UK rep’s troubles stir up long-running status issues

| 09/05/2022 | 146 Comments
Cayman News Service
Dr Tasha Ebanks-Garcia

(CNS): Questions surrounding Dr Tasha Ebanks-Garcia’s legal situation as a Cayman Islands Government employee in the UK have served to reignite long-running concerns over the battles Caymanians have in some circumstances with their immigration status. Ebanks-Garcia is unquestionably Caymanian, but speculation about her official status in London apparently came to light last year when she was posted to the UK without the correct immigration documentation to allow her to work there.

CNS was contacted last month by a Caymanian living in the UK, who said that Ebanks-Garcia did not have a British passport. The source said that the ministry with responsibility for the London Office at the time, headed by Eric Bush, did not complete the due diligence before she was appointed as Cayman’s representative in the UK in March 2021.

Although officials told CNS on Monday that the “situation was now being addressed”, it seems that she was originally dispatched to London on a Canadian passport.

As a Caymanian, she is entitled to a British Overseas Territories Citizen passport. As a BOTC, she could then apply for and would almost certainly obtain a British passport. This would allow her legally live and work in the UK, but without it, she would require a work visa. Instead, she appears to have gone to the UK as a visitor.

Ebanks-Garcia is not the first Caymanian to struggle with immigration issues. Due to the complexities of the immigration law, there are many ways that people who are born and raised in Cayman with direct Caymanian lineage can still fall foul of the immigration system. This is especially so where parents are unmarried or are immigrants who, after securing status themselves, failed for myriad reasons to secure the same status for their children, who then find themselves stateless.

Often labelled “ghost Caymanians”, hundreds of people have slipped through numerous failed efforts by successive governments to regularize their status.

The situation surrounding Ebanks-Garcia, who is a Caymanian, fuelled an outpouring on social media Monday, with people telling story after story on various forums about challenges relating to immigration issues. But while it is clear that successive governments have failed to straighten out Cayman’s immigration laws, this particular example should not have been difficult to resolve if the due diligence had been done.

The failure of the ministry to secure the required visa before Ebanks-Garcia left for the UK leads to the implication that the Cayman government’s UK representative was working in Britain for some time without the correct papers. CNS has contacted Ebanks-Garcia, who is currently in Cayman, and her former boss, Eric Bush, about how this situation arose, and we are awaiting a response.

Last month, when CNS first sent inquiries about this issue to senior officials, we were told emphatically that there was no problem with Ebanks-Garcia’s immigration status in the UK and that the story sounded like a smear campaign. However, our source had insisted the information was accurate.

We continued our efforts to verify the claims officially and they were finally confirmed on Monday by a government official. This came only after Cayman Marl Road posted details of its own struggle to get a comment from anyone in authority about these allegations.

The government official told CNS today that responsibility for this lay with the Cabinet Office but was at the time the ministry for trade and investment. But we were told that the management in the former ministry had responsibility for dealing with the immigration issues relating to staff in the London Office but that the cabinet secretary now had the matter in hand.

It is understood that Ebanks-Garcia has since been naturalized but is still waiting for a BOTC passport.

Ebanks-Garcia is a Canadian citizen through her mother but also has Caymanian status as the daughter of Captain Bryan Ebanks. She grew up in Cayman and went to the Cayman Islands High School before going to college in the United States, where she went on to complete a PhD in psychology.

She joined the civil service in 2013 as a deputy chief officer in the Ministry of Education and was appointed to the London office just over a year ago after previously heading up Travel Cayman.

Since this article was published, Chief Officer Bush has sent the following information: “I understand the Cabinet Office is preparing a statement, which will seek to clarify the chain of events, etc.”

Corrections: The article previously said that the financial services ministry had oversight of the London Office. However, since the elections in 2021, it is the Cabinet Office that has oversight. The article also previously stated that BOTC passport holders did not need a visa to work in the UK. This is incorrect. See here.


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Category: Local News

Comments (146)

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  1. Anonymous says:

    A Passport is just a travel document. What she needs is to be Naturalised as a UK citizen…you can then apply for a passport if you want one, or not. That’s the legal certificate that determines if you can stay and work, or whatever, not the travel document. If our rep to UK really didn’t know this, then it questions the suitability of her selection, by all involved. She should file that paperwork and get it done (takes about 6 months).

