St. Maarten Private Eye

My Condolences to the family of Vance James. He was a statesman, a fair person and a veteran Radio man. I had the pleasure of working with Vance in the early 80's and he really knew his stuff. I also remember him as a strong opposition in the Island council. Just the yesterday I heard him on a commercial announcing the 35th anniversary of PJD2 Radio. St.Maarten lost a patriot.
RIP

Please post futher comments and messages about the passing of Vance James Jr on the new post I just made. Cheers..

Flipper

Lots of crimes are committed by persons who come to SXM especially during the Xmas holidays to commit robberies.
These are pick pockets and also specialists in home robberies.
I welcome the extra police presence, I welcome the road controls, I welcome the extra foot patrols, I welcome patrols checking for seat belts -gives them a chance to check for other items as well, I welcome that all buses are being checked, I welcome that all scam time share scratch card vendors are being checked-although i noticed yesterday they have moved over to the boat bar next to Sunset beach Bar.
Many homes are being robbed at the moment, I do believe that if you asked most residents if they feel more comfortable with the extra police presence, they would tell you yes.
This island has 15.000 illegals, a lot of undocumented persons walking around, not all seeking employment.
This is quite a lot of undocumented persons to monitor, but the fact remains during high tourist season we also have the visitors that come here to commit robberies.

I agree with everything you said except I still do not understand how a police presence via a road control will stop major crimes, unless the bad guys are stupid enough to commit a crime and drive into a road control. I just don't think it's realistic for the police in SXM to expect to impact the crime rate via road controls. A road control may stop people driving without seat belts or without insurance or without a license or with too much to drink or with windshields tinted too darkly or with a cell phone in hand, but I don't think they're going to stop any robberies, assaults or murders that way. J Swift

The thieves are already taking notice of the road controls.
Many robberies need cars with drivers to haul the loot away.
You are thinking that a sole thief comes into the house and operates alone and he escapes on foot, wrong!
These guys are organized gangs, they operate in groups, one or two enters the homes, a driver is waiting in a get away car close by. So the road controls are very necessary.
In fact some time back during a road control, police found guns, machetes and other weapons in vehicles.
Not everyone lives in a gated community swift, with a guard at the entrance, many of us have no security except sometimes our neighbors who can help us out by looking out when they are home or when they drive through the community.
Just keep in mind that organized groups are the ones terrorizing the residents and business community, not so much your sole thief working alone on foot.

police presence on a road control is nontheless police presence. of course you are not going to stop major crimes concurrently with the controls, but you may be taking off the road individuals who could have potentially commited crimes in the future. the ones that are likely to disobey the law in a most dramatic way, will probably care little about stuff like seatbelts etc. the more illegals that are put away, the less numbers of people you have with desire to make a quick easy illegal dollar.
Of course that's not all illegals, but it;s like that saying. Not all muslims are terrorists, but the vast majority of terrorists are muslims. it's just true. Not all jamaicans/dominicans etc commit crime, but a LOT of crimes are commited by that group. is the st.maarten man also not capable of crime...of course he is, but let's just look at the facts, the fast majority of crimes commited on the island by locals are petty drug related, even when it amounts to murder, it often boils down to disputes between drug pushers , deals gone bad, and the affiliates are often then NON-locals. So eliminatng them also cuts down on the availability of crimes by locals as well. in any case, the controls will help to stop robberies and assualts, check the crime rate about 3-4 months down the line (assuming these controls DO continue at the rate they are goin)
lots of thieves are already taking notice. that's for sure.

An article and the editorial in today's St Maarten News Network seems to confirm that most serious crime in SXM is perpetrated by locals not by illegals. I still believe road controls are important to make the roads safer, but they are not an appropriate way to combat serious crime. Let's stop perpetuating the fallacy that illegals are the source of all evil in SXM! J Swift

Swift, you have been told many times that the road controls are neccessary and why, yet you continue on your path that illegals are not the problem but locals are.
The truth is that the island has way too many people and the police force is understaffed, locals and illegals are involved in robberies and thefts and scams etc.
They take advantage of the fact that they will not get caught becuase there not enough police presence, now we have police presense with the Operation trust and you start a campaign clearing all illegals. Why don't you ask many residents that went through road works how many homes were broken into while construction crew were in their residential neighborhoods?
GEBE subcontractors hire pay per day labour to dig trenches, while these guys work they also check out the comings and goings at the homes.
So please, halt the oh it can't be the illegals because they came here to work crap.

