Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Jul 14, 2025

Good Standing Requirement Unintentionally Creating Criminals – Labour Minister

Good Standing Requirement Unintentionally Creating Criminals – Labour Minister

Minister for Natural Resources, Labour and Immigration Hon. Vincent Wheatley said the recently implemented Good Standing Certificate required for work permit approval has unintentionally created criminals in the British Virgin Islands.

The Minister said, while there were positives realized due to the policy, that was one of the downsides.

“We made it so that persons had to get their good standing [certificate] before they work and for the most part we were very successful collecting a lot of outside money that persons owed, but unintentionally we created a bunch of illegal workers at the same time!” the Minister revealed during Sitting of the House of Assembly on August 26.

He continued: “And, that was not the intention! Because persons who can’t get their good standing, they don’t stay home and sit down and say “Well I am not going to work” they show up to work still, but they don’t have the document which means you are working illegally because you don’t have your good standing to give you the work permit that you need. So the unintended consequence there was that policy actually created criminals or lawbreakers, but that wasn’t the intention.”

The Minister said this policy is one that has to be revised going forward because “we cannot create situations that create criminals or non-law abiding citizens.”

Another Tax


At a recent sitting of the House of Assembly, member of the Opposition and Third District Representative Hon. Julian Fraser described the payment for obtaining Good Standing Certificates as another tax to the employer and employee.

Minister Wheatley had informed that the Certificate of Good Standing allows the Department of Labour and Workforce Development to know whether or not the employer is in compliance with submitting the mandated payments on behalf of the company, which are prescribed from government and for corrective measures to be instituted if they are not.

“Unfortunately, this information cannot be recorded from an employee’s certificate of earnings which outlines the contributions paid into the system on behalf of the employee. No instructions were given to any of the three agencies regarding the new policy, however Mr. Speaker, the agencies were all given about one year’s notice before the policy became effective,” he said in response to questions from Hon. Fraser on the matter.

He further informed that the issuing of certificates is not new and is done on a regular basis.

Minister Wheatley said the cost remains the same: to obtain documents from Inland Revenue Department, the employer has to pay $50, and the employee $25. For Social Security, the employer has to pay $20, and the employee has to pay $20. For the National Health Insurance (NHI), the employee and employer both pay $20.

“If I go to a government agency and I make a payment for whatever debt it is I’m settling, that agency is supposed to give me a receipt indicating I have paid my debt and what my debt was. If that is so, why isn’t that sufficient for me to take [it] to another government agency for me to indicate that my debt has been settled and what my debt was,” Hon. Fraser countered at the time.

Hon. Fraser continued: “What’s this $50 that I have to pay for Good Standing Certificate to give the government to prove that I have paid the same government whatever my debt was to the government. If you get the point I am trying to make, Mr. Speaker, this is essentially, it’s a tax, and it is an unnecessary tax. It is convenient for the government, but it is unnecessary for the employers. In the scheme of things, someone might say, “oh, that’s no big deal”, but the same thing applies to the employee.”

The Third District Representative said while he understands and supports the objective of the government, it “should not be onerous and inconvenient and expensive.”

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
From Mystery to Meltdown, Crisis Within the Trump Administration: Epstein Files Ignite A Deepening Rift at the Highest Levels of Government Reveals Chaos, Leaks, and Growing MAGA Backlash
Trump Slams Putin Over War Death Toll, Teases Major Russia Announcement
Reparations argument crushed
Rainmaker CEO Says Cloud Seeding Paused Before Deadly Texas Floods
A 92-year-old woman, who felt she doesn't belong in a nursing home, escaped the death-camp by climbing a gate nearly 8 ft tall
French Journalist Acquitted in Controversial Case Involving Brigitte Macron
Elon Musk’s xAI Targets $200 Billion Valuation in New Fundraising Round
Kraft Heinz Considers Splitting Off Grocery Division Amid Strategic Review
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
EU Proposes New Tax on Large Companies to Boost Budget
Trump Imposes 35% Tariffs on Canadian Imports Amid Trade Tensions
Junior Doctors in the UK Prepare for Five-Day Strike Over Pay Disputes
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
Grok Chatbot Faces International Backlash for Antisemitic Content
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
×