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Bermuda Work Permits for Employment of all non-citizens

Required for all working newcomers including those from the United Kingdom and visiting consultants or guest speakers

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By Keith Archibald Forbes (see About Us) exclusively for Bermuda Online

To refer to this webfile, please use "bermuda-online.org/employwp" as your Subject.

Applicable laws and important first points about Work Permits

Do not enter Bermuda as a tourist but then look for employment while here. If you are not Bermudian by birth (with at least one parent a Bermudian) or by written status, apply for a job outside Bermuda directly to an employer, in response to a specific written newspaper (not in any other way) advertisement in a Bermudian or American or British or Canadian newspaper  and quote the advertisement's specific reference number for the vacancy well as the newspaper in question. Telephone applications or general enquiries will not be accepted or acknowledged. 

Newcomers - prospective employees living beyond Bermuda - with no prospective Bermuda employer yet should consider buying a subscription to the Electronic Edition of Bermuda's only daily newspaper The Royal Gazette, Bermuda's only daily newspaper, to reply directly to specific advertisements issued by specific employers that match their qualifications. Only send resumes in reply to specific advertisements, those with a reference number and "reply-by" date.

Work Permits and who needs them

A Work Permit from the Bermuda Government is required by all non- Bermudian applicants for the specific full time or limited period or consulting or representative or pastoral position they accept from a specific local employer - and every time they change jobs. All part time and seasonal positions are unlikely to be approved. Since 2007, most work permits have a maximum 6 years duration. Newcomers who are not Bermudian or married to and living with a Bermudian one must be prepared to leave Bermuda by then if not before. 

Work Permits apply to all non-Bermudian guest workers, regardless of rank or seniority or professional or other qualification,  when approved after due consideration by the Bermuda Government and their respective employers - in that order - to live and work in Bermuda.  

Britons - those from the UK who are not Bermudian by birth or status - as a foreign as any other foreigner from any other country and need a Work Permit. It should be noted carefully that all expatriate non-Bermudians including Britons who are not also Bermudian who come here are not "immigrants" but on Work Permits for no longer than a Bermuda-permitted period of time (see below). They have no automatic right of abode after 4 years as they do in Britain. Britons and European Economic Community (EEC) citizens do not have any of the same rights to live, be domiciled, be employed and retire here as they do in the United Kingdom or EEC. 

If/when your application is approved by the employer and the employer - not you - is issued a Work Permit to employ you, enter Bermuda with your copy of the Work Permit issued to your employer showing your name. If you enter as a married non-Bermudian couple, don't assume that only one of you needs a Work Permit. Both of you will need to find employers and obtain Work Permits unless one of you will not be employed, period.

In general, the following apply re the 9,800 Work Permits granted by Government in the private sector in 2009:

Non- Bermudians (non nationals) include

Work Permit basics and conditions

Listed below are what are believed to be the 2010 work permit term limit categories that allow expatriate workers to stay beyond one year. Non-Bermudian employees on Work Permits, in their best interests, should note these carefully and ask their employers how they, as employees, stand and in what category their employers are.

Source: Ministry of Labour & Immigration

Other factors relating to Work Permits

Children limitation. If you and your spouse, both as non-Bermudians, have more than two children, or you are single parent with more than two children, you will not generally be considered for private-sector employment - and probably not for public-sector employment either in Bermuda unless under very special circumstances deemed acceptable to the Bermuda Government. This makes sense for an island of only 21 square miles in total land area, with the third-highest population any per square mile or square kilometer. From the environmental point of view, there have to be some restraints. Further, since 2003 some work-permit holders - for example, waiters - are no longer allowed to bring in their spouse or any children. One of the Immigration Department's concerns is that a 2-children family of a newcomer brought in to do a job not in the highest of professional categories would use accommodation that should be available to working-class Bermudians. On an island already with probably the highest accommodation costs in the world for all classes of Bermudians - see Cost of Homes in Bermuda -  Immigration has advised that further restrictions may apply to more newcomers.

Citizenship limitation. There is no chance whatsoever of becoming Bermudian by citizenship Be aware there  is no chance for citizenship (namely, becoming a Bermudian) unless you marry a Bermudian, stay married and live together and then wait ten years to apply. 

Film companies. If not Bermudian and planning to film in Bermuda, the company will need to register with the Bermuda Department of Immigration & Labor; have a local (Bermudian) agent; and secure Work Permits for all non-Bermudian personnel coming to Bermuda.

