The remigration scheme in Guyana, initiated by Dr. Cheddi Jagan in the 1990s, offers tax concessions and potential residential house lots to Guyanese citizens who have lived abroad for at least five years. This article guides applicants through eligibility, documentation, and the application process, ensuring they can contribute to their homeland's development.

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• Re-migration Law: Philosophy And Concept
• Who Is A Re-migrant?
• Advantages Of A Re-migrant
• Re-migrant Status Eligibility
• Re-migrant Application Requirements
• Process Of Applying For The Re-migrant Status
  • Approval From The Ministry Of Foreign Affairs
    • Preparation Of Documents
      • Travel Records
      • Statutory Declaration
    • Submitting The Documents And Interview
    • Letter Of Approval
  • Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA)
    • Custom Brokers
• FAQs On The Re-migrant Scheme
• Reconsideration Of The Re-migrant Act
• Summary

¶Re-migration Law: Philosophy And Concept

Re-migration scheme is a program introduced in the 1990s by the late Dr. Cheddi Jagan to incentivize the return of the many Guyanese that emigrated abroad, especially post 1970. In an effort to facilitate easy relocation and invite the diaspora to return home, concessions in import taxes were legislated in the Section 23 of the Customs Act (82:01).

The re-migration program was meant to encourage Guyanese who left the country for better opportunities, escaping the difficult living conditions over years. Many Guyanese who were already established abroad required compelling reasons to return, and this legislation provided that platform for the government to facilitate the same.

Even though years have passed since the legislation, it is feared that a large percentage of Guyanese persist in staying abroad. However, many Guyanese who return to Guyana for permanent settlement continue to benefit from this provision. Further, Guyanese students who pursue education abroad find the concessions lucrative to return home and seek jobs or pursue business.

The objectives of the Re-migration Unit in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as outlined in its website include:

• To provide assistance to citizens who are interested in re-migrating to Guyana.
• To facilitate the reintegration of returning Guyanese and utilization of their skills and resources.
• To provide strategic direction for efficient re-migration management and engage government institutions and other agencies on issues affecting re-migrants.
• To encourage orderly and regular re-migration, through the provision of timely and adequate information to overseas Missions or Consulates where prospective re-migrants may visit.

¶Who Is A Re-migrant?

According to Section 23 of the Customs Act (82:01):

"qualifying re-migrants" means Guyanese citizens returning to reside in Guyana after a period of continuous bona fide residence of at least five years abroad who have attained the age of eighteen as of the date of return and meet criteria specified in regulations;

A re-migrant can be any Guyanese, by birth, registration or naturalization, who has genuinely resided abroad for at least 5 years see details below and is returning to Guyana for permanent residency. A person can claim the re-migrant status only once. Meaning that if a Guyanese returned to Guyana and claimed the re-migrant status, having benefited from the concessions, he cannot subsequently leave the country once again to return and reclaim the re-migrant status.

¶Advantages Of A Re-migrant

At the time of this writing, a re-migrant is able to claim the following benefits:

1. Residential house lot:
   Re-migrants may apply for house lots from the Ministry of Housing and Water through the Central Housing and Planning Authority's online application.
2. Concessions in customs and import taxes
   Once granted the status of re-migrant from the Re-migration Unit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the applicant is entitled to concessions in import taxes for one (1) vehicle and approved personal effects.

Note:

• The re-migration benefits provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs along with the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) are not linked with the benefits provided by the Ministry of Housing and Water. This means that a qualified re-migrant by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is not necessarily a qualified migrant by Ministry of Housing and Water, therefore, separate applications must be made at both the Ministries if one so desires to benefit from both.
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs provides the re-migrant status to the applicants after going through the documents and having conducted an interview with the applicant. However, the Ministry is not responsible to give tax concessions as that falls under the Customs Act, which the GRA is tasked with. Therefore, after the re-migrant status is provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the re-migrant must visit the GRA to seek final approval on the detailed items to import.
• Concessions outlined in Section 23 of the Customs Act (82:01) are subjected to public servants of a particular level and re-migrants, with the difference that public servants are given the concession privileges every 3 or 5 years only on a vehicle, while qualified re-migrants are given concessions on a vehicle, household and personal effects only once after their qualification. Public servants are not given concessions on the importation of personal and/or household effects under this section.

