Spectrum Management Authority Institutes Online Payment Portal

The Spectrum Management Authority (SMA) has instituted an online client payment portal.

Managing Director, Dr. Maria Myers Hamilton, told JIS News that in reviewing the agency’s arrangements, it was decided to establish the system to make it more convenient for clients to pay their fees.

“For example, for amateur radio operators, the payment is $500, and in order to make this payment you would need to drive into Kingston from all over the country. So we thought this [online facility] would be very customer-centric,” she said.

Dr. Myers Hamilton explained that a menu of fees is listed on the Authority’s website, www.sma.gov.jm. These include amateur radio operators and citizen band radio service charges.

Additionally, she said persons may also pay for a duplicate of their Spectrum licence as well as the type-approval certificate.

The Managing Director noted, however, that the online system does not include detention notice payments for wireless items detained by the Jamaica Customs Agency (JCA) upon landing in the country, due to lack of type-approval certificates.

Meanwhile, Dr. Myers Hamilton said the SMA is in discussions with third-party entities to facilitate payments for persons without online service access.

The SMA is the regulatory body responsible for managing the radio frequency portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in Jamaica.

One of the Authority’s main functions is allocating and assigning various service frequencies, such as the amateur radio service.