Importing workers from developing nations is difficult or impossible because of a requirement that the UK, US or Canada must first issue a transit visa, even after they are granted work permits by Bermuda Immigration. Without transit visas they cannot come. Neither the Governor nor Deputy Governor can help as issuing transit visas did not involve Government House and that they have no influence over it. The USA is also withholding transit visas for some workers bound for Bermuda. The US Immigration Department states that in order to get a transit visa via the USA applicants must demonstrate strong social, economic and/or family ties outside the United States.

Those from overseas who arrive married and with their spouses and any child or children should note that when one spouse is offered employment, the employment contract applies only to the person employed. The other spouse must make his or her own arrangements with his or her own employer if they wish to be employed - and if - which can be a big if - they are allowed to accept employment locally. All spouses should be aware that if they do not have a degree - sometimes not just a degree but a good, relevant degree - it is extremely unlikely they will be able to obtain any remunerated employment in Bermuda. One of the many problems with recruiters or head-hunters - including some used by Bermuda-based banks, insurance companies, accounting firms and law firms - is that they are untruthful or evasive, instead of being forthright and honest, to both new work-permit holders and their spouses who also hope to get employment in Bermuda. They advise - wrongly - that spouses will have no problems finding employment. Its a ploy to have a new recruit say "yes" to on offer of employment. They don't say, as they should, that under no circumstances will any non-Bermudian be allowed to get any kind of employment in a "proscribed area" and that in all other areas, Bermudians take preference, in the priority order shown above, then the 5 other priority orders apply. This evasiveness or outright deception serves no purpose in the long run, because if the spouse is unhappy in Bermuda, and unable to find employment, chances are that the contract will be broken and both employee and spouse will leave the island. As it happens so frequently, it should be built in to the contract of employment that in the event a spouse is unable to find suitable employment for which she or he is qualified and able, the employee should be allowed to break the contract for cause, claim damages and compensation and leave the country without any blemish whatsoever by both the Bermuda-based employer and Bermuda Government.  

A new Work Permit policy is now in effect. It is designed to reward employers who are " good corporate citizens" and be firm, fair, flexible when appropriate, and faster. But for most employers, there will be a maximum length of six years for Work Permits, with no renewals after that and no automatic renewals before that. Potential newcomers who are not Bermudian should ask their prospective employers, or the employers with whom they are negotiating for possible employment in Bermuda, if they are registered by the Immigration Department of the Government of Bermuda as "good corporate citizens". Only the latter are being given maximum leeway re duration of Work Permits.

"Good corporate citizens" and "key" staff. Key staff can be CEOs or CFOs or other senior managers. From April 2007 only Work Permits of "key" senior staff in the private sector will be allowed - and only at companies which pass the Immigration tests to become "good corporate citizens". Expatriates presently in Bermuda on Work Permits will have to leave unless they fall into this category - which will vary according to the individual rating of employers with Immigration. (NB: Law Librarian and Knowledge Manager positions have been added to the exempted professions under the Immigration Act, meaning that there is reasonable hope of a 3-year, instead of 1 year, Work Permit). The fact they may be needed by employers will not, by itself, count. If there is a genuine need, new expatriates will be allowed in to replace them for a limited period. This policy is likely to apply more to private sector expatriate employers and employees than to public sector employees.

The criteria for their companies to be regarded as "good corporate citizens" will include:

The documentation new arrivals must complete, whether visitors or Work-Permit approved, is a lot more detailed than in any other jurisdiction. It may not occur to some non-Bermudians that Bermuda is a foreign country to all non-Bermudians including Britons and that that the procedure they must go through is similar to - but more complex, regulated and restricted than - the proper process for admission of non-nationals for employment in the USA, Canada, United Kingdom, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, etc. Remember that unlike in the above where persons are treated as immigrants, non-Bermudians are not given any of the rights or privileges of immigrants, or eventual citizenship, even when they have been in Bermuda for decades, unless they marry and stay married to Bermudians. Only some qualifying non-Bermudian spouses of Bermudians are exempted from the need to have a Work Permit - and after they have been married to the same person for a qualifying number of years.