¶Re-migrant Status Eligibility

In this article, applying for the re-migrant status through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the import tax concessions will be explored as it is the most popular advantage of the re-migration program. For the house lot benefit, re-migrants may contact the Central Housing and Planning Authority of the Ministry of Housing and Water.

For a person to apply for re-migrant status at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the following qualifications must be met:

• Guyanese citizen before emigrating abroad and while returning as a re-migrant (meaning that the applicant must have left the country as a Guyanese and returned as a Guyanese as well).
• 18 years or older during the time of the application.
• Legal resident abroad for five (5) years for work/employment, or three (3) years for formal education.
• Return to Guyana for permanent settlement and residency.

Note: that once granted the re-migrant status, the applicant must reside in Guyana for at least one hundred and eighty-three (183) days cumulatively for three (3) consecutive years if the vehicle imported is older than four (4) years, or five (5) consecutive years if the vehicle imported is under four (4) years old. Failing to do so will result in the tax concessions being revoked, and all concessions obtained will become due and payable.

Also note: that the application must be made within the first six (6) months of assuming residence in Guyana. It is advised to communicate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs via [email protected] a month or two before settling in Guyana to confirm the eligibility and documents.

¶Re-migrant Application Requirements

To claim the re-migrant status as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the applicant must prepare the following documents:

• Birth certificate or citizenship document (naturalization certificate or certificate of registration)
• In case of a name change, relevant deed poll or marriage certificate
• Present passport, and if the present passport is not five (5) years old, then the previous passport must be included as well. Copies of the bio-data page and all stamped pages of the passport(s)
• Two (2) passport sized photo
• Copy of the Taxpayers Identification Number (TIN) certificate
• Travel records from the last five (5) years obtained from the Guyana Passport Office (see in the process below for details on how to obtain this)
• Documents proving legal residency in the country from which the re-migrant is returning from. These documents must be sufficient to legally cover the duration of stay of the re-migrant abroad. These may include the residence permits, visas, green card, citizenship, and so on.
• Documentary evidence on how the re-migrant will earn a livelihood in Guyana. This may include business registration, salary slip or other such documentary evidences.
• Documentary evidence on residency in Guyana. This may include transport, rental agreement, lease agreement, and so on.
• Statutory declaration which must be sworn by a Justice of Peace or a Commissioner of Oaths and Affidavits, which, should declare the following (sample of this declaration can be found below in the statutory declaration section):
  • Items for which the tax concessions are sought for are purely for domestic and personal use, and will not be used for trade or exchange.
  • The re-migrant applicant has not enjoyed re-migration program benefits previously.
  • If tax concessions for a vehicle is sought, then the model, year and capacity of the vehicle.
  • The re-migrant applicant will not lease, transfer, sell, gift, assign or dispose of the vehicle for which tax exemptions are sought for.
  • The re-migrant applicant, once qualified for the status, will stay in Guyana for one hundred and eighty-three (183) days cumulatively for three (3) consecutive years, if the vehicle sought for is over four (4) years old, or, for five (5) years consecutively if the vehicle sought for is under four (4) years old.
    A detailed list of household and personal effects, itemized and quantified, for which the tax concessions are sought for, should be attached to the declaration.
    If tax concessions for a vehicle is sought, then a quotation of the vehicle intended should also be attached.
• For employed re-migrants:
  • Documentary evidence of the applicant's employment in the country the migrant is returning from. This may include business registration, employment contract, salary slip, tax returns, and so on.
• For students:
  • Documentary evidence on the eduction. This may include student card, certificates (especially the last one achieved from the educational institute attended), letter from university covering the duration of study, and so on. Other documents such as internship letters and other letters of acknowledgement may also help in this process.
• For disabled or substantive pensioner:
  • Documents such as a pension letter, bus pass, medical letter, social security card and so on.
• For prospect applicants in the Caribbean:
  • Evidence of legal residence in the country the applicant is presently residing in, which includes Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) certificates, work permits, permanent residency certificates, and so on.
• Completed application form
• Cover letter requesting the re-migrant status from the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Any particular considerations or clarifications pertaining to the application may be outlined and documented in this letter. A sample cover letter may be found here.

PDF: List of requirements - official

Note: All documents must be translated into English and submitted in two (2) copies. This is part of the reason why it is recommended to contact the re-migration unit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs before returning as the applicant might be required to conveniently acquire and translate the necessary documents in the country of origin before returning to Guyana.
Also note: The re-migration unit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs may request documents not enlisted above, as such, it is the applicants' responsibility to contact the unit and ensure all documents are prepared from the country of origin where necessary.

