Hi from Bonaire

[Frank-Paul Janssen]

Hi Frank-Paul, welcome to SB and thanks for posting. This might become an interesting thread as there seem to be so many nuances to Bonaire to discover.
I am glad you like to dive, otherwise this position might be a little more difficult over time. I can see how bringing the family over might be a rather big decision (schooling and all and do they all dive ?...)

So many questions, but maybe I "just ask" these - but no hurry and no problem if you can't just answer... some might or might not get involved...

1.) If you care to give this a stab or if happen to know of a site that explains the Dutch connection well (past too, but I am more interested in today) and how sovereign or un-sovereign Bonaire is ... how it works in government... That would be interesting.

2.) How is the tax situation on Bonaire ( Income, property, other)? Does it differ for citizens vs. residents? How?

3.) How do you see the situation in the health care and health care insurance area? How does it compare to what you know from the Netherlands?

4.) Overall, so far, how safe or unsafe do you feel on Bonaire compared to the Netherlands?

5.) Ignoring your "job" for this question: if you were not to speak Dutch, how would you judge might that affect your experience on Bonaire? In other words how important might it be to speak Dutch and or to be fairly well integrated into the Dutch speaking community to like it long term on Bonaire - in your thinking?

6.) Does having or not having a Dutch Passport make a difference in one's standing as a resident on Bonaire? As a person, or property owner or otherwise?

7.) Ditto, but EU Passport?
Is Bonaire even remotely affiliated with the EU thru the Dutch connection - or in no way at all?

 

[Frank-Paul Janssen]

Hello Schwaeble, these are very interesting questions for people who would like to stay on Bonaire for a longer period of time. What is it that you came up with these questions? Are you planning to come and live on Bonaire yourself? This is going to be a very interesting and informative topic and I will try to answer as thorough as possible.

Question 1.) If you care to give this a stab or if happen to know of a site that explains the Dutch connection well (past too, but I am more interested in today) and how sovereign or un-sovereign Bonaire is ... how it works in government... That would be interesting.

The islands of Bonaire, St Eustatius and Saba – the Caribbean Netherlands – have acquired a new status as special municipalities of The Netherlands. This means that they are part of the Netherlands itself. On 10 October 2010, the government of the Netherlands took over the task of public administration from the Government of the Netherlands Antilles and gratually implemented Dutch law and Regulations. As “special municipalities”, the islands are officially considered “public bodies” (openbare lichamen) under Dutch law. Their status has been laid down in an Act of Parliament (Wet Openbare lichamen BES). The Netherlands’ other public bodies are the national government, the municipalities, the provinces and the water boards. The inhabitants of the Caribbean Netherlands have the same rights as Dutch citizens.

 

[drrich2]

In case it's of interest, the Bonaire Talk forum has a section called Moving To Bonaire. For me it's just an entertaining daydream, not a realistic ambition, but in the past I found some of the discussion threads interesting.

Richard.

 

[gypsyjim]

As a long time property owner on Bonaire, I am also interested in any information on an American citizen relocating to the island.

 

[oldschoolto]

Frank... You only got 3 of 10... I better get down there and help you guys out.. LoL

Jim...

And as a side note.. The new 316 stainless steel shafts and springs are on the way to my shop.. I'll have a real treat for those big lionfish...

 

[Frank-Paul Janssen]

Hello Schwaeble, these are very interesting questions for people who would like to stay on Bonaire for a longer period of time. What is it that you came up with these questions? Are you planning to come and live on Bonaire yourself? This is going to be a very interesting and informative topic and I will try to answer as thorough as possible.

Question 1.) If you care to give this a stab or if happen to know of a site that explains the Dutch connection well (past too, but I am more interested in today) and how sovereign or un-sovereign Bonaire is ... how it works in government... That would be interesting.

The islands of Bonaire, St Eustatius and Saba – the Caribbean Netherlands – have acquired a new status as special municipalities of The Netherlands. This means that they are part of the Netherlands itself. On 10 October 2010, the government of the Netherlands took over the task of public administration from the Government of the Netherlands Antilles and gratually implemented Dutch law and regulations. The inhabitants of the Caribbean Netherlands have the same rights as Dutch citizens. As “special municipalities”, the islands are officially considered “public bodies” (openbare lichamen) under Dutch law. Their status has been laid down in an Act of Parliament (Wet Openbare lichamen BES). The Netherlands’ other public bodies are the national government, the municipalities, the provinces and the water boards.

 

[Frank-Paul Janssen]

Frank... You only got 3 of 10... I better get down there and help you guys out.. LoL

Jim...

And as a side note.. The new 316 stainless steel shafts and springs are on the way to my shop.. I'll have a real treat for those big lionfish...

The Lionfish are getting smarter and smarter because they know that they are being hunted. The moment they see you they dug deep in holes where you can hardly catch them. At 400 feet the ocean floor around Bonaire is full of them and they are happily waiting for you
Yesterday we caught three Lionfish, fed four small ones to Yellowtail Snappers who were following us and waiting for a free meal and three escaped before we even got a shot at them.

 

[oldschoolto]

The Lionfish are getting smarter and smarter because they know that they are being hunted. The moment they see you they dug deep in holes where you can hardly catch them. At 400 feet the ocean floor around Bonaire is full of them and they are happily waiting for you
Yesterday we caught three Lionfish, fed four small ones to Yellowtail Snappers who were following us and waiting for a free meal and three escaped before we even got a shot on them.

Martin couldn't get them with his "ELF" .. They are hiding like that one we worked our a$$es off to get...

Jim

 

[Schwob]

Are you planning to come and live on Bonaire yourself?

It's a bit of a long shot, I know very little about Bonaire, having been there only for one (edit) 12 day trip so far, but that hasn't repelled me and I keep thinking about the place...
Meaning, I love the diving. The island has not necessarily had a chance yet to make me feel I love the island if there was no diving. But I did not really spend time and effort to get to know the island itself and the people themselves either yet. So I have some work to do there.
The questions seem a logical consequence to that interest of maybe someday moving to a place with great diving, maybe Bonaire.

I know I don't mind the absence of big shopping malls or the absence of a culture where shopping is thought of as a legitimate hobby... I might like that...
But I wonder about the relative remoteness... etc. Along the lines of:
If you are going to spend a few weeks on a small boat with a few people, you better make sure you do that with people you want to do that with...
Because of that I am not sure if such a move would be fulltime or partime. To consider either, learning more seems like a good idea.

 

[oldschoolto]

I spend a lot of time thinking about a full-time life on Bonaire... The island its self and the people are just what I love.. But, I have children and grandchildren that the wife is no way not seeing and the airfare is just crazy to try and fly back and forth a lot. I'm looking at a 3 months on and 3 months off schedule.. Making airfare liveable.. and still staying married to my wife..

Jim