can’t invoice on the first place how in gods green earth do they know who and where they are!!!!!