17 September 2013
The Control of Housing and Work Law has been in place for just over two months as part of a drive to improve the effectiveness of Jersey's immigration controls.
In that time, 5,400 registration cards have been issued, with 4,000 of these cards being for people who qualify as 'entitled' under the new legisaltion. More than 30,000 people have been pre-qualified as a result of Social Security and the Population Office working together to issue cards to anyone with continuous contribution records.
Partnership
The two departments have linked up their databases and are administering the new system in partnership.
The Chair of the Housing and Work Advisory Group, Senator Paul Routier, said “The system is bedding in well but we do have to be sure of a person’s status before issuing an ‘entitled’ registration card. We are doing all we can to help Islanders with this task, by joining up our systems and records and providing guidance; however, it is essential that the regime is rigorous.
“The law also supports local employment by removing any limits on employing people who are ‘entitled’ or ‘entitled for work’. Employers can now employ as many such people as they wish.
“This new system is a significant change and will take time to become fully established but I am pleased with the progress so far and we will continue to work on improvements to the process.”
Compliance
As well as registration cards, the new law introduces stronger compliance powers, and to support this, savings are being re-invested in extra staff to police the law.
In addition, contractors now need to pay up to £1,500 for a licence to visit Jersey.
Senator Routier added “The law is vital to achieve our objectives of more local employment, limited immigration, reduced bureaucracy and economic growth. I want to thank Islanders for working with us and to assure them that the new system will deliver long term benefits.”
Further guidance on the new law, including how to get a card, can be found in the registration cards section.
gov.je