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  2. Good Governance in the Cayman Islands says:

    I think people are being very unfair to the CIG and Dr Tasha Ebanks Garcia. They can’t be expected to know who is and who is not British… and just because they have potentially committed a crime in the UK… because they employed someone illegally… that is hardly their fault…

    Equally, in the normal course of events, Dr Tasha will be prevented from becoming British for at least 10 years because she has committed an immigration offence in the UK… this is so unfair to here.. how could she know she was breaking the law by working in the UK.. it’s not as if she is an expert on these matters…

    What is lucky is that the UK Government is probably never going to find out about this.. because it is not as if there is a website where you can report immigration crimes

    https://www.gov.uk/report-immigration-crime

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    • Anonymous says:

      She entered the country as a tourist… that usually gives you a hint on whether you can or cannot work in a country.

      I am curious to know whether she evaded taxes too?

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  3. Anonymous says:

    So … for those in the back …

    1. CAYMANIAN is nothing more than a social construct, it means absolutely NOTHING outside of Cayman because Cayman is NOT a sovereign country it is a territory … so the coveted “Caymanian” title is merely an immigration status that has financial benefits within these islands.

    2. There is nothing known as a “Cayman Passport” as Cayman is not an independent country (see above) it is unable to issue a passport which is an internationally recognised travel document which indicates among other things nationality. The UK Home Office issues BOTC passports to persons who have a close connection with Cayman … i.e. persons who have become naturalised as BOTC Nationals under the BNA, as they do for Bermuda, BVI etc…
    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/british-overseas-territories-citizens

    3. A person who has been issued a BOTC passport can sometime later apply for Caymanian immigration status … note it is not a nationality !!!

    4. A person who has been issued with a BOTC passport can if they meet the requirements of the UK apply for and be granted a British Passport.

    5. Persons born to BOTC with a connection to Cayman in Cayman are Brtish citizens/British Dependent citizens/ BOTC etc… based on the UK legislation BNA,

    6. Persons born to BOTC with a connection to Cayman outside of Cayman … are the Nationals of whatever country they are born in … AND eligible to apply for Caymanian Immigration status based on the Immigration status of their PARENTS…

    7. “Generational Caymanian” are generational BOTC/BN/BDN who have a close connection to Cayman … because

    CAYMAN IS NOT A COUNTRY but a dependent territory/overseas territory, CAYMANIAN IS NOT A NATIONALITY but merely an immigration status.

    to work in the UK you either must have a UK passport i.e. right to abode or some document which allows you to work there.

    If the UK rep was sworn as a BOTC in 2021 after being appointed to the job, she would not have had a BOTC passport much less a British passport, hence she required some documentation to work there.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Being born with rights, or with accelerated pathways is one thing. But one still must apply for naturalization as a Cayman Islands BOTC. Apply for Caymanian status. Apply for naturalization as a UK Citizen. You can then get a travel document passport if you want to, but you don’t have to have those. You do need the supporting naturalization paperwork, and without that, you’re a tourist. As the former head of our own cross border travel time agency, she should have understood very well how this works. There is cause to terminate for dishonesty.

      • C'Mon Now! says:

        Maybe she is just stupid and not dishonest. Her excuse will be ignorance, but that should still be ground for dismissal.

        But all the other enablers in this should also get the boot.

        We joke and assume that all of the CIG and Civil Service is incompetents, but they really aren’t. However if you show us you are that should be the end of things. Otherwise the whole CS is just a joke.

  4. Anonymous says:

    Is one of her Grandparents Caymanian? I only see reference to her Father.

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    • Anonymous says:

      All only relevant if she applied by status by descent. Did she? Does anyone know how she “became” Caymanian?

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  5. Anonymous says:

    Thumbs up if you have heard of either of these…. “a Doctorate in Psychology and Masters Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from the California School of Professional Psychology at Alliant International University and a Bachelors Degree in Guidance and Counselling from the Institute for Theological and Leadership Development (Cayman Islands Campus).”

    http://worldclass.gov.ky/overview/deputy-chief-advisor

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    • Anonymous says:

      All rubbish degrees. Furthermore, reputable PhD holders don’t refer to themselves as “Dr”outside of academic settings.

