Smith says charter companies are serial offenders
Commissioner of Her Majesty’s Customs (HMC), Wade Smith, said it was important to point out that the charter companies that were recently fined and had their vessels detained for non-compliance with the territory’s maritime regulations have been penalized before for the same offences.
The Moorings and Sunsail, in addition to several other charter yacht companies, faced severe penalties when HMC along with the Labour Department conducted a joint exercise last week because of breaches of various regulations.
Among these infractions, Smith said, have been a lack of commercial licenses and cruising permits while cruising the territorial seas.
Smith argued in a statement released on March 24, that this was “an undeniable violation of the Commercial Recreational Vessel Licensing Act and the Cruising Permit and Home port Act respectively.
The Customs boss also suggested that there has been some flexibility extended under the law for charter companies as well.
“Let me be clear, the Customs Department continues to work with the industry by granting extensions and giving them time to qualify for the exemptions from Virgin Islands Shipping Registry. This is a case where within the confines of the law, we exercised discretion and common sense for the benefit of our territory,” the Commissioner said.
He said the HMC allowed for vessels in violation of the Commercial Recreation Vessel Licensing Act, specifically the section which allows for seven pick-ups to remain in the territory until they meet the requirements to become licensed.
He noted, however, that this was expected to be up until April 15, 2022, otherwise, they would have to pay duty in full.
According to Smith, the government enacted the Cruising and Home Port Permit Act in 2021, which makes provisions for foreign-based vessels to become home-based in the Virgin Islands.
Without that significant piece of legislation, Smith said approximately 90 per cent of all chartered vessels (foreign-based), would have had to leave the territory after seven charters in the Virgin Islands.
Charter companies attended symposiums to help with compliance
Meanwhile, Smith noted that HMC has conducted numerous meetings and symposiums with the industry regarding safety criteria (certificates) and the various licenses required to operate in the BVI.
These sessions, he argued, have served as a guide for the majority of charter companies that have regularly complied with the laws, and have respected the territory’s responsibility and challenges in ensuring everyone’s safety.
“In fact,” he added, “over the years we have attended meetings with various industry stakeholders to keep them abreast of the requirements. Through their constant compliance, the vast majority of the stakeholders have demonstrated a willingness to obey the laws. The question is, why should we then concede to a minority who have blatantly chosen to deny them?”
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Mr Wade is not helping himself here at all. No matter the company’s fault he didn’t have to destroy paying customers’ vacations and negative press for the BVI about the issue in order to do his job. This is the bit he fails to understand. The same way that Customs has started searching every single bag arriving at the airport. It doesn’t happen in many other larger countries. Customs need to work smarter. Bring dogs into the airport that can check the bags for drugs/firearms and cash in minutes and let the customers free flow through the airport.
Customers should not be waiting 1 hour 30 minutes to complete Immigration and Customs at the ferry port or 45 minutes at the Airport. These are customer service issues and Immigration and Customs need to do better.
Remember the first group of brave souls coming into the BVI when they reopened. Some of those folks waited 8 hours to get through customs – lol.
Mr. Wades tenure as customs king has been remarkable. If the BVI gave all its marketing dollars to Mr. Wade as a personal gift in exchange for him not coming to work, I bet you the net effect would be, more tourists, less drugs and an overall increase in happiness.
They waited that long because it was worth it.
Perhaps because they could get away with their noncompliance shenanigans.
They would do better just by stopping the go fasts.
They won’t go after them it’s thier relatives
the boats could not go out unless they get permits from customs so why are they being fined when they were not out chartering illegally?
They waited that long because it was worth it.
Perhaps because they could get away with their noncompliance shenanigans.
if they have up until April 15th 2022 why are they being fined?
Make no mistake, the attitude at HM Customs through this whole debacle has been nothing if not antagonistic.
The commissioner talks about “working with the industry”: “… the Customs Department continues to work with the industry… ” If the Commissioner thinks “working with” means “This is the way it is going to be from now on!”, then I guess that is a true statement.
The article also notes, “The Customs boss also suggested that there has been some flexibility extended under the law for charter companies as well.” Show us please – when and where?
Oh Wade, buddy – you don’t get the point, do you? No-one claims that laws (stupid as some of them may be) shouldn’t be followed. No one says you shouldn’t enforce the laws. It’s how you chose to do it…
You sent a bunch of uniformed (guns and bullet proof vests-lol) shock troops to an operating business to go make a point (you must accept my authority!!). You then proceeded to mess up hundreds of tourists vacations by arresting boats that had not yet complied with your regulations. Dude, seriously, you don’t arrest the doctor during the brain surgery for an expired tag.
