Tourism ministry to crack down on illegal tourism accommodation |08 March 2018

The Ministry of Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports and Marine has reiterated that tourism establishments offering accommodation to tourists without a proper and valid license will face legal action as from March 13.

These tourism establishments had been given to either regularise their activity or stop doing it altogether as the deadline of March 12 approaches.

The Minister for Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports and Marine, Maurice Loustau-Lalanne and the director for the department of Tourism Louis Denousse yesterday morning  updated the local press on the work the department of Tourism has been doing  since announcing the three-month moratorium on December 12.

The department is also offering to help accommodation owners to come forward to seek advice and assistance. 

The department of Tourism has been working endlessly to try and find the best  solution to address the issue of illegal tourism accommodation in the country.

“We have received more than 160 calls from different people, we have visited more than 50 sites/establishments where tourists are being accommodated illegally and more still remain to be visited,” Minister Loustau-Lalanne pointed out.

He said there remain another 100 or more which are yet to make their decisions known.

A task force comprising representatives from the department of Tourism, the police and the Seychelles Licensing Authority (SLA) will as from March 13 randomly visit all the establishments which have been listed as providing illegal and unlicensed accommodation to visitors.

If visitors are found staying at those establishments during the time these visits are being conducted, measures will be taken to transfer them to licensed tourism accommodations while the owners will be dealt with according to the law.

“Evidence required will be collected in order to prosecute the non-complying establishments owners,” Minister Loustau-Lalanne stated.

He explained that since December last year, visitors disembarking at the airport  and booked at those illegal tourism establishments, are detected and intercepted by immigration officers, with information available from a master list. They then direct the visitors to the tourist information office in the arrival lounge and they are re-booked in a licensed accommodation.

Evidence is gathered at the same time and handed over to the Seychelles Licensing Authority to pursue further investigation and subsequently build a case to be forwarded to the Office of the Attorney General so that the owner of the establishment can be prosecuted.

Minister Loustau-Lalanne stated that two to three visitors booked in illegal accommodations are detected every week by immigration officers. This clearly shows the extent of the problem the tourism industry is facing.

“As from March 13, the investigations into those cases will be intensified in preparation for prosecution.  The penalty under the SLA law is a fine of up to  R50,000 and a jail sentence of one up to five years depending on the severity of the case,” Minister Loustau-Lalanne said.

One of the arguments that has come out strongly from the discussions officials from the tourism department have had with the accommodation owners they have visited is the high costs to renovate and upgrade their establishments.

Minister Loustau-Lalanne explained that there are currently in the country over  450 Seychellois-owned small tourism establishments licensed and up to standard.

“We are prepared to work with those that have not yet complied and give them more time to upgrade their facilities in order to help them meet the required standards. We know it will take time to do certain modifications, go through the planning process but we are glad to help them,” Minister Loustau-Lalanne added.

Requirements to meet the standards requested by the department of Tourism are clear. These tourism accommodations should not be in a high density area, nine - square metres minimum for a bedroom, four sq m  for a bathroom, six sq m for a kitchen and a spacious verandah and dining area. 

The ministry is calling on all accommodation owners to do the necessary to regularise their situation and contribute their share in the development of the tourism sector, the country’s economy as well as protect the image of the Seychelles’ tourism industry abroad.