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  6. Anonymous says:

    My kids were born in Cayman to one parent being Caymanian, they have a BOTC passport, but I have been advised by immigration to apply for the ‘right to be Caymanian’ stamp in this passport, of course this is fee based. Your parents, passport and place of birth apparently mean nothing, you have to pay for the recognition of right. What other country charges money for it’s citizens to prove they they are citizens?

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    • Anonymous says:

      It is not fee based. Your children are Caymanian as of Right and accordingly no fee is due. Immigration is literally acting unlawfully to require fees in those circumstances.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Well this isn’t a country…

  7. Mr Biggles says:

    My thing is you would think that someone with a “doctorate” would or supposed to be smart ? Unless like a certain chief officer I know got his degree from the Plywood framing & Glass screen University in Miami .Flo Rida.

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  8. Anonymous says:

    Why is that she wants to represent her ‘country’ but does not see it fit to have her country’s’ passport?

    And wonder if any of the other designated overseas appointees are in a similar position?

    But this is when you don’t think that the rules apply to you but only to others!

    I know that I’m raising a lot here but seriously no disrespect to her and it’s not sexist because there are a lot of men that I would ask the same of but what have she really accomplished since arriving in CIG from a less than accomplished previous job?

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  9. Anonymous says:

    Being able to pass an exam and actually having common sense is not same. The civil service is proof of this starting at the top.

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  10. Doulton Wedgewood says:

    Heading the CIG London Office cannot, by any measure, be construed as “work”. Unless going to cocktail receptions and garden parties is now considered work. So this is literally a storm in a teacup.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Nice try but that would make you and your comment pointless now wouldn’t it ! The greatest trick the devil ever did is to make those just like you believe he doesn’t exist . You ever wonder how our civil service thrives of failure have look at this situation folks and those involved who cannot even sort out simple $#@%.and cannot even figure if they are Caymanian or not .

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    • Anonymous says:

      This is absolute CRAP … if this were true she must give back her exorbitant salary and living allowance and money to send her kids to school then since she is not working …

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  11. anonymous says:

    Perhaps someone needs to do some fact checking on this one before they get a high and mighty about UK passports and Eric Bush. Yes Eric was the former over seas Rep, followed by Andre Ebanks. However are these positions not recruited for by the Cabinet Office Samuel Rose and approved by the Governor?

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    • Johnny Canuck says:

      Don’t get it. A Canadian passport holder can’t just arrive in the UK and work. One must apply for a work visa before arriving in the UK.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Not at the time of appointment. The current responsibility lies with the Cabinet Office, but previously it was with the Ministry.

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  12. Anonymous says:

    Like Tasha, Eric Bush has a Caymanian father and in his case an American mother. Difference, he wha born ere!

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  13. Anonymous says:

    The ‘Ghost Caymanian’ and troubled immigration law is no joke.

    There does need to be a total reform of the above. As a ‘paper’ Caymanian, i have far more evidence of my status here than friends who are long time Caymanians with some very well known local parents / grandparents.

    All alot of these people have is some silly letter from immigration (which is around 20 years old) and nothing further. No passport stamp, certificate, nada. The only way to get any further evidence is to complete applications and pay fees!

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    • Big Bobo In West Bay says:

      She is a Canadian although she has never lived in Canada? Geez, those Canadians are lax on who they give citizenship to.

      Canada should be tougher like us Caymanians. 😝 😆 😂

      Find it very funny she went to London as a Canadian while representing the Cayman Islands. 🇨🇦 🇨🇦 🇨🇦

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      • Anonymous says:

        She seems to have lived in Canada as a child. That raises serious questions of how (and even whether) she became Caymanian.

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    • Anonymous says:

      No fees are required for confirmation that you are Caymanian as of right.

      • Anonymous says:

        But there is a fee for the stamp. So if you want the stamp for ease of proof, you have to pay. If you don’t mind the fuss of referencing your letter of acknowledgement periodically, it’s free.

  14. Anonymous says:

    This is such a lot to do about nothing. It is incredible how CMR is so acutely capable of blowing out of proportion matters that are not really news worthy. Her post is effectively a diplomatic post. The usual immigration rules are not entirely applicable. Additionally let’s not forget she is in the U.K. to help our people/students. Let’s not cut off our nose to spit our face. Having, said that the ministry should have done it DD. However, the fact remains once she regularises her passport situation she will go back to the U.K. Why is this news. It is a non-event.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Umm?