Yes, technically you had every right and legally your 100% allowed to, but let’s see what you achieved.
You nullified a lot of BVI love marketing efforts and $$. You soured a lot of folks from ever coming back to the BVI and finally you’ve caused a stink that will linger for longer than you think with potential visitors and investors. Now, if this was your objective then excuse me. Congratulations, good job.
If not, then it tells me that you lack imagination and really shouldn’t be in the job you have. If I look at the drug seizures (you’re supposed to intercept this “before” it comes into the country), it just reinforces my belief that you’re not very good at your job. Newsflash – the tons and tons of cocaine seized in the BVI didn’t not come via tourists’ luggage.
Then finally – let’s look at your stellar department as it relates to how they treat people coming into the country. They are mostly rude, dis-respectful and incompetent. This, they get from the top.
If you were working for me, I would fire you, your whole department and then start fresh because honestly, the rot is so deep you need to start again. Your level of incompetence, arrogance and hubris is impressive indeed.
We will never register or flag a boat in the BVI, HELL NO!!!!
Thank You. No disgruntled sailors needed in Paradise.
Bon Voyage. Our way or the Highway err High Ssas,
You won’t be missed.
@Good Job, Well said if I could give you a thousand likes I would have done so.
WE FELL FROM THE NUMBER 1 YACHTING CAPITAL OF THE WORLD IN 3 SHORT YEARS…………THANK YOU VIP
Wade and Andrew must go ! They plan that they are not for the bvi they are wicked
Embarrassment for the #1 yachting capital. Embarrassment for the world #1 charter company. Embarrassment for customs too.
have started the Ministry of Shooting Yourself in the Foot. A completely self-inflicted economic wound somehow justified by the robotic repetition of “it’s the law, and I must pull the trigger”
It’s the fact he only calling moorings name he have something against them that’s why they charge them so high
Wade u are very bias !
It’s obvious the BVI doesn’t care about the yachting community. Only the mega wealthy. They also know the charter company won’t go to the USVI because they are a bigger shit show.
He is either working to get fired, to be replaced or to bring VIP down…He is looking a reason to go and rejoined Ronnie…Please Mr. Wade. Just resign and let our employers and tourist live in peace..
What other jurisdiction allow people to operate their yachts without commercial licenses and cruising permits? A lot of those unlawful charter people rape, rob, pilfer and grope the Virgin Islands on a yearly and daily basis. I’ll wait for a jack Donkey answer.
Those companies have had yearly licence to operate in the BVI. They had to pay that fee yearly. I dont know where you get the impression that the charter companies were robbing the government by not paying. They still had to pay for cruising permits and national park fees. Even donkey you talking about knows that this new licence was something that they want to put in place for this year and the boat had to have additional safety stuff rewuired to get this year licence.☺
You trying to use some big words there big bro but let me tell you something all those boats on charter out there have a cruising permit. They cannot go out unless they have one ok.
Your comment is very ignorant. These companies employ hundreds of people and bring in millions of $ revenue to the country. The issues faced in regularising and complying with the deadlines are complex and largely hampered by ongoing delays in supply chains as well as regulations that are extremely challenging to comply with or obsolete. Unless you have all the details sit back down.
The bottom line is that this recent saga makes us all look bad at a time when we can ill afford it.
“The British Virgin Islands will soon have provisions in place which will allow cruise ship vessels to commence their trips from the territory.
This was revealed by Premier Andrew Fahie who recently moved the motion to have the Cruising and Home Port Permit Act 2021 passed in the House of Assembly.
According to the Premier, this new Act will allow for cruise ships to commence their sailing from the BVI, providing the territory more economic opportunities in the near future.”
This is the real reason underlying the latest power display by the BVI authorities.
As a person who for the past 20 years would spend upwards of $30,000 per week to charter a sailboat in the BVI, the past few years have instructed that the allure of the big cruise ships is far more important to the BVI Government. From the asinine COVID restrictions that would change in an instant to this latest public spectacle it has been one thing after another to convince me and many others that the BVI is no longer a place to look to make the kind of investment necessary to own or charter a sailing vessel. Most of the fleet is actually owned and paid for by individuals who are not BVI residents and fortunately, we have the power to take our investment elsewhere. Good luck with your cruise ships and power hungry bureaucrats – Exumas, St. Lucia, St. Martin, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, Martinique, Anguilla, Antigua and USVI are all interesting, vastly more consistent and less likely to impound your vessel in one of the prime sailing times of the year.
Be consistently vigil in enforcement is paramount.
A reputation of being firm about compliance can only enhance the VI sailing industry.