'Neighbours can live in peace as we have for years'- VI Premier
On Wednesday, January 28, 2026, the Premier met with members of the local boating and marine industry to discuss the ongoing situation between the Virgin Islands and the United States Virgin Islands regarding Commercial Recreational Vessels Licensing (CRVL).
In recent months, tensions have increased between the two territories after the Virgin Islands implemented the Commercial Recreational Vessels Licensing (Amendment) Act, 2025.
This amendment raised fees for foreign-based (primarily USVI) charter vessels, and the Virgin Islands government argued that this decision was necessary to address a "huge economic imbalance" and to ensure that the economic benefits generated from the use of Virgin Islands waters are fairly distributed.
The debate continues between the two territories
However, officials and stakeholders from the USVI characterised these actions as punitive and harmful to the USVI charter industry, valued between $92 million and $166 million. Some stakeholders in the USVI have expressed doubts about the Virgin Islands' ability to uniformly enforce these complex new regulations on all foreign vessels.
According to a recent article by VINO, USVI Governor Albert A. Bryan Jr. stated that he reached out to President Donald J. Trump to intervene regarding the Virgin Islands' recent increase in maritime fees. Many Virgin Islanders viewed this move as a betrayal and a stab in the back of the Premier.
Territory’s position remains clear
In response to these developments, Premier Wheatley convened the recent meeting to gather input from stakeholders in the marine industry about the situation regarding Commercial Recreational Vessels Licensing (CRVL).
In a Facebook post, the Premier reaffirmed the territory's position, stating, "Our heart is also sure that neighbours can live in peace as we have for years, and we’re eager to bring the conversation between territories to a close with an amicable decision for all."
See related article below:
VI doesn’t have $25B in federal funding ‘but we too have to eat’- USVI Governor
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16 Responses to “'Neighbours can live in peace as we have for years'- VI Premier”
Keep your mouth off of our children. Virgin Islanders need to stop being so nice and naive with some of these outsiders and their kids. When you have your kids in places like the BVI, USA, UK, and things go south, you'll be the ones running back home. And if your child decides to run for office to lead you and their community into hell itself, I bet you won't have anything to say about it. If you don't like how we select our leaders, then go back home and talk politics with your leaders who could not sustain your wicked lifestyle and evil mentality. You give some people a foot, and they want to always take a mile!
USVI can retaliate with the Visa Waiver program. Watch yuh gon see..
Have fair discussions. come to a conclusion soon and try lower the fees that all parties economy will flourish.
BETTER GET OUR OWN MONEY ???? ???? MAKING MACHINE READY / FOR WHEN THE " ORANGE INVADER " START FLEXING OFF HESELF ON US •