Jersey eases employment and housing rules to help businesses recruit

Businesses in Jersey are set to have a simpler process for recruiting staff following changes to the Island’s housing and employment rules.

Business licence forms have been redesigned to make them clearer, while staffing applications have also been shortened.

The changes include reducing the period of residence required to apply for ‘Permanent Entitled’ status from 30 years to 25.

Greater flexibility has also been introduced for people who spend periods away from Jersey for work, education or family reasons, allowing them to retain the residence they have built up.

The government has also renamed ‘Registered’ status as ‘Standard’. Existing cards do not need to be replaced, and employers do not need to change how they employ people with the status.

A new ‘Licensed for Lease Only’ category will allow eligible individuals to rent qualified property but not purchase it.

Assistant Chief Minister Deputy Malcolm Ferey said the reforms would reduce bureaucracy for businesses and give Islanders greater freedom to pursue opportunities overseas.

The changes have been welcomed by the Jersey Chamber of Commerce, which said they could help employers facing recruitment and skills shortages.

Claire Reynard, chair of the Chamber’s Employment and Skills Committee, said the reforms would make it easier for businesses to respond to genuine staffing needs.

She also welcomed the greater flexibility for Islanders living abroad, saying it could make it easier for people who had built careers in Jersey to return.

The Chamber acknowledged that changes to the rules could raise concerns about their impact on Jersey’s population, but described the measures as proportionate.

It said Jersey needed a system that made it easier for people who could contribute to the Island’s workforce and economy to come to Jersey to live and work.