I think you are confused here. Swift does not appear to me to be starting any campaign to ´clear´ illegals as you say. And you may have ¨told¨ him many times, but he is entitled to disgaree with you. The discussion is if traffic controls are worth while and will solve much of the crime. Personnally I agree with Swift, I think it´s another bunch of bull that we have seen already multiple times before over the past years, I can search back if you like and find a few.
What I think Swift is arguing is that the fundamental roots of the problems need to be tackled, immigration and permits, police and courts, prison, government transparency, policies, education, etc etc.

I do not believe traffic controls are the most effective use of manpower and resources to tackle crime and although many illegals are responsible for crime, I don´t think they should be all be grouped together, it´s called generalising. There are other ways to control illegals and they should be tackled first, half the time when an illgal criminal is picked up they get deported anyway, serving little time even if convicted. What a farce that is.

As an example of misguided policies, an inside friend once told me how the Children´s Hotline was a waste of money, it´s all very well having it, but if there is no structure behind it, such as social workers, care assistance, childrens homes etc, then it´s rather ineffectual.

I remember one time a year or two back when Great Bay Casino was robbed and the police were late responding, because they were all out on a ¨Quick Response Control¨¨

By the way, just so you know, I am not starting any campaign to protect illegals either, just so you know.

Flipper

I fully understand your point and I hope what you say is true. I just can't get out of my mind the numerous recent reports in the papers and here at SMPI regarding victims unable to obtain police aid and attention following a crime. All the road controls in the world won't improve the locals' and the tourists' feelings of safety and well-being when requests for help go unanswered, crimes go unsolved and criminals go free. J Swift

Well said Swift. It seems that the people in Sint Maarten do not understand the real problem. The real problem is that this government is not capable to manage the affairs of this island. Through the years they put only " puppies" in position in order for them to manipulate the system. None of these department heads has the capability and responsibility to manage the position they have right now. Sint Maarten should have achieved a certain degree of separate status along time ago if all these departments had people in position that understood their job and was above corruption or illegal activities. Crime is just a piece of the pie. Solving the crime situation does not solve the problem. In order to bring peace and order in Sint Maarten we need to establish a " Business Cabinet " and put professionals in position to clean the mess. Once the "professionals" have done their job then we can call for new elections. Hopefully these "professionals" has put in place the necessary structure to curb corruption and mismanagement in government. I do not believe that the present government neither the opposition has the knowledge or the desire to bring a real change to Sint Maarten. It is all about themselves. Let us continue to share information and hopefully the Dutch Government will come up with a solution.

No one could have said it better than you. That is exactly what we need if we are to have our own status. This government is irresponsible and should not be allowed to be running (or should I say ruining) our government and it;'s people.This government has it's own self interest only and not the will of the people.

I also tend to disagree with the editorial. A vacation, by its very meaning should mean hassle free. Tourists save their money and accrue their time off and each and every day they look forward to coming to the island to indulge in beach life, fun, relaxation, good food, friendly people and laid back activities.
Instead they find themselves in bumper to bumper traffic, incredible frustration in going from point A to point B. They find hostile locals who are so very frustrated with the traffic problems they tend to blame the tourists for the back-ups. It seems that vacationers should be able to walk back and forth to lunch or dinner and maybe even a bit of souvenir shopping………….but find walking incredibly dangerous with no sidewalks, but instead they find large pot holes, mud, broken pavement and the ever present high traffic.
Simpson Bay area should be a vacationer’s paradise with plentiful resorts, restaurants, shopping, entertainment, movies and a nice community flavor. But it is impossible to really enjoy by automobile or by walking. We all understand that new roads are expensive and difficult to create but sidewalks in Simpson Bay should be an absolute necessity and lo and behold will probably cut down traffic problems. Our priorities must be to strengthen the positive tourism product and to lessen the hassles for our visitors.