¶Process Of Applying For The Re-migrant Status

Re-migrants applicants have to go through an elaborate process to be given the status and to finally be eligible for the tax concessions. According to the Foreign Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, even after the re-migrant applicant obtains the status, the GRA will review the application and conduct another independent check, which includes an interview.

The main part of the entire re-migrant scheme application process is acquiring the approval from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. After the letter of approval has been granted, the applicant has to refer to the GRA for the final scrutiny and then begin the import process through a broker.

¶Approval From The Ministry Of Foreign Affairs

To obtain the approval from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the applicant needs to first prepare and submit the documents. During or after submission, the applicant will be interviewed, auditing and scrutinizing the submitted documents to ensure the legitimacy of the application. Once the interview is concluded, the applicant will be called by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs after one (1) week to one (1) month and notified about the approval/disapproval. In case of approval, the applicant will have to physically uplift the letter of approval and carry it to the GRA for further processing.

Re-migration applicants may apply at:

Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Re-migration Unit
Address: “Takuba Lodge” 254 South Road & Shiv Chanderpaul Drive, Georgetown, Guyana
Phone: +592 226-1606, +592 226-1607, +592 226-1608 | Ext. 339/340
Email: [email protected]

¶Preparation Of Documents

An elaborate list of documents are presented above and most of them are self-explanatory, however, a few of them require explanation.

¶Travel Records

As pointed out in the requirement section, a re-migrant applicant is required to provide the travel records of the past five (5) years of his travels to and from Guyana. Although the same travel records are required to be completed in the application form, the applicant is still required to get the official travel records from the Guyana Passport Office.

Central Immigration and Passport Office
Address: Camp Road, Georgetown, Guyana
Phone: +592 226-3011, +592 225-1744, +592 226-4700

In order to do so, the applicant must:

1. Write a letter addressed to the Chief Immigration Officer, requesting the travel records. A sample of this letter can be found here (blanks should be filled before submitting).
2. Complete the re-migration application form and make a copy of the completed form.
3. Make a copy of the bio-data page of the passport.
4. Visit the Guyana Passport Office and submit the letter, the copy of the completed form and the copy of the bio-data page of the passport. Guidance may be sought from the immigration officers in the passport office as to where the travel records request may be submitted.
5. Once the request was submitted, the date and time of uplifting the travel records will be notified to the applicant.
6. Uplift the travel records according to the date and time specified by the personnel at the passport office.

The letter provided by the passport office may look like the one below:

¶Statutory Declaration

Statutory declaration may be completed at any Justice of Peace or Commissioner of Oaths and Affidavits. Since this is a common declaration, most have ready-made templates and fill in the particulars of the applicant for convenience. A sample format of such declaration may be found here.
Conventionally, three (3) copies of the declaration will be made and presented to the applicant, two (2) of which will be presented to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, whilst one may be kept for record keeping. The cost of this document is usually between GYD 3,000 to GYD 10,000. It is advisable to negotiate the price before conducting the transaction as many see this as an opportunity to exploit a fellow Guyanese who has returned to its country with bags of foreign currency.

Note that the vehicle and the list of personal and household effects may be changed after the approval of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, however, any changes may result in further complications of the application, and it is best to have the final and confirmed list and vehicle in question prepared, quoted and locked in by the seller from the inception.

¶Submitting The Documents And Interview

Once all documents are prepared as per the guidelines outlined, the applicant may visit the Re-migration Unit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to submit the documents. The officer will thoroughly go through the documents and question any clarifications required. Based on the circumstances, the applicants may be required to submit additional documents supporting their application's genuinely.

It is once again noteworthy that applicants who have contacted the re-migration unit before their re-migration to Guyana will find this process swift and comforting.

¶Letter Of Approval

With the documents submitted, and the interview process completed, the applicant will have to wait until the internal processing of the application is completed. The applicant will be notified via a phone call when the approval letter is ready for uplifting. A sample of the anticipated letter is shown below:

From the date of the letter of approval, the applicant has six (6) months to purchase and import all the items enlisted in the application, including the vehicle. When the six (6) month window ends, the applicant may no longer be able to import the items with the tax exemptions. If any applicant for a valid and genuine reason was not able to import the items, the applicant may return to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and make the relevant request. Depending on the specific case, the Re-migration Unit may either request further documents or suggest that the application process be done once again. It is advisable that the applicant informs the Re-migration Unit in the earliest possible opportunity, of any hurdles that may require extension to the six (6) months window initially obtained.

