🇨🇺 Cayman Islands introduces in-transit visas for Cubans

The Cayman Islands government has approved amendments to the Customs and Border Control (Visas, Entry and Landing) Regulations, 2019, introducing in-transit visas for Cuban nationals. This move comes in response to a significant number of Cubans traveling through the Cayman Islands to South or Central American countries, with many not returning as initially planned. Instead, they are attempting to reach the United States via the mainland. 🌎

Between November 2021 and November 2023, data from the Customs and Border Control (CBC) and Workforce Opportunities and Residency Cayman (WORC) revealed that out of 12,381 people who traveled on a round-trip ticket from Havana, Cuba, on Cayman Airways (CAL), only 3,116 returned. The irregular migration of Cuban nationals poses risks to the Cayman Islands' reputation, potential sanctions, cancellation of CAL routes, visa restrictions for Caymanians, and an increase in asylum applications by Cuban nationals in transit. 📊

The Ministry of Border Control believes that the introduction of an in-transit visa for Cuban nationals will reduce the risk of irregular migration and discourage passengers from exploiting the Cayman Islands or CAL during irregular migration. The amendments aim to ensure that the visa application poses the appropriate questions and includes the pertinent data points to assist CBC visa officers in making decisions to approve or deny visas. The amended regulations will come into effect on 5 August. 🛂