Several questions on the history and culture test – required for anyone seeking permanent residency in the Cayman Islands – were incorrect or “impossible to answer”, according to allegations in a court filing.
The lawsuit alleges that the test was not updated following the April 2021 general election.
It suggests that PR-seekers could have been taking outdated or “faulty” tests for as long as six months after the vote, potentially impacting hundreds of applicants.
The claims are included in a writ filed on behalf of a 40-year-old Honduran national, Edwin Sanchez, who is appealing a decision to deny his permanent residency application.
The writ claims that several of the questions on the test were either wrongly phrased or didn’t include the correct answer as one of the multiple choice options.
The court filing indicates that several questions – understood to include the names of ministers of government and the number of people in the Cabinet among others – were wrong. It is understood that hundreds of PR applicants could be impacted.
“It is the appellant’s position that potentially the questions that he was asked, and which formed part of the test that he sat, were either factually wrong, impossible to get right, were marked incorrectly or were unreasonable,” according to the originating motion, filed with the Grand Court last week.
The history and culture test – a 40-question exam – is potentially worth 20 points, towards the target total of 110 points currently needed for WORC to grant a permanent residency certificate.
It has long faced accusations of obscure and baffling questions.
For example, applicants are asked for the date of the opening of the post office, the number of councillors in the short-lived West Indies Federation and the codename of the US naval base that was briefly established on the island during the Second World War.
Other questions include the name of the fiddler who performed at the Grand Ole Opry and the year that Caymanian turtlers ceased fishing in Cuban waters.
‘Faulty’ test
But the lawsuit goes further, alleging the test includes questions that are simply wrong.
Nick Joseph, a senior partner at HSM, who has been assisting clients with PR applications for almost 20 years, said that the present court case relates to errors over a limited period, from the April 2021 election until the time the errors were corrected in September of the same year.
But he claimed the issue of “defective” tests has been “widely noted for more than a decade”.
He said hundreds of applicants had been impacted, though the amount actually denied PR as a consequence would be far lower.
“Although attempts have been made to correct the position, there has been a regrettable failure, even refusal, to address the issues in the past,” he said.
The Compass was aware of allegations of “faulty” tests and filed a Freedom of Information request with the department in June of this year, asking whether it had received complaints and seeking clarification over how many applicants could be impacted.
The department came back with a partial response in late July acknowledging that a “couple of questions on the test for September 2021” were incorrect and that these questions were “discontinued once it was brought to our attention”.
WORC indicated the department had received no written complaints on the issue.
The Compass is currently contesting the response, which is incomplete and has failed to provide all of the requested information as specified in the FOI.
We will face a hearing before the Ombudsman in the coming months.
WORC acknowledged errors
The lawsuit includes copies of an email exchange between an anonymous individual and a WORC employee, pointing out inaccuracies in the test and indicating it could impact a large number of people “on the fringe” of being eligible for residency status.
“We are currently in the process of having the tests revised and take into account the change of government,” the employee wrote in September 2021.
“We understand the concern and how it could effect applicant’s scores and the issue will be corrected as soon as possible,” the response stated.
As part of his initial appeal to the Immigration Appeals Tribunal, Sanchez requested the result of his test, which was denied.
The court filing indicates that no public announcement was made and no notification was given to anyone who sat the test that the questions were problematic.
“At no point has the first respondent nor the board notified the general public or those individuals who applied for PR between 14 April 2021 and some time in September 2021 that there were issues with the History and Culture test that applicants sat,” it states.
Sanchez’s appeal also includes claims he was not granted enough points for his family connections in Cayman or for his savings.
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