TTOL Dengue thread click here

It's all nice and fine for people to work once they pay their fair share in the Tax pot. Many Americans and other nationalities come to St.Maarten and love the island and start to work in the service business. Yes, there are vacancies to fill and we must consider all options, but don't come to the island to attend medical school and then decide to earn extra by finding a job waiting tables or bar tending. When we were in college in the US, we were issued an I-20 form based on an agreement that you would not seek employment. The I-20 was issued only after you had proved that you were self sufficient.
I wonder how this treaty is implemented when a St.Maartener applies for a job in the US. I believe he or she would also need some type of resident status from INS.
We cannot continue to employ the world, let's continue with training programs for those who are willing and able to perform. There are various schools on the island, F&B, technical etc. Let's expose those students to the jobs available.

Why in the world would you go to college in the U.S. to come back to Sint Maarten for a training program to be a waiter. The reason why the Americans are waiting on tables is because they know that if they are quick, observant and courteous they will make much more in tip money than the wage, and by the way you can work in the U.S. as long as you apply for a social security card, like all other countries they want the tax money and you can work while attending school, then again if you are so anti-american why didn't you go to school in Holland. It is not like homosexuality, you had the choice, you were not born to go to school in any one particular place.

Please read the post. There's no mention of attending College and then waiting tables. I was referring the visitors who come to the island and start working without contributing to the island, and some of them complain more than us who have seen the changes over the years. I have no problem what so ever with Americans, let's get this straight. I'm grateful for the opportunity to have attended a US University many years ago.
And no, you can't work in the US by just applying for a SSC. Matter of fact, you're issued a student social security number, which doesn't give you the right to seek employment.
Again i'm encouraging those companies on the island to hire local. As a citizens of this country I will always encourage this excersize. And those coming, please investigate if the labour market can supply the work force.
If you can't find a particular person for a particular position, I'm sure there are ways and means to apply for this person to come and work. The apprentice program, such as it is practiced in the British islands should also be implemented.

The Lt Govenor's new policy is a bit harsh, but we need some harshness in our attitude these days. Too many people are going around the basic requirements for resident permits.

Yesterday it was someone accusing Swift of starting a campaign to ´clear´ illegals because he questions the effectiveness of road controls, now today you come accusing another commenter of being anti-american because they have questions about permits and work for students in the US and here. You had a point up until then, but I see no basis for you to make such an accusation and your comment lost value, at least to me, when you did. Some would say that because I think Bush is the worst president in the US history that I am anti-american. Nonsense, it´s just a way to avoid discussing it and casting a slur.

Do you by any chance have links showing how foreign students can work in the US to back up your information? It would help to post them to back up your argument.

Please avoid making unfounded accusations against other posters, it serves nothing for the discussion.

Flipper

Flipper you can go to Non-U.S.students going to school in U.S, there are several other sites there as well. Part time is better than no job at all and the salary is probably pretty good. Jadiras daughter is working for Government in Florida and going to school. A social security number is needed and that can be applied for at any Social Security Office with a letter addressed to you in the U.S. and a copy of your telephone Bill. Electric Bill, gas, cell phone. Address a letter to your self

Mt tempory address in the U.S. until I get thru with the surgery I have to have done is lgeer44@comcast.net, my larry@sint Maarten.net is working but I don't know how to pull it up (remember stupid me, still computer illerate, my housekeeper knows nothing about computers, so she can't check them for me. I should be back in a couple of months.I took a leave of absence from Oyster Bay.

Miss the Island and all of you.

Regards,from Cold, Snowy Chicago, but am going to Hawaii after surgery for two weeks recuperation.

Hi Flipper. I was not the one accusing Swift. I was talking about a google site titled "Non-U.S. Students working in the U.S.. while going to school there. You can work part time, after all there are 12 million illegal workers in the U.S. working, so it is not that difficult, again, as long as you apply for a Social Security Card go get a drivers license, Social Security does not ask for a Passport, and if they do, it is for identification purposes only. (Remember the Dutch -American Friendly Treaty, it works in the U.S., but with the Governors new ruling it is going to take it's course in court and perhaps that Sint Maarten will be reminded again in a court of Law that it is still effective, where there is a will there is a way. I know of many Sint Maarteners that go or have gone to school in Florida and Rhode Island, Virginia and a few other locations that worked while they were there legally. You have to seek employment the employer is not going to look for you.