Once the letter of approval is granted, a copy of all the documents submitted would have already been sent to the GRA. From this point onwards, the process at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is complete. It is important to note that delays in shipments that may cause the items to arrive after the six (6) months approved period can be dealt with in GRA.

Note: While the applicant may technically commence the shipment of the vehicle and household and personal effects before the letter of approval is issued and submit the shipment documents to GRA while waiting on the shipment to arrive, it is strongly advised to avoid doing so. This is because the approval guarantees the tax concessions and GRA is yet to determine the level of tax concessions provided for each applicant. Therefore, re-migrants are strongly discouraged from commencing the purchase or shipment of any goods before the letter of approval and the interview with the GRA.

¶Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA)

Once the applicant is granted the approval letter from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, copies of all the documents submitted would have already reached GRA. Therefore, the next step is for the applicant to visit the GRA with the letter along with a form of identification. To get to the department that deals with the re-migration applications, a visitor's badge must be acquired from the receptionist. Guidance can be sought from the GRA staff.

GRA determines the tax concessions to be given to the applicant (exemption from duty and value added tax (VAT)) on the following items:

• A reasonable quantity of personal effects
• A reasonable quantity of household effects including domestic and electrical appliances.
• A limited amount of tools of trade
• 1 motor vehicle, 1 motorcycle and 1 leisure boat

A customs officer will guide the applicant to an interview where the files will once again be scrutinized and cross-questions may be asked to confirm the legitimacy of the application. Following the conclusion of the interview, the customs officer may guide the applicant to commence the shipping of the approved items. From this point onwards, the applicant is not required to visit GRA unless required to do so. The re-migrant shall commence the importation of the goods in question through a broker.

For further information, GRA may be contacted through:

Tax Advisory Services Section Communications & Tax Advisory Services Division
Guyana Revenue Authority
Address: 200-201 Camp Street, Georgetown, Guyana
Phone: +592 227-6060, +592 227-8222 | Ext: 1201-1204
Email: [email protected]
Website: https://gra.gov.gy/

¶Custom Brokers

The customs broker will upload the letter of approval and other required documents in the ASYCUDA system and do the necessary communications for the importation of the items sought. It is once again advised to negotiate a price before commencing any transaction as brokers may take advantage of re-migrants considering they have returned home abroad with "a bag full of foreign currency".

Usually, a fair customs broker will charge anywhere between GYD 20,000 to GYD 50,000 for the re-migration letter and all the other clearances required at the customs.

Note: If the shipment is due to arrive after the expiration of the six (6) months initially approved by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, provided that the applicant has already shipped the items and has uploaded the Bill of Laden in the GRA's system through the broker, GRA would normally give a grace period of up to one (1) month based on the particular situation. Although this is not a legal obligation on GRA, but a favourable understanding.

¶FAQs On The Re-migrant Scheme

This article provides a detailed guide on all matters surrounding re-migration and the legal benefits that are attached to it. Questions and comments may be explored in the comments' section below. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has prepared a list of FAQs for re-migrants. Although all the contents of the FAQ are incorporated in this article, the following official document may still be used for references:
PDF: FAQs on the re-migrant scheme - official

¶Reconsideration Of The Re-migrant Act

The re-migration program is a commendable move towards regaining the resources Guyana has lost or is losing due to migration and brain drain. However, the bureaucratic process of obtaining the re-migrant status and practically benefiting from the concessions provided is off-putting and requires running around. At this age of information and communication technologies, many of the processes outlined can be done electronic online. This will not only benefit the applicants, but also the officers who are tasked with going through the documents and ensuring the legitimacy of the application.

There are many Guyanese companies that provide automated solutions for such office processes, of which WaveSplit Solutions Inc is an outstanding one.

¶Summary

To apply for re-migrant status in Guyana, one must submit a comprehensive application to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, starting with the preparation of required documents such as birth certificate, passport, travel records, and proof of residency and livelihood. The application includes a statutory declaration and cover letter. After submission, the applicant undergoes an interview. If approved, a letter of approval is issued, which must then be presented to the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA). The GRA reviews the application and conducts a final interview, after which the applicant can begin the import process of personal and household effects through a customs broker, ensuring all items arrive within six months of approval to benefit from tax exemptions.