New Non-Bermudian employees are advised not to give notice to their overseas employers until they are notified their Work Permit has been approved. Some Work Permits can take many months to be issued or re-issued. There is no set period. Initially, they are in huge detail, include a medical history, medical evidence the person can work in the sub tropics, does not have tuberculosis or any other known disease such as HIV or AIDS; can stand the constant humidity, has a complete and verified previous employment record and much more.  Some international and local companies have brought delays on themselves and prospective employers by attempting to skirt strict rules affecting non-Bermudians. As a result, their applications are more closely examined. They include some very big corporate names. 

All persons newly arrived in Bermuda on Work Permits should expect their parents or adult children not with them or fiancées or fiancés or in-laws to have only short (three weeks) of stays. Also, they will not be covered in Bermuda by any health Insurance plans hold by their Bermuda-based hosts.

Priority order of precedence for employment in Bermuda by all non-Bermudian applicants

This is how the Bermuda Government's Department of Immigration rates their chances. Know that thousands of Bermudians return home each year to work after university or work experience abroad. Why? Because Bermuda has the third highest standard of living in the world. So employers tend to advertise internationally only those posts which Bermudians are unable or unwilling or unqualified to do.

Employment advertising procedures

In Bermuda, employers don't have to publish help wanted advertisements if they fill vacancies from within by Bermudians. 

But for non-Bermudians a number of conditions have to be met before work permits are issued. 

This file supplements the information shown in the following files, all by this researcher and writer.

"Closed" or "proscribed" or restricted" categories

Under no circumstances or in only very special and pre-approved by Bermuda Immigration circumstances (for example, if you are married to a Bermudian for longer than three years or such other item as may be applicable) can non-Bermudians (non nationals) find employment in Bermuda in any junior clerical or lower management or middle management administrative, or clerical or technical or management fields. They include all construction workers, allied trades and the following:

Airline Ground Agent Bank Teller Bartender
Broadcaster or newspaper columnist (if you live in Bermuda) Butler Cable linesman
Carpet installer or layer Carpenters Construction Tradesmen
Disc jockey Electricians Entertainer/ Musician
Fisherman Floor Supervisor Housekeeper (live out)
House painter Landscape gardener  Independent consultant
Laborer, general Maid (live out) Masons
Mechanic (including car or moped/scooter) Office receptionist Packer at grocery store or other
Part-time anything Photographer Plumbers
Postmaster or postal supervisor postal carrier or post office clerk Presenter on radio Salesperson
Sales manager Ship or branch pilot Self-employed in any capacity
Stone cutter Store or shop clerk Summer or seasonal jobs of any kind
Swimming pool serviceman Sound equipment operator Taxi-driver
Technician Telephone mechanic Telephone linesman
Travel Agent/ Consultant Wall Paper Technician Waiter

For further information, see Bermuda Department of Immigration.

Bermuda is very small - less than 21 square miles in total area - with a resident population of 66,900 and isolated, more than 600 miles east of the USA. This must be appreciated as one of the factors in limited upward mobility for non-Bermudians not in top administrative or professional positions. It has one of the highest populations in the world per square mile, higher than in Bangladesh and Bahrain and exceeded only by Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Macau, Monaco, Singapore and Vatican City. This means that Bermudianization is something most imported employees have to expect at some point. Many Bermudians have two or three jobs, to make ends meet. But this is not allowed for people who are not Bermudian. Expatriates are only allowed a Work Permit for one employer, not several.

Unless holders who are newcomers marry Bermudians, they will never be allowed to vote in Bermuda, even if they stay in Bermuda long enough by the standards of other countries (three to five years) to vote.

Nor may they own real estate property at the same price as Bermudians. They are limited in applying for ownership of real estate - to the top 5 percent in value of real estate in single family dwellings or condominiums. 

Their children, despite being born here, will not be Bermudians unless a parent is and will never qualify for any of the grants or bursaries or scholarships awarded to Bermudians. Parents or a single parent of infants and small children require landing permits from the Bermuda Government's Department of Immigration for their offspring to re-enter Bermuda after a visit abroad.

If a guest worker quits a job voluntarily or otherwise while on contract or later, there is no right of expectation to be given another Work Permit with a different employer. If a guest worker quits after less than a year, he or she is unlikely to be able to find another job and will have to leave. In general, he or she will be expected to stay with that employer for at least three years if his/her Work Permit is extended for that long. But the 6-year cap on Work Permits means that non-Bermudians may be allowed to go to another employer after three years if the next employer is a good corporate citizen. Honesty and openness - not falsely complimentary references - are expected from Immigration by employers as to why that employee is leaving. If he or she gets a failing grade, they will not be allowed to get another job and will have to leave. An otherwise good employee will not be allowed to quit one job as an employee to go into competition - as an employer or partner or employee - with the firm that hired him or her, without Immigration justification. But it works both ways - if an employer falsely accuses an employee of being bad to block another employer from getting a new Work Permit for that person, it will rebound on the bad employer and affect its own character from a Work Permit perspective. Good non-Bermudians should not be afraid to tell Immigration when they have been treated badly.

