POND ISLAND — Yesterday the Board of the USM sent a letter to the Honourable Minister of Education Culture Youth & Sports, Ms. Silveria Jacobs, informing her that if the government of Sint Maarten does not finally take up its responsibility to provide the USM with an increase of the annual subsidy of 3Million Antillean Guilders, the institution will have to close its doors as of the end of November! It’s a do or die scenario. The 850.000 Antillean Guilders that the institution currently receives, which boils down to less than 1% of the country’s annual budget allocated to education,…
Author: The Publisher
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GREAT BAY – After witnessing the arrival of the navy vessel Karel doorman, Minister Ronald Plasterk (Kingdom Relations) paid a visit to the reverse osmosis drinking water production facility near the Festival Village Monday afternoon, where he met with Minister Emil Lee (Public Health, Social Development and Labor), Gebe managing director Kendrick Chittick and Seven Seas Water managing director Franklyn Richards. Plasterk inspected the installation and at the end of the mini-tour enjoyed a sip of the fresh drinking water the facility produces. “When I was here two weeks ago we drove through Middle Region and people shouted to us:…
It is with great admiration for the people of Sint Maarten, and especially the business community of Sint Maarten, that we at Meijburg & Co Caribbean are monitoring the rapid rebound of the Friendly Island. In the following we would like to contribute to the rebuilding of Sint Maarten by providing some valuable considerations regarding tax implications of such devastating natural disasters. In these challenging times one could not help but wonder: Does the Sint Maarten tax legislation provide ‘disaster’ tax relief? Our focus in this contribution is primarily on the tax treatment of companies for profit tax and turnover…
PHILIPSBURG — Very soon after the passage of hurricanes “Irma” and “Maria” the enforcement of criminal law in Sint Maarten was restored. This in close cooperation with all involved in the justice chain. The police force of Sint Maarten (KPSM) has given great attention to the maintenance of public order with the support of the National Police, the marines and the Volunteer Corps of Saint Maarten (VKSM). But in addition, the arrest of looters was immediately taken up by the justice chain. Many criminal cases have been registered against residents who did not adhere to the curfew announced by the…
The disastrous Hurricane Irma is now almost a month behind us. Cleanup activities are still in full swing and in many – but not all – places people have access again to electricity, water and internet. These are exactly the three services everyone was taking for granted before the hurricane destroyed our island. During our struggles throughout the past couple of weeks we learned to manage without these basic items. We had flashlights, oil lamps and candles to help us through darkness; we found water from relief agencies, from cisterns and from the sea. And – last but not least…
To: St. Maarten children, their parents, teachers and schools Hurricane Irma has left behind a deeply rooted impression for nearly all children. They had to deal with the power of nature, may have lost their roof or complete house, felt the fear of the adults around them and are dealing with the aftermath in many different ways. As part of dealing with the effects of hurricane Irma and giving children a voice, they are invited to share their experiences, thoughts and feelings. This can be about the preparation before the hurricane, the Irma experience during the storm or the days…
PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten (Monday October 2nd, 2017) — Social & Health Insurances SZV would like to inform the public and its customers of the following important notices. SZV also encourages all to monitor its Facebook page and the media for daily general updates. NOTICES OCTOBER 2ND – 6TH, 2017 OPENING HOURS: Monday – Friday 9:00 am – 1:00 pm OFFICE LOCATION: Building 3, Level 1 & Building 1 level 1 GENERAL INQUIRIES: SZV can be reached by phone +1721-546 6782 for general inquires Monday – Friday 9:00 am – 1:00 pm. Employer Desk and Senior & benefits Desk: Available during…
POND ISLAND — The Ministry of VROMI has issued a correction that existing buildings with a permit can rebuild based on the issued building permit. Based on a previous press release, there was considerable debate whether property owners had to request a building permit in order to carry out repairs of damage caused by hurricane Irma. The ministry would like to clarify the post hurricane rebuilding activities which will not require a permit. Any rebuilding works according to the drawings of the already approved building permit requires no new building permit. For example, a house that was issued a building…
Philipsburg – The St. Maarten Hospitality and Trade Association is pleased to report that the first megayacht has returned to St. Maarten, leading the way for what we hope to be a recovery of the yachting sector. Motor Yacht Orinokia, a Benetti Classic 120, passed through the Simpson Bay Bridge on Saturday morning and docked at its berth at Yacht Club Port de Plaisance. Orinokia had recently taken shelter in St. Lucia but decided to return to St. Maarten as soon as it was safe to do so. Captain Simon Uzcategui said that both the yacht owner and crew wanted…
PHILIPSBURG — In a phone conversation today with this newspaper, Winair CEO, Michael Cleaver, after verification with his office confirmed that indeed Winair will be executing three commercial flights between Curacao and St. Maarten for the purpose of repatriating residents back to St. Maarten. The local airline’s CEO confirmed that once-a-day, round-trip flights will take place on Thursday, October 5th; Saturday, October 7th; and Tuesday, October 10th. The maximum number of passengers on the SXM-CUR route will be 130 and on the CUR-SXM route, it will be 145. WINAIR will utilize a PAWA Dominicana aircraft via its wet lease agreement…
