Public urged to apply for skills certificate at labour ministry only

Jamaicans seeking skills certificates to work in another Caribbean territory are advised to submit applications to the Ministry of Labour and Social Security.

Director of the Work Permit Department, Lisa-Ann Grant, said that legitimate, bona fide skills certificates can only be issued by a competent authority.

For Jamaica, this is the ministry's 1F North Street location only.

"We are having a serious problem of Jamaicans moving with fraudulent documents. Many persons do not realise that when somebody approaches you on the street, that is not the process. All applications must be submitted at 1F North Street, not our offices around the island," she pointed out.

The CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) provides for the free movement of 10 categories of skilled workers.

These are university graduates, artistes, musicians, sportspersons, media workers, registered nurses with diplomas or degrees, teachers with diplomas, artisans with at least level 2 CARICOM Vocational Qualification (CVQ), holders of associate degrees, and household domestics with a CVQ level 2. The National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) is also accepted in Jamaica.

CERTIFICATION PROCESS

Explaining the process of obtaining the CARICOM skills certificate, Grant informed that interested nationals will first need to contact the Ministry's 1F North Street location and indicate their intention to apply.

Once the certificate is issued, CARICOM nationals are granted a stay of six months in another country, and during that period, they are required to submit their skills certificate to the competent authority of the host country for acceptance.

"The competent authority may verify the validity of the certificate and the documentation on which it has been issued. During the period of consideration by the competent authority, the CARICOM national can work," Grant noted.

For Jamaica, she informed that the verification process involves persons taking in a certified copy of the skills certificate, a certified copy of the biodata page of their passport, three passport-sized pictures, and completing a simple information-gathering form at the ministry.

"Once that is done, I will contact the member state. Once it is verified, then we will give you a letter to take to the immigration department where you will be given an unconditional stamp," she explained.