A non-Bermudian is not automatically entitled to a replacement Work Permit. There is an appeal process but factors that count include a report from a current or previous employer. There is no recourse if an appeal against a Work Permit revocation or lack of renewal is denied.

Non-Bermudians do not have the Human Rights laws enjoyed by Bermudians.

Work Permits do not accord immigrant status to those approved. They merely give permission for approved persons to live and work in Bermuda as guest workers for the stipulated period of time and any approved renewal, or during the pleasure of the employer and with the agreement of the Bermuda Government. Most Work Permits are now for a maximum period of three years and are not renewable.

Work Permit requirements are the same for nationals of all countries including Britain. Applications for Work Permits made by Bermuda based employers for vacancies in administrative, management, professional and technical categories are considered on their merits. But these depend entirely on specific employers applying in the pre-ordained way for permission to employ non Bermudians and receiving consent, with Work Permits issued when approved.

There are Bermuda Government fees for each type of Work Permit issued and renewals. Fees are the responsibility of employers. They are payable to the Bermuda Immigration authorities, when the employer submits the application and full set of accompanying documentation. Relatively few Work Permits are approved for up to 5 years initially. They depend on the seniority and sensitivity of the advertised post.

Employers are also required to hold valid at all times round trip tickets back to their country of origin of all Work Permit approved employees and their dependents, or to make equivalent arrangements in terms of a cash deposit with the Bermuda Department of Immigration. This is in case Work Permit approved persons are ever declared undesirable and a deportation order is issued. It ensures the deportation will not occur at Government's expense.

Originals of Work Permits, naming the new Work Permit holders, have to be sent by Bermuda based employers to new Work Permit approved employees. They must have the original in their possession when they arrive at a Bermuda port of entry such as the Bermuda International Airport, for inspection by Bermuda Department of Immigration officials.

A copy of the Work Permit, naming the stipulated employer, is generally retained by that employer. Note the emphasis on the stipulated employer, a deliberate policy. It is extremely unlikely a Work Permit will be issued allowing a person to work for more than one employer. It virtually excludes any possibility of any Bermudian arriving and setting up operations as a consultant to other organizations. So the Work Permit is extremely specific. It should not be compared to a Green Card holder in the USA who can jump from employer to employer without further Government involvement.

Whenever a Work Permit approved person wishes to change an employer, the new employer must go through exactly the same advertising of the position and Work Permit application process for that person as the original stipulated employer - and again pay the requisite Work Permit fee. However, there is generally no need for a duplication of the Bermuda Immigration Questionnaire documentation.

Employees with Work Permits who wish to leave Bermuda temporarily, for example when traveling on business or for vacation purposes, must obtain Re-Entry Permits for their return. Their employers know the procedure and will assist with it. Re-Entry Permits are also required for non Bermudian spouses and children. Again, this is an employer's responsibility. Each Re-Entry Permit application involves a cost.

Work Permit types 

For any category of personal or corporate or office staff. It should be assumed these are always payable by the employer individual or organization. This is purely a representative, not a complete, list. For further details, apply to the Bermuda Department of Immigration, Chief Immigration Officer, Ministry of Labor, Home Affairs & Public Safety, Government Administration Building, 30 Parliament Street, Hamilton HM 12, Bermuda. Telephone Work Permit Officer at (441) 297-7940 Fax: (441) 295-4115.