      1. She appears to have been in the UK unlawfully.

      2. It is not a diplomatic post and she is not a diplomat.

      3. She may not actually be Caymanian.

      4. Our government has again made and enormous screw-up and again no one will be accountable for anything.

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    • Last Zion says:

      Her post was not a diplomatic post.. the Cayman Islands does not have diplomats… just like Andrew Fahie is about to find out with BVI.. the Cayman Islands has arguably employed a person illegally in the UK.. both her and the Government could be fined by the UK…

      in other news BVI have just said…

      “we are disappointed with the US Government for blowing out of proportion Andrew Fahie’s actions… He is a diplomat and he trying to encourage trade in BVI.. plus we are firm believers of “trickle down economics” and therefore all that dirty drug money would have eventually benefited the BVI”

  15. Anonymous says:

    How is it possible these highly paid people keep their jobs after all the mistakes and embarrassment they bring to the civil service?

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  16. Anonymous says:

    Hard to believe Tasha did not, over the years, do what is necessary to get a UK passport. Every Tom, Delroy and Kanesha has one of these nowadays in Cayman.

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  17. Candid says:

    The UK should appoint a commission of inquiry to investigate incompetence in government. Cayman is an intelligent country being put to shame by these bureaucrats who do not understand the basic relationship between the UK and Cayman. We are not one country!!!!!!

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    • Anonymous says:

      You should now look up the difference between a Country and a Territory , hint: Cayman isn’t a Country.

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  18. Right ya so says:

    How embarrassingly stupid, corrupt or incompetent, I’m not sure which of the three it really is but it’s certainly stupid. Not sure I’d be showing my face in public any time soon Ms Garcia, Mr Bush.

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  19. Junius says:

    Note to the wise, free speech is under attack, is it not? Comment carefully and wisely, as it is now the age and era of the pseudonymous writer, until clarity is brought to the law and policy teetering the balance between free speech and privacy/defamation.

    The writers doth protest too much and the powerful resent it. And the world keeps spinning and life goes on.

    It is now up to the Bar and the Bench to clarify where the ship sails. Long live free speech in the Cayman Islands, B.W.I. and beyond.

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  20. Anonymous says:

    Franzies for all involved!

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  21. Anonymous says:

    Roper Needs to go Home

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  22. Anonymous says:

    Another fine mess by cig and the civil service….

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  23. Karma says:

    It is hard to feel sorry for Dr. Tasha as she was the director of Travel Cayman and discriminated against so many actual Caymanians who were trying to come home.

    The Travel Cayman team under her leadership refused entry to hundreds of persons seeking to be reunited with their loved ones for no good reason other than the fact that Tasha and her deemed if their visit was for an acceptable reason on a magical hidden criteria.

    Movie producers were allowed in, but not grandparents and significant others.

    Karma that she is experiencing her own immigration issues.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Waived police clearances for the movie people too… Funny how those “exemptions” work.

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    • Anonymous says:

      While she was head of Travel Cayman, Dr Ebanks Garcia was hugely helpful to my family who were trying to return to Cayman. I don’t know her personally, but she was friendly, responsive and effective.

      This all looks to me like a storm in a teacup, driven by sexism, envy and personal animosity towards Dr Ebanks Garcia and Eric Bush. At worst it’s just another example of our civil service’s incompetence (ironic perhaps when Cayman is so fussy about its own immigration paperwork). But there’s nothing here that that HMG and CIG can’t sort out – unless of course there’s something we’re not being told.

      Anyway, I’d suggest we all put away the pitchforks and calm down. There are lots more important things to expend our bile upon.

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      • Anonymous says:

        I agree she is a great person. I strongly disagree this is unimportant. It goes to the very core of the competence of our government, and frankly, its fitness and integrity.

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      • Anon says:

        I am sorry, but how could this be a storm in a teacup? She not only was working illegally, but she also overstayed her time in the UK as Canadian visitor. This broke the Law, it is unethical, it smacks of dishonesty—period. How do you have persons in the highest post breaking the Law? This cannot be made right–how embarrassing for the Cayman Islands if they had actually detained our representative in the UK….for being there illegally, and working illegally. Just illustrates to the rest of the world that Cayman is a third world country. This has nothing to do with immigration status, or Cayman’s broken immigration system—it has everything to do with being honest and living within the Law. Who do these people think they are?

