Premier: Charter yacht fee increases a ‘tremendous’ success

Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley has described the Virgin Islands’ increased charter yacht fees as a “tremendous” success, saying the reforms have boosted government revenue, strengthened the local marine industry and attracted more operators to base their businesses in the territory.

Speaking on the Talking Points programme recently, Premier Wheatley defended the government’s amendments to the Commercial Recreational Vessels Licensing Act, which sparked opposition from the United States Virgin Islands (USVI) and sections of the regional charter industry after significantly increasing fees for foreign-based commercial recreational vessels.

According to the Premier, the changes have already produced measurable benefits for the territory.

“When we speak to the boaters, they say this is, if not the best season they’ve ever had, among the best seasons they’ve ever had,” Dr Wheatley stated. He said this was reflected in the Charter Yacht Society’s registration figures and in government revenue, which he said had recorded “a tremendous exponential increase.”

He also argued that the sector is positioned for further expansion.

“I think that the marine industry is really ripe for further investment so that we can have more capacity because quite a number of operations have moved to the BVI, more want to come,” Dr Wheatley said. “We have the best sailing waters in the world, persons know that. And we provide a quality experience and I believe the legislation and the fees which are paid reflect the value which is being provided to the visitors.”

Discussions continue

Meanwhile, the Premier said discussions between officials from both the USVI and BVI were continuing but stressed that the legislation remained in force.

“We’ve been having some conversations from officials between the United States Virgin Islands and the Virgin Islands and we’ve agreed that we will have a meeting at some point,” he said, adding that the meeting had not yet taken place. “We’ll be fully transparent. Every time I had a meeting with [USVI] Governor Bryan, we reported live online, so persons can dismiss the idea that there’s some kind of clandestine deal that’s being done.”

The fee increases were part of amendments to the Commercial Recreational Vessels Licensing Act approved by the House of Assembly in 2025.

The measures substantially increased annual licensing fees for foreign-based charter vessels while introducing provisions favouring Virgin Islands-based operators, prompting criticism from US Virgin Islands charter businesses and Governor Albert Bryan r, who warned the changes could significantly affect the neighbouring territory’s marine tourism industry.

The Virgin Islands government has maintained that the reforms are intended to strengthen the local marine sector while ensuring operators contribute fairly to the use of the territory’s waters.