International companies have looked at the possibility of relocating their headquarters to Dublin due to concerns over term limits for work permits, The Royal Gazette has learned.

The Industrial Development Agency (IDA) in Ireland confirmed yesterday that it had been in talks with “a number of Bermudian companies” but would not reveal their names or the number of businesses involved.

The business community on the Island has been buzzing with talk of what contingency plans companies have in place if the six-year term limits for staff are kept in place by Government.

Business leaders have been trying to convince Government that the six-year term limit, which has a cut-off date of 2007, is unworkable and is already making it difficult for companies to attract employees from abroad.

The policy had a start date of 2001, and staff on work permits will generally not be allowed to stay in Bermuda longer than six years, although some work permits may be extended to nine years.

There will be no limits for non-Bermudians designated as “key employees”, whose employment is judged to be essential to the success of the company.

Chief executive officers and high-level executives of nine physical presence companies interviewed this week by The Royal Gazette said they were considering their options - which included moving to Dublin, a well-known financial centre with low tax and less restrictive work permit practices.

All companies contacted said they had contingency plans and would move if the policy was not changed.

“There are many straws on this camel's back,” said one chief executive officer. “And there are only so many a camel can take. Work permit term limits could be that last straw.”

In response to questions from The Royal Gazette, the IDA in Ireland confirmed that it had been in contact with a number of Bermuda companies.

“The IDA would be talking to a number of Bermudian companies at present but we would not be able to name them,” said a spokeswoman for the organisation. She declined to speak further on the issue, but supplied a list of Bermuda companies with operations in Ireland.

And the Dublin Chamber of Commerce said it would welcome Bermuda companies with open arms, and extolled the city's vibrant and thriving financial sector, its infrastructure and its pool of highly skilled workers.

“Dublin has a very attractive financial sector at the moment,” said Declan Martin, spokesman for the Dublin Chamber. “It has been in operation for 15 years now. What is attractive is that essentially we have a very low tax rate, 12.5 percent on the profits of a company which is not only available to the international financial companies, but is a standard rate for any type of financial services company.”

He said he had not heard of Bermuda companies considering moving, but added he would not have heard of this if it was in the initial stages.

He added: “If companies were coming to Ireland from Bermuda, it would not be unusual.”

One chief executive officer of a Dublin insurance company with in-depth knowledge of Bermuda's financial sector said: “Dublin would give its right arm to have an ACE or XL come to the city. If Bermuda loses, Dublin will gain. If Bermuda goes ahead with its work permit policy and shoots itself in the foot, we will have a stronger sector here.

“Intellectual capital is absolutely vital,” he said. “If a government starts saying you can have this person or can't have that person or have to start hiring this person, it becomes an issue. Here we take all kinds of people and are glad to have them.

“If the whole of XL moved here, we would move mountains to get them here. They would need to go somewhere where the infrastructure is good - and we are already a big (insurance) market. But Bermuda seems to be getting close to pushing the self-destruct button. The whole term limits thing beggars belief.”