Cayman Islands visa: Money

On to the money. This is the second instalment on working tax-free in the Cayman Islands on a long-term visa.

Regarding salary, the only items deducted from your wages are health insurance and pension contributions. Every person who works on the island has to have private health insurance, which is set up by your employer and costs approximately $100.00 CI per month. This gives you catastrophic insurance cover. It was explained to me that in that if a bus hits you, it covers you. If you have a cold, you’re on your own.

For health problems, the general plan seems to be that if you need to be operated on, you head over to Cuba. This is because it has the best doctors and healthcare system in the world, owing to a nationalist programme begun by Fidel Castro. If you need to be scanned or tested, you’re off to Miami or New York. The hospitals over here do the job, but there are better places in the Caribbean to get work done.

There are no social security benefits. You can’t live on the island if you’re unemployed unless you can prove to the customs officer on the way in you can support yourself financially. You may also need a sponsor to confirm an address - someone who lives on the island.

Cayman Island tourist visas last thirty days, and expire and renew every time you enter or leave the country. They can be renewed up to at least six months, after which you may want to look into more permanent options.

If you come over here as a tourist and find a job, you have to spend a few days out of the country whilst your visa is being processed.

As a service industry employee, a pension of five per cent is also deducted from your wage and matched by your employer. This can be cashed in when you leave the island for the final time, or it can be left on the island in a bank account to accumulate tax-free.

Bank accounts charge a monthly service fee for use. This was an unusual charge to get used to, but I made so much money I didn’t care. I never actually took any money out of my account whilst I was there, as I lived off cash tips. 20 per cent tip is the norm in restaurants and bars.

The big banks are Cayman National, Scotiabank and Butterfield. HSBC has recently opened up a retail outlet too. I went with Scotia but they’re all the same. Cash points are located around the island, and banks operate normal business hours.

You can choose to take out Cayman or US dollars from all the ATMs. The two currencies are accepted everywhere, but if you pay in US dollars, you can’t get US dollars back.

You’ll get Cayman dollars, and this is not negotiable unless you can find yourself a friendly barman who’ll always have both denominations in his pocket.

This is a simple chart to show how the CI and dollar ratio actually works out:

$1 US : $0.80 CI

$1.25 US : $1 CI

$5 US : $4 CI

$10 US : $8 CI

$20 US : $16 CI

$25 US : $20 CI

$50 US : $40 CI

Wikipedia states that $1 CI is equal to $1.20 US. This might be true for macro-economic valuations, but on the street it’s 1 : 1.25, so that’s what you should expect too.

Notes are in 1, 5, 10, 25, 50 and 100 denominations. They are all different tropical colours and feel good in your hand. With it being tax free it’s easy to make and easy to spend.

In the third instalment I’ll continue on the money theme with:

The cost of living.