Barbados issues new passport requirements for North American citizens

Sunday, February 22, 2004

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados: Barbados has announced a change in the entry requirements for North American citizens. Effective March 1st, 2004, citizens of the United States and Canada will be required to be in possession of a valid passport to enter Barbados. 

Passports must be valid for the entire time that they are traveling. All airlines servicing Barbados from North America and the Consulates have already been informed.

Cruise ship passengers considered to be "in-transit" and who are continuing on with their cruises are not subject to immigration control and, therefore, not required to carry a valid passport. "In-transit" cruise ship visitors are permitted to go ashore and return to their ship without any hindrance using their ship's magnetic identification card. 

Cruise ship passengers with trips beginning and ending in Barbados or who are "in-transit" to join flights at the Grantley Adams International Airport, however, are required to possess a valid passport.

In the early 1970 Barbados relaxed its entry requirements for North American citizens in an effort to attract visitors from this region. Until now, photo identification and proof of citizenship have been the only requirements for entry. Recent world events, however, have created dramatic changes in security requirements in North America and the Caribbean, and Barbados has had to review its policies.

"We don't see this as being a major change, or an inconvenience to our North American travelers," said Bill Silvermintz, Barbados' Vice-President of Marketing for the Americas. 

"At the present time, according to our immigration officials, less than 1% of visitors from the USA and Canada arrive without a passport. Travelers from North America, like the rest of the world, are aware of the higher security measures in all aspects of travel and have adjusted accordingly. We are revising our policy to ensure that visitors to Barbados are guaranteed the utmost in safety and security."

The Immigration Department in Barbados has been tracking visitor entry for the past two years and has documented a noticeable decline in the number of visitors from North America who travel without a valid passport. Their observations indicate that in cases where the photo ID and/or proof of citizenship presented by a traveler were not sufficient, the visitor was able to produce a passport when asked for alternate identification by the immigration officer.

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