        • Anonymous says:

          I don’t think anyone has been in any doubt for many years about the third world point. Pigs, lipstick, etc.

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    • Anonymous says:

      All who had to battle with Travel Cayman for permissions back in the 2020 lockdown period now having a Schadenfreude moment.

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  24. Anonymous says:

    and who is responsible for Immigration?! Guess..lol.
    I guess Eric Bush will investigate himself again, then send the Governor on another cleanup roadshow, as he is doing how for the Election Spending Fiasco where laws were “Bent, not broken!”
    Wonder why the Radio Cayman call in phones went dead again today, when Governor was a live guest.

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  25. Anonymous says:

    This explains quite a lot about how Travel Cayman managed to be quite so rubbish at everything.

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  26. Anonymous says:

    It is almost beyond the realms of belief that she could have believed that a Canadian passport holder had the right to work in the UK without a visa. This has nothing to do with Cayman immigration law and everything to do with her own stupidity or dishonesty.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Or that of her employer…

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    • Anonymous says:

      Especially when she would have actively had to lie to the border staff at Heathrow. Arrive with a Canadian passport and they for sure ask you the purpose of your trip. “I am going to work at the Cayman representative office” would have triggered a request to see her visa – must have said she was visiting. Next issue – she arrived in March 2021. As a Canadian she doesn’t get to “visit” for over a year. That would be overstaying. Unless the UK government specifically allowed that – which would cause a bit of a fuss in the UK given how strict they are in applying the rules to others, and how easily it could be fixed by her simply obtaining a BOTC passport. Another example of the rules only applying to some?

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      • Anon says:

        You hit the nail on the head. Break the Law—–she should be held responsible—you are responsible for yourself—-you really cannot put this on her employer, she should have known that she lied and broke the law all on her own.

  27. Anonymous says:

    Looks like “Teflon Eric” is back at it again..Let’s see what Franz has to say about this one? Another investigation to waste money to exonerate Eric again?

    Franz, you do realize that he is now making you look incompetent and when will you stop covering all of his errors? Any other person in any job would have been let go by now..I expected or should I say, I expect better from you. I think it’s time you part ways.

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  28. Anonymous says:

    Am I reading this correctly? The former government appointed head of Travel Cayman, whose job was to oversee that people arriving here [in Cayman] complied with authorization, documentation, permission / grant to enter did herself go to the U.K. to work without due authorization , documentation, grant to enter[for working in the U.K.]?

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  29. Anonymous says:

    Everything Eric Bush touches appears to be problematic; what exactly does he bring to the table aside from problems?

    The people of Cayman (i.e. his employer) demand an answer Franz.

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  30. Anonymous says:

    This is just all around stupid from every angle.

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  31. Anonymous says:

    2:46 I agree.Tasha is herself not blameless in this situation. If she is indeed that stupid then she is clearly not suited for the position and should be fired.

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  32. Anonymous says:

    The other question is how was she allowed to work in Cayman in the first place without getting her immigration status sorted out?

    In essence that means that although she is entitled to it the fact remains she never had it! And therefore she was working in Cayman illegally!

    There is no doubt whatsoever that Eric and the other world class heroes in Government were ultimately responsible. But there has to be some responsibility on her own part for such a kerfuffle. Did she honestly believe that entering the UK on a Canadian passport as a visitor would allow her to work there? Says mouthfuls for the quality of staff being employed these days.

    But no one will be held responsible. Not dear Eric, not dear Franz, not dear Marty, not dear PPM and not dear PACT! Let’s get another review stating that everything was totally in order and the mix up didn’t really happen.

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    • Buck Dangle says:

      You do not require a “BOTC” (Cayman) passport to live and work in Cayman. She has Cayman Status. Having Cayman Status does not automatically give you a Cayman Passport.

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  33. Anonymous says:

    CNS – there appears to be a lot of confusion self evident in the article.

    First – no Caymanian is entitled to a Cayman Passport. Any government official who told you that is frighteningly out of touch as to the law. Only British Overseas Territories Citizens are entitled to Cayman Islands Passports, which are for the purposes of international law in fact BOTC Passports (not Cayman Passports).Thousands of Caymanians are not BOTC’s, and accordingly are ineligible to hold Cayman passports.

