BVI AND USVI ‘AT SEA’ OVER YACHT CHARTER FEES

By Staff Writer

An international diplomatic row between the British and the United States Virgin Islands has been escalated all the way up to the US White House and State Department.

At issue is a new fee structure imposed by the British Virgin Islands for foreign-registered charter vessels using its picturesque Sir Francis Drake Channel.

The expanse of sea located within the territorial boundaries of the BVI is a popular sailing area in the territory’s archipelago.

The BVI government last year dramatically increased the fees from US$800 to US$24,000 per vessel for annual multi-night charter licences, with day trip fees rising from US$200 to US$8,500.

Additional customs and other related fees may incur an additional cost of $US1,000 or more.

The resulting uproar by mainly charter operators in the neighbouring United States Virgin Islands forced a series of meetings between the local BVI and USVI governments.

No consensus was reached.

BVI Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley has defended his administration’s decision to hike the fees. He told a sitting of the BVI House of Assembly that the decision to increase the fees, which have not been changed for decades, was based on a core principle.

“The government of the (British)Virgin Islands has both the right and responsibility to steward its natural resources in a manner that secures its territory’s long-term economic future,” he affirmed.

The BVI government has also made the assertion that, unlike its USVI neighbours which get standard specific funding support as a United States territory, it does not have that facility as a British Overseas Territory.

However, efforts to arrive at a mutually acceptable fee structure have so far proven futile, and last December the Governor of the USVI, Albert A. Bryan Jr., referred the issue to Washington.

In a letter addressed to US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, he complained of what he described as  “economic exclusion” by his neighbours.

The yacht charter business in the waters of the British and United States Virgin Islands, especially the BVI’s Sir Francis Drake Channel, is a major revenue earner for both territories.

The USVI government estimates that the BVI action has already cost their territory over US$14 million in lost revenue since it came into effect last year, with the knock-on effect on jobs and the wider economy.

As this is essentially a foreign affairs issue, despite the close geographical proximity and longstanding family and friendship ties between the two sets of islands, if the matter cannot be resolved locally, it requires the intervention of their respective administrative powers (the British and the United States governments).

BVI Premier Wheatley has doubled down on his position on the basis that his government has already made enough concessions.

“This administration is firmly committed to ensuring that it is governed responsibly, sustainably and in the best interest of the people of these Virgin Islands,” he said in the BVI House of Assembly.

The vexing issue has already seen calls from the USVI Chamber of Commerce and charter industry representatives for the BVI to be slapped with reciprocal fees and even a counter-tariff.