WILLEMSTAD – The Government of Curaçao is not automatically prohibited from opening a bank account abroad, but any foreign account used to receive or manage public funds must comply with strict legal, administrative and accountability requirements, according to a legal analysis of the matter.
The discussion centers on whether Curaçao could legally open a bank account outside the island, for example in the Czech Republic, and receive government-related revenues through such an account.
The analysis concludes that the Charter of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (Statuut) does not contain a specific provision banning Curaçao from holding a foreign bank account. Instead, the Charter determines which matters fall under Curaçao’s own responsibilities and which belong to Kingdom affairs.
Under Article 41 of the Charter, Curaçao manages its own internal affairs independently. Financial management, including government revenues and banking arrangements, is generally considered an internal matter of the country.
However, autonomy does not mean that a government official or public institution can open and operate an account without following official procedures, authorization and financial controls.
A foreign bank account involving public money must have a clear legal basis, an authorized account holder and proper registration within Curaçao’s public administration.
The central questions are therefore not only whether Curaçao can have an account abroad, but also who opened the account, under whose authority, who controls the funds and whether all transactions are properly recorded.
Good governance requirements
Article 43 of the Charter requires each country within the Kingdom to guarantee good governance and legal certainty. According to the analysis, this means that public funds held abroad must remain subject to transparency, oversight and accountability.
A foreign account could become problematic if, for example, it is not officially registered, if private individuals or external companies control the funds, if Parliament or audit institutions cannot inspect the transactions, or if revenues remain outside the official government administration.
The use of a foreign account is therefore not automatically unlawful. A public institution could have practical reasons to use an international banking or payment service. However, when such an account receives public revenues, additional safeguards are required.
These include clarity on:
- the legal owner of the account;
- who has access to the funds;
- who can authorize payments;
- which officials are responsible;
- when money is recorded in government accounts;
- how independent oversight is carried out.
Foreign location does not determine legality
The fact that an account is located abroad, including in a European Union country such as the Czech Republic, does not by itself make the arrangement illegal.
The relevant questions are whether the account belongs to the proper Curaçao government entity, whether the funds are controlled by the competent authorities and whether all income and expenses are fully documented.
The analysis concludes that the main issue is not the location of the account, but the governance surrounding it.
The decisive questions are:
Who opened the account?
On what legal basis?
In whose name was it opened?
Who could access the funds?
And were all revenues properly recorded in Curaçao’s official financial administration?