Part-time Permit, for one year or less, instructors or private tutors already resident in Bermuda, for activities not exceeding 9 hours a week
Part-time Permit, for one year or less, for activities not exceeding 9 hours a week
A short-term permit, for more than 5 persons, in addition to the fee below
A one-year permit, for one year or less, for a child care worker engaged to provide child care services in the home, for each child cared for
A short-term Permit, for a single period of 14 days or less, per person (up to 5 persons)
As a self-employed traveling representative to engage in local business
To work with the above
Part-time Occasional Permit, casual part-time models, for activities not exceeding 100 hours in any twelve-month period
A Temporary Permit for a specific job for a period not exceeding 3 months
A one-year Permit, for any period less than 18 months
A two-year Permit, for 18 months or more but less than 30 months
A three-year Permit, for 30 months or more but less than 42 months
A four-year Permit, for 42 months or more but less than 54 months
A five-year Permit, for 54 months or more but less than 66 months

Public sector employment in Bermuda

The Bermuda Government is easily the biggest employer in Bermuda, employing both direct Government employees and Bermuda Government owned organizations (quangos). Anyone wishing to be considered for most Bermuda Government positions must complete an application form from and send it directly to the Department of Personnel Services, Floor 3, Global House, 43 Church Street, Hamilton HM 12, Bermuda. Teachers should submit their details by airmail to the Ministry of Education at 7 Point Finger Road, Paget DV 04, Bermuda. As with all other jobs, qualified and capable Bermudians get preference, with non Bermudian wives or husbands living locally having the next priority. There is little or no chance of obtaining any local summer or seasonal or part time employment if you or a parent are not Bermudian. 

As at February 27, 2009 there were many expatriates (non-Bermudians) employed in the Civil Service excluding the Hospitals, Bermuda Police Service and quangos. They include "contract officers" meaning an officer employed under a written contract for a fixed period. All members of the Bermuda Civil Service - employed by the Bermuda Government - come under the Public Service Commission Regulations 2001. The Bermuda Government is committed to a policy of Bermudianization  and a new training initiative has started to ensure Bermudians are skilled and trained to take senior positions in the Government.

In the Bermuda Police Service, Police Headquarters are 10 Headquarters Hill, Devonshire DV 02, Bermuda. P. O. Box HM 530, Hamilton HM CX. (441) 295-0011. Fax (441) 299-4459. To apply for employment as a Police Officer, phone 299-4304, or fax 299-4485, or e-mail bpor@ibl.bm. It is paid for by Bermuda taxpayers, not the United Kingdom. With 460 full time officers, mostly from Bermuda, Britain and Caribbean. It also has about 100 civil servants and industrial staff. If it cannot find enough Bermudians or those married to one, the Bermuda Government periodically recruits from overseas policemen between 19 and 49 years old for the Bermuda Police Service. Its mailing address is Police Recruitment Officer, P. O. Box HM 530, Hamilton HM CX. Telephone (441) 299-4290. Policemen in the United Kingdom are not "seconded" to Bermuda, they must interrupt their service and if they are wise, apply before they resign if they wish to have a job to come back to when their Bermuda contract ends. If necessary, newcomers may come from Canada also.

The lowest salaries elsewhere in the Bermuda Government are currently about $40,000 for jobs for unqualified Bermudians (only). With a decent Bachelor's degree, government employees currently earn from US$70,445 a year. In 2007, average household income was estimated to be $78,500. The average salary per person island-wide in 2007 was US$ 57,000. The great majority of the Bermuda Government positions at the higher salaries are also held by Bermudians.  Non-Bermudians are unlikely to be considered for any offering less than $75,000 a year. Bear in mind that basic salaries mentioned in job vacancies are the same, whether for Bermudians, others resident here and non-Bermudians who have not yet arrived. 

Return travel for candidate, spouse and up to two children, and shipping and resettlement allowances are provided by the Bermuda Government. Because of the high cost of living in Bermuda, recruiting families with more than two children is discouraged. Employment for a spouse is sometimes available (especially if the spouse has a professional qualification) but is not guaranteed.

The Bermuda Government assumes responsibility to find suitable, furnished accommodation for expatriate pr non-Bermudian contract officers (one bedroom for a single or married person, three bedrooms for a family with two children), and rent in excess of 25% of the contract officer's salary is fully subsidized. Candidates are expected to remain at the accommodation provided for at least three months but thereafter may choose to move into accommodation of their own choice. Rent in excess of 25% of the employee's salary will continue to be subsidized within reason.

Other Bermuda based employers, including the Government owned and operated medical King Edward VII Memorial Hospital and the other hospital it owns and operates, often recruit academically and professionally qualified, full time, adult employees with relevant job experience when there are insufficient adult full time Bermudians with the appropriate qualifications to fill specific posts.

Work Permits issued each year

For more on Work Permits, or length of stay or clarification of Bermudian status

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Last Updated: March 8, 2010
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