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Went to renew my license today.
Thought I had everything I needed, then discovered that they are not accepting cash or credit cards,
ONLY money orders and checks.
Ahh well, back tomorrow with checkbook in hand and hope the power stays on!
To all those moving here or considering it:
Getting things done before our 2 Cat 5 Hurricanes a week apart in September, took awhile.
It now takes longer and you may have to go a few different places.
If you're lucky, you'll find what you need. But...you might not.
Prices have definitely gone up!
Internet services are still not available in many areas.
ATT cell phone internet service sorta comes and goes, depending on location and time of day, VIYA, the local phone company is not providing internet to new customers as yet.
Many businesses are still without internet, credit card and phone capability.
WAPA our electricity provider, is having difficulty generating reliable power so outages are numerous.
There are still dangling power lines and lots of overflowing garbage bins and roadside debris.
There are mega potholes and few streetlights. Some roads are downright dangerous.
Individual healthcare insurance is not available and our hospitals are a mess.
If you're not an extremely calm and patient person, our islands, at this point in time, may not be the right move.
BTW - Hurricane Seaon begins again in June. 3 months from now.
This is a Reality Check.
Posted : March 2, 2018 12:18 am
Mid October (the moment I had internet) I applied for my companies business license online. I just received it last week. Our type of license required a bit more than some, and getting all of the agencies to provide what was needed was incredibly difficult. It also required three trips to STT to get it done. I had paid with a credit card online, and it was charged in January, but the credit card statement with DLCA charge on it was not enough to satisfy the STT office. Their payments are processed in the STX office apparently, and their system was 'down' at the moment, so they demanded a check payment if we wanted to get our license. Everything takes longer. Everything is more expensive too it seems!
Posted : March 2, 2018 5:22 am
Wow, Julie - did you have to pay twice to get that license? Will you get a refund of the CC charge? Oy, I don't envy you that one!
Posted : March 2, 2018 2:02 pm
Topic starter
Paid (by check) for my business license this morning. Just wonder how long it'll take to actually have it in hand this year?
Last year I renewed in early December.
Due to inefficiency at IRB, and having to go there 3 times to submit the same paperwork that they'd stamped and I had copies of for my tax clearance letter, I finally received it in April.
Ok, here's another example of "ting dem:"
Went to Post Office in Sugar Estate to let them know I was back for a couple months and not to forward incoming mail. Only to discover they'd sold my box right out from under me even tho I'd paid the box fee for the year and they'd given me no notice.
I had to pay for another P.O. BOX, with a different number from the one I've had for 30 plus years.
No discount nor refund towards the fee I'd already paid. Plus I had to pay for a larger box than I wanted or need!
Such is life in de tropics, Mon!
Posted : March 2, 2018 5:19 pm
My coworker is the person who went to STT to get it done (thank god, I would have throttled someone I think after dealing with it for MONTHS). They made her go to MicroMax to print some back up documents (the credit card statement, they wouldn't let her print it there) and when she returned she sat very patiently and chatted up the person at DLCA and eventually the woman went in the back and came out with the licenses. Saying the system had come online. She basically was just super pleasant and waited it out until she got results. She did not have to pay again by check. But we gladly would have paid three times just to get it done. We'd already spent 20 times that much in manhours trying to get it done, another $130, $260, would have been worth it. DLCA/business licenses has been a constant problem the 18 years I've been doing them. They really need to make the process a lot easier if they want to encourage LEGAL businesses here. Back in 2004 I sat in the DLCA office on STJ for two weeks straight, my entire shift, trying to get a license. It took MUCH longer to wait her out. She finally got sick of seeing my face and forked it over. All of my documents were in order from day one that time, I have no idea why she wouldn't just print it out and give it to me.
Posted : March 3, 2018 5:39 am
They really need to make the process a lot easier if they want to encourage LEGAL businesses here..
(tu) Easier to overlook the obvious when there is no motivation.
Posted : March 3, 2018 5:54 pm
Topic starter
There's also a bit of power tripping and attitude thrown in.
Years ago I used to clear customs for various clients. The woman I dealt with quite often was always borderline rude. One day, I'd forgotten to get my client's EIN # so I told her to use my SS#.
