Turks and Caicos Islands - A
Public consultation on a fair and transparent process for acquisition
of Turks and Caicos Islander status was launched by the TCI Government, Thursday, 17 November 2011.
The
establishment of a clear pathway to TCI status is one of the eight
milestones to be met before new elections are held next year.
The
consultation document identifies key considerations and presents a
series of questions which it is inviting submissions. The questionnaire
and the consultation document can be downloaded from the link provided
below.
The public consultation runs until
17th February 2012. The completed questionnaires should be returned to the following email address: citizenship@gov.tc.
Questions
include whether or not a points system should be used to determine
Turks and Caicos Islander status and to award Permanent Residence
Certificates (PRCs). This approach had been recommended by a 2004
Immigration Review Commission which attached points to such attributes
as age, type of occupation, level of skills, level of income, country of
origin, ethnicity and ability to speak and write English.
Another
key consideration is the pathway to PRC and the public can have a say
on what should be the qualifying time for a person who qualifies by
working; and whether qualification by working should be limited to only
certain categories of workers, for example.
Public
comment is also invited as to whether or not to maintain the three
current classes of PRCs or merge them into a single category without
limitation or restrictions. The three classes are i) those carrying
wholly unrestricted rights to work; ii) those carrying the right to work
for any employer and in any occupations with specific exceptions; and
iii) those carrying no right to work.
People
can also express a view on using the migration and citizenship system
to attract potential investors in property and business enterprises.
They can say what they consider the right level of investment and if the
PRC should be issued in advance of making an investment.