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KINGSTON, Jamaica CMC – Jamaica will from April 1, introduce a payment scheme for people applying for Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Qualifying Skills certificates.
Last year, 442 skills certificates were issued to CARICOM nationals, with Jamaicans accounting for 411 of that number.
The Caribbean Community (Free Movement of Skilled Persons) Act establishes the legislative arrangements for free movement as required under the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas establishing the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) that provides for the free movement of skills, labour, services and goods across the region.
Director of the Work Permit Department in the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, Lisa-Ann Grant, says the fees will be for the processing and preparation of the documents.
Under Regulation 2 of the Caribbean Community (Free Movement of Skilled Persons) Act, persons will now be charged a non-refundable application fee of J$2,000 (One Jamaica dollar = US$0.001 cents) for the issuance of a certificate.
In addition, there will be a processing fee of J$8,000, and a further J$2,000 for each dependent.
The authorities have also indicated that a fee of J$2,000 will be charged to have certificates amended, and in the event that a certificate has been lost, stolen or destroyed, applicants would be required to pay J$3,000 to replace the document.
Grant said that additional security features would be placed on the certificates to reduce the incidence of fraud while improving the general quality of the documents.
She said that all photocopied documents submitted when persons are applying for their skills certificate, must be signed by a Justice of the Peace.
Other stipulations include a letter of verification from the relevant institution, certifying that an applicant has completed the program of study as represented on the qualifications.
“If your qualifications are not from a university as stated in the Act, then you are required to take these qualifications to the University Council of Jamaica,” Grant advised.
“You will also need to provide for us, a document showing a change of name if applicable, the bio data page of your passport, or a copy of your naturalization document, which will prove your nationality to a CARICOM country,” she added.
The applicant would also have to provide a police report from the country in which the applicant has been domiciled for the last three years; a birth certificate; and three passport-sized photographs.
She said currently, application forms are emailed to applicants once they provide the department with the relevant information.