Hi Larry, hope you keep yourself well and recover from your surgery.
I just want to clarify; Taji my daughter is not working for the US government, she did an internship for 4 months in the Governors office when Jebb Bush was Governor.
She is working for a communications company called Navigators that specialises in Public Relations, the company does work for political clients. Taji has already graduated from FSU. From what I know non-US students are not allowed to work in the US, even so they are often offered part time jobs doing odd work or in the fast food industry.
This helps them out as often relying on scholarships and parents can be a drag.
For readers out there, Larry and I both kinda ran into Congresman Charlie Rangel at Puerto Rico's airport, we both had a good laugh as Larry did not believe me at first that I saw and recognised the congressman first.

Get well soon Larry and bring us back something from Hawaii.

Hi Jadira:

My error, but I do remember she was working for Jebb Bush. So I apologize for making the error (old age, I guess). the point I was trying to get across is that even at Part time work as a waiter or waitress in the States at a good restaurant can bring in $100.00 or so a day in tips, if you are friendly, fast, courteous and make sure you take the order right.

Hope all is well.

Miss all of you,

Larry

P.S. Please send me your personal e-mail, I am so damm computer illerate that I cannot seem to pull them up off of my computer in Sint Maarten. Everytime I go to Tel-net site it states that the page cannot be displayed. Send me Alanna's also, PLEASE.

Sorry guys on the site, this is the only way I could get thru. Thanks for responding so fast Jadira.

Warmest Regards,

Larry

This is one I have to respond to. Why in the world would one invest in Sint Maarten and allow a Government or anyone else tell them they cannot have residency? No one is going to take my money and tell me when I can leave and when I can go or should leave or go. When I first came to Sint Maarten I spent nearly a half million dollars and of course more while being here. I am at the moment off Island, but again until Sint Maarten gets a responsible Government no investor is going to come in and invest money and loose their freedom of coming and going, Now back to the job situation: I have ran ads in the Herald for employees and the ad stated Antilleans preferred or legal working papers. Guess what? Only 2% that applied or showed any interest in working where they could make alot of money were Antilleans. Education is the solution and a smile and thank you would be since Sint M aarten relys on Tourism.

St.Maarten has always been friendley to investors, whether you came with 500K or 10K, that's a fact. And when you invest, ofcourse you should get legal residency, that's in place already no dispute there. I agree finding suitable employees is fustrating, some come to an interview, show up for work after getting the postion after a short while, they never show up again. This is very bad and it shines a bad light on the hard working St.Maarteners.

I think the schools have to do a better job of exposing their student body to the available opportunities in the field. Many years ago we had the ETAO, which sent all of their students on interships, this gave the students a chance to see what's out there. I believe the Sundial also sends interns out in the Food & Beverage areas.
There's still the issue with those coming on vacation and landing jobs and not paying any taxes. Yes they buy gas, and pay GEBE ect. But wage tax is not deducted and if it is, the money is not payed becuase there's no registration of this person.
WE all agree that there are too many openings and not enough people, and it's the government's responsibility to know how many licenses are issued and how many people will be needed to fill these positions. WE still continue to give licenses for jewelry stores. This has to stop. It's going to become a welfare state if we continue this way.

What you say about the residency permit is not true. Check on the status of the Governors position with those that have legitamate N.V's. I am one of those and have always paid my share of taxes, then there are those that don;t and then there are some locals that brag about not paying any taxes at all. I think the Governors attitude towards the N.V business connecting it with the residency is improper, but he is the Governor. To me it is like saying all Black People look alike and all White or whatever look alike. Not true. The real solution that should of been put in place years ago is that all property owners should pay property tax, that is what keeps an economy strengthened without relying on one main source of income.

