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Bermuda
Residence and Property
In
common with some other crowded and attractive
offshore jurisdictions, Bermuda limits immigration
through tough controls on work permits and housing.
Children
born in Bermuda, without either parent being Bermudian
by birth or status at the time, are not Bermudian.
They are NOT allowed to register to vote in any
election after they become 18 years old. All British
Commonwealth nationals including Australians,
Britons, Canadians, New Zealanders and West Indians
and all other non Bermudians of good character
and reputation who have been long term residents
of Bermuda for 20 or more years but were refused
Bermuda status if they applied for it and were
not registered to vote in 1979, are NOT allowed
to register to vote.
There
is no longer any mechanism providing for any other
individuals who may also be long term residents
of Bermuda, but who do not have close family ties
with Bermudians, to become local citizens. Without
this designation, they can never vote. And because
they cannot, nor can they ever own mid priced
real estate by Bermuda's standards. They are limited
to the top 5% in price and Annual Rentable Value
(ARV).
However,
a few concessions were granted in 2002 to some
non-Bermudians with over 20 years of continuous
residence and demonstrated good character and
conduct. They took effect on October 31, 2002
with the enactment of the Bermuda Immigration
and Protection Act 2002. Having a qualifying Bermudian
connection is key to getting status after 20 years.
Otherwise, there is no chance at all of getting
Bermuda Status (citizenship). At the time of writing,
about 400 people - 100 all of whose brothers and
sisters are Bermudians; 80 parents of whose children
are Bermudians; and 220 who were registered as
voters on the Parliamentary Register before May
1, 1976 - are entitled to apply for Bermuda Status.
All others with over 20 years of continuous residence
can apply for Permanent Resident Certificate (PRC).
Those with a Working Resident Certificate (WRC)
- introduced in 1998 - must still apply for a
PLC as some years have passed since they proved
their eligibility. Having a PRC will provide security
of employment and residence to long term residents.
But having either a PRC or WRC does not entitle
any non-Bermudian to buy lower or mid-priced real
estate. They continue to be limited to the top
5% in price and Annual Rentable Value (ARV).
The
Bermuda Immigration and Protection Act 1956 requires
that a non-Bermudian, not being married to a Bermudian,
must obtain a work permit, and this will only
be granted if there is no suitably qualified Bermudian.
Positions must first be advertised locally before
a permit is applied for, although this requirement
is often waived for senior positions. Work permits
are normally granted for one year (longer in the
case of senior posts). Permits are not normally
given to people with more than two children.
The
cost of a work permit is met by the future employer,
and varies according to the proposed length of
employment. Effective 1st April 2006, work permits
costs range from BMD616 for a one-year permit
to BMD3,082 for a five-year permit.
Foreigners
are more or less unable to buy land or property,
other than houses with an Annual Rental Value
(ARV) in excess of BMD153,000.
In
June 2007, the Bermuda Immigration and Protection
Amendment Act 2007 and seven related Regulations
come into force representing the first complete
overhaul and modernization of Part VI of the Bermuda
Immigration and Protection Act 1956 since the
Act came into effect. It marks the culmination
of the legislative process through which this
Part was amended to bring into law what was the
Government’s land policy and, in particular,
to address the problem of “fronting”,
by which means non-Bermudians have gained control
over land in Bermuda either while avoiding the
licensing regime or in defiance of the Government’s
land-holding policy. Additionally, the Regulations
ensconce in law certain administrative rules supporting
Part VI of the 1956 Act.
Purchase
of properties by non-Bermudians requires a license
from the Minister, and payment of a fee of 22%
of the value of the property (increased to 25%
in the 2009 budget).
NB:
This is a very abbreviated summary of the complex
rules governing property purchase or rental in
Bermuda.
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