Vt1 billion in revenue by Vanuatu Citizenship Commission

The Vanuatu Citizenship Commission handed over 123 citizenship certificates to 123 successful applicants on Monday this week.

The fees from these new citizens with others already granted has earned Vt1 billion that went into government coffers this year.

The 123 new citizens came under four different categories of citizenship award which are; naturalize citizen category, non-citizen married category, regain citizenship category and entitled citizenship category.

The Citizenship Commission granted citizenship certificates to over 300 applicants in 2015 alone including those granted under the Vanuatu Economic Rehabilitation Program (VERP).

The Vt1 billion fees revenue included the VERP Program citizens.

The Citizenship Commission Secretary General, John Ware, was instrumental to ensure that applicants had to adhere to all procedures and formalities, and meet all legal provisions under the Citizenship Commission Act of Parliament before given clearance to be granted citizenship certificate to become new citizens of Vanuatu.

“Since I stepped in around 2012, I made sure that all legal procedures and provisions had to be adhered to by every single applicants to ensure transparency and accountability are complied with and at the same time screening of all applications done in the way that do not abuse the system of the program.

"Each and every applicants that is granted citizenship certificate, is granted on full merit they deserve, to become a new citizen of Vanuatu,” said the Citizenship Commission Secretary General.

He confirmed that the Citizenship Commission has made over Vt1 billion in terms of revenue in 2015 alone from the program which includes the normal citizenship application fees and the Vanuatu Economic Rehabilitation Program, (VERP).

“We focus to make more revenue out of the program in 2016 and onward but ensuring that each and every applications are treated on their own merit subject to meeting all the legal provisions provided under the Citizenship Commission Act and likewise with provisions under the national constitution of the Republic of Vanuatu,” said the Citizenship Commission Secretary General John Enock Ware.

He said the Citizenship Commission anticipates making more than Vt1 billion revenue in 2016 onward out of the fees from both the normal citizenship applications and the Vanuatu Economic Rehabilitation Program (VERP) program.

Source: Vanuatu Daily Post