Indeed, property taxes are the stable revenue base that this Island (Country) desperately needs. Traditionally, property taxes are the foundation for the infrastructure than is rapidly crumbling. Roads, water systems, bridges, schools, streetlights and police & fire protections can be properly funded by a sound property tax. We all know that locals feel they are-over taxed already and maybe that is correct, so let’s structure the property tax so that foreign visitors who buy property here pay at a higher level than locals. Maybe locals get a 50% discount and foreign owners pay 100% of their allocation.
If we do this, let’s also consider changing those laws that chase away foreign property owners for all but 90 days each year. If they own a substantial home or condo and are paying their fair share of taxes, why should we keep scaring them away and only allow them here for 90 days? Each foreign owner on the Island buys food daily, visits our merchants, spends money for haircuts, dry cleaners, restaurants, casinos, movie theatres as well as clothing & furniture stores etc. etc.
We get all excited about cruise passengers who spend an average of $75-$100 daily while on the Island. I am certain the foreign property owners spend far more than that and we keep trying to force them to go home for ¾ of the time. Go spend your money elsewhere we tell them. It seems like we are indeed trying to kill the goose that lays golden eggs.

Foreign visitors who buy property in St.Martin should pay less in property taxes than the locals. After all, these foreign property owners do not you use all of the service year round.

Why should someone who can officially only stay for 90 days pay higher property taxes than someone who lives there the whole year?

Can someone answer that?

The majority of the foreign home owners rent their house, villa, condo out to other visitors. The locals do not. Infact this is where the problem lies, That vacation home is not used only by the owner but also by many others who rent weekly or monthly.
I happen to know a woman who has one apartment in beaconhill, 3 apartments in Simpsonbay, another in Pelican. She is an American citizen not registered on SXM as a resident. She is making a killing off of renting her places via the internet. She is not paying any taxes to the SXM government for room tax while she is renting weekly and monthly. I doubt if she is paying any to Uncle Sam as well since she is conducting her rental bussiness over the internet. There are many just like this lady, they own condos and many houses which they rent out weekly- yet they demand police presence, prompt ambulance, good roads and street lights- they pay nothing to government coffers. Keep in mind that many of these houses and condos are registered in Lmt's and offshore name accounts making finding the owners very difficult.

Let's not confuse 'property tax' with 'business income tax'. I believe the lady you are talking about is not paying income tax on her business income in addtion to the room tax.

By the way, how is the property tax calculated? What would a property tax be on a property valued at $300,000?

Thanks. Janelle

Local property owners pay a tax that is based on a percentage of estimated rental value of their property. This is then added to your income for income tax purposes. This is assuming that you live in your house an don't rent it out.

Off shore owners are allowed an off shore bank account that is not subject to certain taxes and charges. In addition off shore owners are not liable for income tax for rental properties. Hardly seems fair and a good reason why locals are upset about the benfits provided to off shore owners.

Since there is no actual property tax in place now, who knows how it would be calculated. My guess is that it will be along the same lines as the rental value tax because it's easy to calculate.

You say: "In addition off shore owners are not liable for income tax for rental properties." That is not true. Any person and any company owning property on Saint Martin and renting it out must file a taxreturn and report the rental income. The problem is this. The average John Doe from New Jersey or John Doe Company Ltd. from Anguilla is not filing the return and not registered at the Tax Department. So the Tax department doesn't know that John Doe has property on Saint Martin and as understaffed as they normally are, it is just too much work to go chase all the John Doe's every year. Many non-residents thus own property on Saint Martin and rent it thru the web Example and another example and some may indeed go unnoticed for years.

Should we fix that imbalance? Probably. Is the introduction of a real estate tax, the best way? Certainly not. With the present level of competence of this government, any other tax is yet another disaster. It is better to abolish all income and property based taxes. That is equally fair to the resident vs. the non-resident. Instead introduce a sales tax of 15% on luxury goods and 5% on other goods or a 10% T.O.T. Whatever covers the budget.
That will charge everyone who sets foot on our shores equally and it will yield enough income for government to continue their spendthrift. Then government should start charging for all their "services" that is chargeable and we pay as we use or not use. Happy Holidays.