When she looked at my card,
she said "where you get dis?"
I tell she " back street!"
Once she realised I was not a stateside continental, her whole attitude changed. She became as nice as pie and couldn't do enuff to help me in the future.
Night and day.
Posted : March 3, 2018 10:15 pm
It certainly helps that I have long time relationships with many of the people in the government offices. The DLCA is the nut I've never been able to crack. Not having the offices on STJ post storm makes it hard for me to develop relationships with new people because I can't see them face to face. And I am so out of my mind busy that I can't spend a day, or two, or five, on STT to develop those new relationships.
Once she realised I was not a stateside continental, her whole attitude changed. She became as nice as pie and couldn't do enuff to help me in the future.
Night and day.
Scubadoo, you are right. It irritates me that they harass the people who are going through the steps to do things legally instead of taking that time to go after the business who are not. Same goes for gross receipts and hotel tax. Imagine how much money they would have to blow on stupid things if they just went after all of the shorterm rental places and made them get a business license and pay hotel taxes.
Posted : March 4, 2018 6:23 am
This year, for my first time in 13 years here, DLCA renewed my simple business license online in a semi-timely manner without my having to call and visit DLCA. I got the license 2 months after clicking "submit".
Posted : March 16, 2018 5:25 pm
Imagine how much money they would have to blow on stupid things if they just went after all of the short term rental places and made them get a business license and pay hotel taxes.
The short term AirBNB operators are paying the Hotel Tax. It's collected directly from AirBNB, remember? We don't have to get business licenses because we're just "sharing" our space. Lol...
Posted : March 16, 2018 7:32 pm
Imagine how much money they would have to blow on stupid things if they just went after all of the short term rental places and made them get a business license and pay hotel taxes.
The short term AirBNB operators are paying the Hotel Tax. It's collected directly from AirBNB, remember? We don't have to get business licenses because we're just "sharing" our space. Lol...
Mapp was going to go after VRBO as well. Don't recall if that happened.
Posted : March 16, 2018 11:42 pm
A call or letter to the Postmaster General is in order. They can’t both charge you and reallocate your box. If anything, the new box holder is the one which should be required to get a new box. This level of incompetence is outrageous, and only occurs because it is tolerated. Don’t tolerate it!
Posted : March 21, 2018 12:08 pm
How pathetic is that one needs to develop a Personal Relationship with the clerks in order to receive a business license. For most small operators business license is additional tax imposed and does not contribute anything to legitimacy of the business. I do not object to paying tax. Just make it easy, take money with a gratitude, print license and move on. Every 10th person on this land is a gov employee. We support these useless, fat ass parasites through our taxes and licenses.
It certainly helps that I have long time relationships with many of the people in the government offices. The DLCA is the nut I've never been able to crack. Not having the offices on STJ post storm makes it hard for me to develop relationships with new people because I can't see them face to face. And I am so out of my mind busy that I can't spend a day, or two, or five, on STT to develop those new relationships.
Once she realised I was not a stateside continental, her whole attitude changed. She became as nice as pie and couldn't do enuff to help me in the future.
Night and day.Scubadoo, you are right. It irritates me that they harass the people who are going through the steps to do things legally instead of taking that time to go after the business who are not. Same goes for gross receipts and hotel tax. Imagine how much money they would have to blow on stupid things if they just went after all of the shorterm rental places and made them get a business license and pay hotel taxes.
Posted : March 24, 2018 10:57 am
I totally agree. You shouldn't have to develop relationships in order to get these tasks done in a timely professional manner. I am told the DLCA office on STJ is open again. And it sounds like it is staffed by a different person now. A person who others said is helpful. I plan on applying for my license extra early this year though just to be on the safe side. Ours expire the end of October. Usually apply early September, but this year had other stuff going on that held things up a lot.
Posted : March 25, 2018 8:46 am
Imagine how much money they would have to blow on stupid things if they just went after all of the shorterm rental places and made them get a business license and pay hotel taxes.
TOWN HALL
MEETING
JOIN THE Airbnb TEAM
Easier for VI gov to just get those folks to signup with Airbnb and let Airbnb collect the tax.
Posted : April 19, 2018 3:29 am
