WILLEMSTAD – The Ministry of Social Development, Labor and Welfare (SOAW) has terminated welfare benefits for 69 individuals following an inspection of 214 recipients conducted between March and September 2026. The findings revealed that dozens of people receiving government assistance were employed, living abroad, or had died, raising concerns about the accuracy of Curaçao's welfare administration.
The inspection forms part of a broader government initiative to clean up the welfare recipient database and ensure that financial assistance reaches residents who genuinely qualify for government support.
According to the ministry's findings, 53 individuals receiving welfare benefits had permanent employment but had failed to report their employment status to the authorities.
This meant that they continued receiving government assistance despite having a regular source of income that had not been disclosed to SOAW.
The investigation also uncovered payments being transferred to the bank accounts of 12 deceased individuals.
In addition, four welfare recipients were found to be living abroad while payments continued to be made.
Together, these findings resulted in the termination of 69 welfare benefits, representing approximately 32 percent of the 214 cases reviewed.
The ministry's assessment also established that only 95 of the individuals examined were confirmed to be legitimately entitled to welfare assistance.
Another 50 cases remain under investigation, meaning that additional decisions could follow once the authorities complete their assessments.
The findings highlight weaknesses in the administration and monitoring of welfare payments, particularly concerning the timely verification of employment status, residency, and whether recipients are still alive.
The discovery that payments continued to be made to deceased individuals raises questions about how quickly information is exchanged between government departments responsible for civil registration and social assistance.
Similarly, the cases involving recipients living abroad point to the importance of verifying whether individuals continue to meet the residency requirements associated with welfare benefits.
The ministry has not disclosed how long the irregular payments continued, how much public money was involved, or whether efforts will be made to recover benefits that were paid improperly.
It is also unclear whether any of the cases will be referred to judicial authorities for further investigation.
The government's initiative is not limited to identifying and terminating benefits that no longer meet the eligibility requirements.
According to SOAW, the broader objective is to improve the welfare system while helping recipients become less dependent on government assistance.
The ministry intends to achieve this through educational programs, vocational training, and employment projects designed to prepare welfare recipients for opportunities in the labor market.
By connecting recipients with training and employment opportunities, the government hopes to increase their chances of securing regular work and becoming financially independent.
The approach reflects an effort to combine stricter oversight of welfare payments with measures intended to encourage labor market participation.
For individuals who remain eligible for assistance, the government aims to maintain financial support while creating opportunities for those capable of working to transition into employment.
The results of the inspection demonstrate the importance of maintaining an accurate welfare database, particularly as the government seeks to ensure that limited public resources are distributed fairly.
With 50 cases still under investigation, the final number of terminated benefits could increase.
The ministry has not yet indicated when those remaining investigations will be completed or whether similar inspections will be expanded to other welfare recipients.
The findings nevertheless show that nearly one in three benefits reviewed during the March-to-September inspection period was terminated, underscoring the scale of the irregularities identified in the cases examined.