The simple solution is property taxes as all advanced countries have, same rules for everyone, whether Citizen or Non-cirtizen and a Luxury tax built into the price just as St. Thomas has it. It is still called duty free, but the U.S. Government was smart enough to build the tax in the sales price and the merchant reported it every month and paid the tax, we would need "shoppers" by Government to make sure the sale is rang up. Next time your'e in Philipsburg stop at a few shops and observe how many sales are not rang up on the Cash Register, they cheat so bad. All Cities, States, Provinces thruout the Countries of the world that have sales tax have to report it and pay regardless. A 10% .T.O.T should not even be considered, we rely on tourisim just as the U.S. Virgin Islands and they have done it right Property Tax(on Property) and Sales Tax on all of these so called Duty Free Items. Look at the Airports around the World, they have duty free shops, do you really believe they are not collecting taxes on those items/ , of course they are they are built into the pricing.

As all advanced countries have? We are not an advanced country. We have huge problems and backlogs with assessments and collection of taxes as it is and can't handle any new tax. You have to make it simpler not more complex. A sales tax has my preference too. As a replacement of and not in addition to.

I live in Toronto,Canada.Our property tax is about 1% of the market value.Every year the 'City Hall' evaluates all of our properties and sends us a bill. Needless to say,none of us is happy about getting a property tax bill.

We also pay 13% sales tax (goods and service tax) on just about everything.

We have socialized healthcare for which we pay a healthcare tax. I have to admit,that this tax is minimal. It ranges from $0 to $900 per year,depending on ones income.

Janelle

Writer, the rental value policy was cancelled years ago and reduction in deductible mortgage interest was then introduced.

Concerning the offshore companies, they are taxable for ANY local earned income therefore they should/are/will be taxed like everyone else.

According to my sources, Govt. will establish a simple flat condo fee which will be levied from the owner of the "deed".

What happen to the recent comment on Indian Merchants, it doesn't show up.

It´s not showing up when you click on the link because the thread has expanded to a second page. Scroll to the bottom and then click next page to find it. (I´ll start a new open thread this afternoon. - Flipper

If you know who the lady is, then report her to the tax department and let them do their job and see if she is paying room tax. That is the problem, we bitch and complain and yet very few open their mouths. It is part of your civic duty to at least notify the authorities when you suspect something is wrong, but again the solution is that all property owners pay taxes and all of that would be eliminated. What moron in Government years back could not of forseen the need for property taxes?

You assume I did not report this woman? you are assuming wrong. I did.
I too see it as my civic duty to bring wrongness to the proper authorities.
Here is what I got: a stunned face, and Oh, let me see if she is in the civil register, a quick look in the computer then said nope she is not. (I had already told them that she is not a resident of the Netherlands Antilles) The person who I was appraoching with this issue is in a high ranking position then says "oh, we do get back many of the tax forms we send out and we never could figure out why they arecoming back to us as we do send them to the correct adress but they come back saying those people are not registred there" So I did what I had to do, how about the tax office trying together with all relevant aurthorities to see how they can collect across the board instead of putting a heavy strain on the locals and residents who they can easily find?
I told this high ranking authority that many of these properties are in offshores, this person shrugged and said there is not much they could do.
You, see, again, I think the French are correct in their dealings, some years ago they were fed up with the rich folks in the Lowlands not paying property taxes and many of these properties were registred in Anguilla offshore accounts, what the French did is this: put a lien on all the properties that had not been paying taxes, they waited for the owners to come forward in person, they then slapped them with all the back taxes that they had owned. And the ones that did not come forward? well then they would auction those properties to the highest bidder.
The fact remains is that eventually we will have to start with a property tax, it is unfortunate for locals and residents but I don't see how we can tax foreign home owners only, if there is a way, I hope we find it. The time share and hotel industry is already paying their fare share in room tax et al. What is happening now is real estate agencies use the non-property tax as a selling tool to foreign home buyers.
I truely believe that the housing market reality on SXM is making it very difficcult for a middle class person or a University graduate to own a home on the island, it has become expensive for local middle class and recently returned University graduates to be able to buy their own home, rents are also above their reach.
The reality is that the majority of the developments taking place is for the upscale American market, and nothing being built for the middle class locals and residents.
This will create a class system and possible anymosity between foreign home owners and the locals/residents if this issue is not resolved.

By the way, I have been told that Real Estate agencies are targeting time share owners to purchase a home with a selling point that why own a week when you can own your own home and rent it out for most of the year and make more money than you would with a time share week.
You see where I am going with this?