    Second – this is not a Cayman immigration issue. It has nothing to do with Cayman Islands immigration law. Whether or not Dr. Garcia Ebanks is Caymanian has no impact on her ability to live and work in the UK. That issue depends on whether she is a British Citizen.

    Third – Ghost Caymanians are NOT Caymanians. That is the point. The fact that society/branches of government treats them as if they were Caymanians, even though they are not, is the problem. The law is in fact (generally) fine and reasonably clear in determining who is Caymanian from who is not. The problem applies not in the law, but in the haphazard application of it. Many Caymanians are wrongly treated as if they are expatriates while many expatriates are wrongly treated as if they are Caymanian. Either way, Caymanians suffer.

    Fourth – Caymanians have no automatic or inherent right of abode in the UK. In fact, they do not even have a right to study in the UK beyond a few months. To do that they must either have full British citizenship or a visa. Almost anyone that became a BOTC in the last 20 years has no automatic right to British citizenship or to a full British passport. They must first apply to be Registered as a British Citizen (a discretionary process that takes several months).

    Fifth – no “ghost Caymanian” is stateless. All have a citizenship (usually that of the mother). They simply are not Caymanian (but may well be British, Jamaican, American etc. or even a BOTC).

    These five things are all facts. They are all well known in the higher echelons of government. All that has happened is that the days of ignoring them with impunity seem to be coming (finally) to an end.

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  34. Anonymous says:

    Cayman must be one of the few places in the world where you can be multi-generational. Have the passport. Be allowed to vote or even hold office but may not be considered a citizen by all government departments.

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    • Anonymous says:

      We are not a country, so Caymanian citizenship does not exist. Being Caymanian does however exist, and is clearly defined in our immigration laws. Separately British Overseas Territories Citizenship does exist, and is clearly defined in the British Nationality Act, a UK statute.

      The confusion that you speak of, whilst real, exists only because of a mismanagement and incorrect and inconsistent application of law, not because of the law itself.

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  35. Anonymous says:

    British citizens are subject to Cayman immigration rules and require work permits to reside and work in Cayman, so why should Caymanians not require work permits to reside and work in the U.K. (especially if they don’t have a British Overseas passports)?

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    • Anonymous says:

      Caymanians do require work permits to live and work in the UK, unless they are also British Citizens. Just like British Citizens require express permission to live and work in Cayman, unless they are also Caymanian. Pretty easy to follow for anyone paying attention and not making it up to suit their circumstances or those of their buddies.

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  36. Anonymous says:

    “As a Caymanian she is entitled to a BOTC passport, which would allow her to legally live and work in the UK”

    Not true.

    “Rights as a British overseas territories citizen
    You can: hold a British passport
    get consular assistance and protection from UK diplomatic posts

    Unless you’re also a British citizen:
    you’re still subject to immigration controls – you do not have the automatic right to live or work in the UK”

    https://www.gov.uk/types-of-british-nationality/british-overseas-territories-citizen

    CNS: You are correct and we have made the correction.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Not to mention that all people residing and working in the UK pay statutory taxes (except in rare instances of exemption). The UK is very good about collecting money owed – with interest & fees.

  37. R says:

    @CNS – can you provide clarification/confirm?

    A BOTC passport does not entitle an individual to live and work freely in the U.K.; rather, a BOT citizen qualifies for the right to apply to hold a British passport, which then allows them to live and work freely in the U.K.

    The same goes for students – BOT citizens pay overseas tuition fees; whereas, those with British passports pay home fees.

    CNS: You are correct about living and working in the UK and we have made a correction. However, BOTC students pay UK home fees. See here, scroll down to A: Those who are ‘settled’ in the UK and meet the main residence requirements

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  38. Anonymous says:

    CNS. How can you say she is unquestionably Caymanian? Who your daddy is is not by itself determinative. Nor is where you went to school or grew up. She may well not be Caymanian. If she was born overseas to parents who were not settled in Cayman on the street of her birth she may very well NOT be Caymanian. Has she ever been formally acknowledged? Much depends on her date of birth and overall family circumstances.

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  39. Anonymous says:

    Marriage is such a farce ….all about the $$$$

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  40. Anonymous says:

    And yet I can’t sign up to WORC without oodles of paperwork.

