Expert: Sienna - 1/11/2008

Question
QUESTION: If a jamaican resident only has a offical passport(jamaican)
where are they allowed to travel. I know not to the states without a visa but what is the purpose of the passport.

ANSWER: 'Evening Phyllis, from the very cool and cloudy west side of Jamaica!

A passport is an identification document issued by any country to a citizen of that country....allowing that person to travel abroad and re-enter their home land.  In this case, the Jamaican citizen in question would have a Jamaican passport which would allow travel to any country that would also grant a visa if needed, or travel to a country where no visa is needed...and...when the trip is over, get back into Jamaica.

Without a visa, Jamaican nationals can actually travel to many countries.  Places where a Jamaican national may visit for an unlimited time without a visa would be: Antiga, Barbuda, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Belize, Botswana,  Cyprus,  Dominca, Fiji, Gambia, Great Britain, Grendada, Haiti, Honduras, Ireland, Kenya, Kiribati, Lesotho, Malawi, Malaysia, Malta, Mauritius, Peru, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Surinam, Swaziland, Tanzania, Trinidad & Tobago, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Jamaicans may travel without a visa but are limited to no more than a 6 month visit to: Barbados.

Jamaicans may travel without a visa but are limited to no more than a 3 month visit to: Bermuda, Chile, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Israel, Liechtenstein, Norway, San Marino, South Korea, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey.

Jamaicans may travel without a visa but are limited to no more than a 1 month visit to: Argentina, Columbia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Hong Kong, Monaco, Papua New Guinea, Uruguay.

Jamaicans may travel without a visa but are limited to no more than a 2 week visit to: Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, St. Maarten.

If you were hoping to have a friend from Jamaica visit and are finding it difficult to do because a visa was not/could not be issued by your own country, then perhaps you might pick one from the above lists and take a vacation somewhere brand new for both of you.  A definite new adventure....!

~Sienna~

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: If the resident only has a drivers license, can they travel out side of Jamaica?

Answer
Hi Phyllis!   Jamaican citizens are subjected to the same rules you would be now...a driver's license will not allow them off the island nor back on.  In order to travel, your friend MUST have a passport..there is no way around it.

Here is what must be done:

1) Friend will need to gather some documents together: his/her birth certificate, 2 passport sized photos, a valid ID (the driver's license would work for this), a passport form.  A JP (Justice of the Peace) signature is required on the back of the photos and the passport form.  Only the photos require money to obtain, very reasonably priced at less than J$500.

2) All of the above would then be taken to an Immigration Officer to inspect.

3) All documents are submitted to the Jamaican Embassy in Kingston, or at a Passport processing office in the parish where your friend lives.

4) It takes 7 working days for the passport to be granted once the paperwork is turned in, along with the current processing fee of J$5000 (about $75US).

If you are in phone contact with your friend, read all of this to him/her...or better yet, send an email if they have access to an internet center where they can pick it up and check off the steps as they go along.

If your friend is truly interested in travel, all of the above will not be a hardship for them to obtain nor follow through on...he/she might also stop in at a Jamaican travel agency in his/her parish...there are some travel agencies that do the passport guidance as part of their services.

Where is your friend currently living?

~S~