There's was an effort to make an amendment to the law in the 80's. I believe Mr Rene Richardson was commissioner of Finance at the time. He proposed a property tax similar to what's being charged in Curacao. The community kicked against it. It died a natural death.

in The BVI you need a non belonger land holding lincense, so it's not so easy to purchase property. This kind of keep the speculators out.
Here's the breakdown
Property Tax: Land tax is based on the acreage of the property; it is imposed at US$150 for the first acre and additional US$50 for each extra acre thereafter. House tax is imposed at a flat rate of 1.5% of the property’s annual rental value

There are no property taxes in Saba, St. Eustatius, and Sint Maarten. Bonaire and Curacao charge ground taxes annually on the value of developed property at a rate of 0.6%. In addition to that, a 15% municipal surcharge is levied on the amount payable in Curacao.
There is also an annual occupancy tax of 5% of rental value.

I'm not even sure its legal to tax one set of individuals differently than another. Usually the law is what is good for one is good for all. How about if the present Government would stop giving 5 to 10 year tax breaks to Westin and other new developments, they're the ones putting the greatest demand on our roads.

The solution is that everyone pay property taxes. Property is property, otherwise people will invest in St. Kitts and some other beautiful surrounding Islands. There should be no difference between Foreign and local, the property is there and all should pay according to the appraisal of the property. Could you imagine what nice taxes those huge mansions own by Indians that have 16 families living in would bring to the Island. The $50.00 timeshare tax probably doesn't go where it is supposed to go anyways, I am sure it is subsidizing the Tourist Office that has a zest for bringing in Carnival Cruise Lines the least expensive Lines of all, but then again they probably made a special override deal with our Commissioner. It's called selling your ass to the highest briber..

On November 27, 2007 I wrote an article in the Daily Herald concerning above subject. Anybody that would like to read it pls email me: Floatingbar@yahoo.com. Also the text of the court case/verdict in Aruba (in Dutch) I can send you.
Michael Voges

If I knew a better country in this glorious world today
Where a man's work hours are shorter and he's drawing bigger pay,
If the Briton or the Frenchman had an easier life than mine,
I'd pack my goods this minute and I'd sail across the brine.
But I notice when an alien wants a land of hope and cheer,
And a future for his children, he comes out and settles here.

Here's the glorious land of Freedom! Here's the milk and honey goal
For the peasant out of Russia, for the long-subjected Pole.
It is here the sons of Italy and men of Austria turn
For the comfort of their bodies and the wages they can earn.
And with all that men complain of, and with all that goes amiss,
There's no happier, better nation on the world's broad face than this.

So I'm thinking when I listen to the wails of discontent,
And some foreign disbeliever spreads his evil sentiment,
That the breed of hate and envy that is sowing sin and shame
In this glorious land of Freedom should go back from whence it came.
And I hold it is the duty, rich or poor, of every man
Who enjoys this country's bounty to be all ...

Edgar Guest 1959

Michael, if you create a sign in name you can put both your article and the text you mention on pages (seperate), An editor will make sure links to those pages are posted in your above comment. Or if you prefer we can give your user name blogging status so you can post it as a blog and open up discussion on it.

Flipper

Listen up, we need to employ local boys and girls. We cannot handle all of the Americans coming here for work and why may I ask? is there not enough work for Americans in the great United States?
Europeans,Dutch, French and especially Antillian Dutch cannot work in the Great United States. After 911 it has become a hassle to even enter the United States for a vacation even with a digital passport, fingerprints and all kind of questions.
My favorite is how much money we have on us, I always feel uncomfortable with this question as I take that this immigration officer can have his freinds wait for me outside to rob me of my money.
Lou Dobbs is saying everyday on CNN that Americans have to get jobs in America and Mexicans have to go back home to Mexico-he sometimes makes a point when he says that the US should help Mexico get their economy in gear so that Mexicans can go back and be able to get jobs instead of crossing the border.
So why do you want a work permit to work on SXM? do you realise that we have thousands of children coming out of high school every year? that employment among the youth is the highest?
Think about it. Do we really need Americans coming to work in the time share industry? in the hotel industry? as a waitress in Bamboo Bernies? American bartenders in paradise? what in the world can you do here that a local cannot do? provided they are given the oppertunity to learn the ropes?