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  41. Anonymous says:

    I wonder if she will have to join the long and tedious queue with CIG like the rest of us? or will somebody make a phone call and have this resolved by tomorrow morning including with a fancy new series C passport and the relevant status documentation?

    Must be great to be important enough to have CIG expedite the resolution of it’s own mess.

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    • Anonymous says:

      No. That would likely constitute corruption. The rest of us are inconvenienced. What is wrong with the same rules for all?

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  42. Anonymous says:

    LOL Franz’s world class civil service hard at work

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  43. Anonymous says:

    What made any of them think it was okay for her to go there as a visitor? She was working illegally and should lose her position. In this day in age we all know that you need to have the proper documentation for any country…unless you are completely daft.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Having seemingly worked unlawfully in the UK she is almost certainly ineligible for British Citizenship.

      54
      2
      • Anonymous says:

        I am sure the governor will fix it – would be a tad embarrassing for the Cayman rep office staff to get deported for illegally working in the UK.

        8
        1
        • Anonymous says:

          He had better not. Being a “fixer” of illegality is below his station. They have been given enough rope…

    • Anonymous says:

      Imagine if that happened in Cayman. Immediate deportation and company that hired said person slapped with big fines. Brilliant work CIG!!

      58
      1
  44. Anonymous says:

    The buck stops at the top. They are consistently failing us. Cayman is not a real place.

    70
    6
  45. Anonymous says:

    Eric Bush is not her boss.

    23
    32
    • UnCivil Servant says:

      He hired her and was responsible for all the overseas offices and staffing prior to the April 2021 general elections.

      Tasha Ebanks was chosen by Eric Bush for London in the first quarter of 2021. He chose all the appointments whether they were qualified or not. The nepotism is the civil service is shocking. How does he get away with everything particularly when it all goes wrong?

      49
      5
      • Anonymous says:

        Irrelevant to the above comment.

        6
        15
      • Say it like it is says:

        I would comment in detail but everything that can be said about this farcical situation and our farcical Civil Service has already been said, except Govt was also guilty of a cover up.

    • Anonymous says:

      He certainly was at the time when she was sent off.

      33
      2
  46. Anonymous says:

    Why am I not shocked that CO Eric Bush failed to do his job properly again?

    80
    7
  47. SKEPTICAL says:

    Not another Eric Bush Screw Up………

    80
    7
  48. Anonymous says:

    She most certainly is not “unquestionably Caymanian”, otherwise this would not be an issue in the first place.

    44
    28
    • Anonymous says:

      No. Being Caymanian is not enough. She would also have to be a British citizen to be allowed to live and work in the UK. Thousands of Caymanians are not British Citizens. One of many adverse consequences of ill-considered (and possibly unlawful) cabinet status grants and the ongoing extra-legal determinations of who is Caymanian.

      27
      4
    • Anonymous says:

      She doesn’t have her BOTC UK passport, but she’s entitled to it.

      18
      6
      • Anonymous says:

        I don’t have a billion dollars but I’m entitled to it. What’s your point?

        28
        7
      • Anonymous says:

        She is not entitled to anything if she is not a British or BOT Citizen. This is separate and apart from the question of whether she is Caymanian.

        26
  49. Anonymous says:

    So are we to believe Tasha and Eric did not know from the beginning they did not have the proper papers or immigration status during the hiring process? The civil service is a disaster at the highest levels with zero accountability and zero shame.

    86
    3
  50. Anonymous says:

    Everything run by or involving Eric Bush turns out to be a messy and expensive shit show.

    Why is he protected by the Governor and Deputy Governor at every turn these actions embarrass the country?

    103
    3
    • Anonymous says:

      Because he’ll be running for a higher office soon, and they will want him to cover for them when the time comes, watch this space

      23
      3
      • Fact Checker says:

        EB is clueless and incompetent look at his track record. RCIPS, CAL, CCTV project, license plates fiasco, London office to cool off then the Chief post in Alden’s ministry of spending and travel about the place setting up stuff Cayman does not need and giving jobs to friends.

        Why are we surprised?

        14
      • Anonymous says:

        He does not do accountability. He is therefore unfit for “higher office.” He is now almost certainly complicit in the shitshow.

        14

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