Permanent residents owing fees face losing rights
(CNS): Permanent Residents who have not paid their annual fees are being urged to pay up or face the loss of the right to live in the Cayman Islands. As part of Workforce Opportunities and Residency Cayman’s ongoing commitment to ensure compliance with immigration regulations, the department is reminding those with PR to pay the required fees each year on or before the anniversary date of receiving PR.
Those with permanent residency are reminded that failure to pay fees in full and on time could result in revocation, a release from WORC said. Any outstanding fees that remain unpaid beyond ninety days will be referred to the Caymanian Status and Permanent Residency (CSPR) Board.
“It is imperative for permanent residents to adhere to their financial obligations to maintain their residency rights within our community,” the release said. “WORC again reminds permanent residence holders that annual fees are to be paid on or before the anniversary date to ensure compliance with immigration legislation.”
According to the most recent figures released by WORC, there are more than 6,000 people with PR living on the islands.
Visit the WORC website for details on payment methods, or contact our Customer Care team at 945-9672 for further assistance.
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Category: Local News
They collected all the outstanding public school and garbage fees yet? How about the missing apron fees?
How many member of parliament have outstanding pension payments to make on behalf of their privately owned businesses?
I left the Island. My permit was $26k and really I could not afford it as my new employer opt not pay. This is an option given my Worc. Unlike the work permit fee that is mandatory to be paid by employer. PR fee can be paid by either the employer or the staff. I think it should be mandatory that employer pays at least a half of the PR fees.
Did the airplane door hit you on the way o? Asking for a friend
What’s the point of PR, then?
During one’s working life, Cayman is conveniently close to the USA and it has great weather. Expats have also developed a thriving economy (indeed, expats *are* the economy: https://h2g2.com/entry/A4503665 / https://h2g2.com/entry/A4503683)). It’s therefore a decent place to work. As you say, employers MUST pay work permit fees, so that’s not an issue for the individual.
Getting PR doesn’t help with jobs, because employers know that they will usually need to pay for a work permit anyway: it’s priced in to the salary offer (and is really, say it quietly, just as much of an income tax as so-called social security is in the US, or national insurance in the UK – certainly the latter is non-hypothecated, i.e. just a euphemism for another state shake-down).
For retirement however, Cayman is an over-priced, over-developed, increasingly crime-infested mediocre proposition, run by (with the exception of Andre and Wayne) borderline retarded window licking knuckle-draggers intellectually out of their depth in a bird bath. Better to “go back home” (toquote many Caymanians’ demands, per the comments under every CNS article about PR).
So, what’s the point of PR?
revenue tot he government for people who can’t (or won’t) leave.
…if they can’t pay their PR fees, all we are doing is storing up future problems and costs for NAU and the tax payers of the islands….
…..45 days grace post due, then if no pay, revoke automatically….
Yes – unless we’re taking years to process status applications, because when those go through, the fees stop. So we’re extorting people by delaying and saying ‘hey if you don’t keep paying your fees as long as we make you, the whole process is wasted’. That’s pretty poor, and we need to do better.
Can we remind the CSPRB to belt up and do their job instead of sitting on applications for years only to grant them the week after another years’ fees are paid in order to illegally rake in the cash?
Oh did that happen to you too? Funy that isn’t it. Wait for years in the queue for status and pay an extra two years fees, and then the third…and your status is magically granted 2 weeks later with no refund.
No need to stand in line if your favorite politician can arrange a grant by cabinet…many examples that will not bear scrutiny.
The irony of having a contractual agreement between a PR Holder and Government to pay to remain, work, play and use the islands infrastructure and the government has to beg these individuals each year to pay their fees? Tell me why is this so? No enforcement officers, laziness, ineptness?
The reason is that PR holders are promised status (providing they qualify) after 15 years. And yet there are many here more than 17 or 18 years who are still waiting for their certificate and are still expected to keep paying and paying year after year when the bills should have stopped coming after 15. We are starting to feel like we are being conned and ripped off.
