Justice

Ms. Nathalie M. Tackling· Minister of Justice

The Ministry of Justice runs Sint Maarten's entire law-enforcement and justice chain — police, prison, immigration, customs, coast guard and the courts — spending Cg 114M in 2026 while raising Cg 25.4M of its own revenue.

2026 spending

Cg 0M

Own revenue

Cg 0M

Share of ministries

Staffed

Where it spends

Spending by cost category

Personnel costsCg 80M70%
Material costs, goods & servicesCg 16M14%
Transfers and subsidiesCg 18M16%

2026 → 2029

Spending outlook

Capacity to deliver

Staffing — posts actually filled54%

590 filledof 1,095 budgeted posts

What it plans to do

Strategic objectives

01Strengthen international cooperation with strategic partners to combat cross-border crime, improve judicial cooperation and align enforcement (e.g. French-Dutch Treaty, Opal Building coordination centre, MOU/protocol compliance).
02Shared responsibility for safety and justice: protect vulnerable children and prevent juvenile crime through child-protection platforms, foster care, positive-parenting support and early-intervention programmes.
03Build a fairer and more effective justice system by formalising staff legal positions, strengthening departments, increasing transparency/oversight and improving interconnectivity across the justice chain.
04Strengthen law enforcement and crime prevention through better police training, public-order enforcement, anti-money-laundering/anti-trafficking units and inter-agency cooperation.
05Modernise border security, customs and immigration — digital traveller processing, an FDC upgrade to international standards, a National Targeting Center and ASYCUDA customs automation.
06Reform the prison and reduce recidivism by completing the Point Blanche reconstruction and expanding rehabilitation, vocational training, mental-health and reintegration programmes.

Funded programmes

Key programmes & projects

Cooperation with international partners and organizations (Objective 1) — includes Coast Guard, Attorney General, Public Prosecutor, Court of Justice and Council for Law Enforcement annual contributionsCg 21.2M

Compliance with signed protocols, MOUs and agreements; quadripartite judicial talks; CFATF/AML-CFT compliance and FIU capacity; VGT protocol realisation; Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard 4% annual contribution; annual contributions to OM, Attorney General, Joint Court of Justice, Council for Law Enforcement and SBIR.

Building a fairer and more effective justice system — legal positions, department strengthening, oversight, chain interconnectivity (Objective 3)Cg 6.8M

Issue all staff placement decisions and prepare retroactive salary payments (Oct 2010–Dec 2022, ~Cg 5,000k); recruit needed staff (Cg 1,978k); establish KPIs and training (Cg 138k); reintroduce a justice intranet; acquire Mendix low-code platform and re-implement SBIR software across justice departments.

Shared responsibility for safety and justice — child protection and subsidy contributions (Objective 2)Cg 3.2M

Support at-risk youth and families via the National Child Protection Platform and Positive Parenting Support Program (Cg 500k); subsidies for foster care (SJIS Cg 250k, New Start Cg 50k), Victim Support Services (Cg 460k) and reclassification/juvenile-crime programmes including HALT (Cg 1,935k).

Modernization of border security, customs and immigration (Objective 5)Cg 2.7M

Nationwide digital immigration ecosystem with Digital Traveler Certificate and biometrics; Foreigner Detention Centre brought to CPT/international standard (Cg 1,000k via VGT); expanded maritime patrols and regional cooperation; ASYCUDA customs automation; secure a permanent customs headquarters.

Strengthening law enforcement and crime prevention (Objective 4)Cg 1.5M

Expand police training (US ILEA, Miami Dade, Country Package H-11); zero-tolerance traffic enforcement with KPIs; crime prevention via the Pelikan Team; forensic tools and firearms enforcement (Cg 500k); cybercrime/financial-fraud/trafficking units; inter-agency cooperation (CARICOM IMPACS); Law Enforcement Council oversight (Cg 925k).

Prison reform & reducing recidivism (Objective 6)Cg 50k

Complete Point Blanche prison reconstruction (via existing 2024/2025 Capex, UNOPS/UNODC support); strengthen prison management and staffing; expand rehabilitation, vocational training, mental-health and reintegration programmes; develop alternatives to sentencing such as community service and electronic monitoring (Cg 50k legal expertise).

Measured by

Indicators & targets

Occupancy of total establishment (staffing)
Target: 54% currently (590 of 1,095 budgeted posts), rising to 59% in 2026 once budgeted vacancies are filled
Complete Phase 1 of staff legal-position placement decisions across the Ministry
Target: All placement decisions issued by 31 December 2025
Recruitment of needed staff (budgeted vacancies)
Target: Cg 1,978k budgeted (account 410) to fill critical positions
Embarkation-card fee revenue via www.entry.sx (new $20 fee)
Target: More than $12.6 million (Cg ~22.6 million) annually
TIP (Trafficking in Persons) ranking with the U.S. Department of State
Target: Regain Tier I status (held in 2016); currently a fifth consecutive year at negative Tier III
Foreigner Detention Centre (FDC) compliance
Target: Bring FDC to CPT-compliant international standard in 2026 (Cg 1 million via VGT)

What could go wrong

Key risks

Strengthening law enforcement and crime prevention (Objective 4) — highest-impact risk (likelihood 3, impact 5).
Strengthening international cooperation with strategic partners (Objective 1) — likelihood 3, impact 4.
Modernization of border security, customs and immigration (Objective 5) — likelihood 3, impact 4.
Any reduction in the annual operating budget would significantly hinder the Government Programme's objectives and pose a substantial risk to the country's safety, security and the integrity of the justice system.

Mapped to policy goals

National Development Vision & SDGs

NDV G02NDV G03NDV G04NDV G05NDV G06NDV G08NDV G09NDV G10NDV G15NDV G16NDV G17NDV G18NDV G20NDV G21NDV G22NDV G23NDV G24NDV G25SDG9