There is also the possibility some PR holders have actually left the islands and their letter to WORC got “misfiled”. (I heard that story twice now from former co-workers that came to visit and were told by CBC they owed money).
Chamber members are as smooth as the Contractors Association members.
Wonder how many of those outstanding fees are now into year 2 or 3 of PR holders status application being sat with WORC?
What about those who paid 2 or 3 extra years PR payments that should not have been necessary? While I was in the long, long queue waiting for my status application to be considered, I have had to pay an additional years PR fee twice now, for a job I no longer even do because I’ve been retired 5 years. If my status has been considered promptly, in the 2-3 months they promised, I would not have needed to pay those extra fees for years 16 and 17.
But will I get a refund now I have status – not at all. Looked at me like I was a fish stood there in immigration when I asked about it.
So its OK to chase people for the money who shouldn’t even have to pay it because they are well beyond their 15 years and still waiting for the application to be heard – but if they are really concerned about making sure all payments are in order, then those in the queue should either not be required to pay, or should have those overpaid fees refunded once it becomes clear status should have been granted 2 years ago if it were not for all of the administrative delays.
There needs to be some fairness.
This is SO frustrating. And I think should be illegal. I don’t know why it hasn’t been challenged. The only reason I can think is that often employers pay the PR fee so the pain isn’t felt as widespread by individuals as it really is.
I know I had to pay and extra one year PR fees ($20K KYD!!) as well because of how long my status application took.And I had to pay it myself…my employer didn’t pay my PR fee.
Yes!
kick em off. we at capacity.
Yous cant do that just for some money. we just as caymanian as yous all now.
If you paid to be here, why can’t you pay to stay?
Right down to the grammar
Don’t be bringing my gramma in to this
time somebody else besides besides we the people .
Why do Cayman law enforcement agencies believe they must “remind” and “urge” people to comply with our laws?
Just enforce the laws. How hard is that?
Why are they reminding them instead of just revoking the PR and sending them home. They are not the kind of individuals we want in our community.
These fees should be paid up front as a condition of , and prior to the grant of PR… that’s how it works in the real world.
They are required to be paid up front.
They are. Then the fees are due every year again at the same time
Why not send a bill and email one too? All addresses and email on file with WORC.
I switched top tier employers, and the new employer discovered that my PR fees, equivalent to work permit, had not been paid by my smiling previous Chamber member employer for >18 months. Anyone in that situation, please make sure to check that you are getting what was agreed. There’s more than one way to screw someone over in the Cayman Islands.
Reminder that it is your personal obligation to pay the PR fees. If you are luck to have an employer pay the fees that is great for you but it does not change your obligation.
Why are employers paying for this? People are supposed to be earning their own way into our society. It should not be part of their contract that living here doesn’t come out of their pocket. I’ll be sure to tell the MPs I speak to regularly about this practice to see if we can get it outlawed.
How much are PR fees please, and are they linked to your salary like WP fees are?
Is there actually much advantage having PR if you’re, e.g. an accountant with strong employability, and intend to leave Cayman on retirement?
After being on a work permit for 8 years, on year 9 you have to either apply for PR (if you are eligible/meet the criteria) or you get rolled over/you have to leave for at least 1 year.
Yes.
No.
Of course, under the law work permit fees are the employers obligation, and PR fees yours, irrespective of the fact that the amount is the same. As a PR holder you are free to change employers (which you did) without your employer s consent, hence the difference. Otherwise an employer could pay your annual fee and watch you sail off to another employer with no way of getting their investment back. So unless you had an explicit contractual agreement with your employer that they would pay your PR fees afraid you may feel morally outraged but you don’t have a leg to stand on as a matter of law. My firm paid the PR fees, but you had to refund them if you switched jobs.
Fair enough but it’s your responsibility to make sure the fees are paid. I always ask my employer for the receipt and I always get one, no problem.