Do I need a Belize passport, citizenship or a visa if I retire or work in Belize?
Christian Burn
No, you do not need to have a Belize passport or citizenship to work in Belize. There are, however, other requirements you need to comply with in order to work in Belize.
For example, I am a permanent resident here in Belize, so I am legally entitled to work here, which is a different process than, for example, getting a Qualified Retired Person’s Residency. In order to become a permanent resident in Belize, you have to...
No, you do not need to have a Belize passport or citizenship to work in Belize. There are, however, other requirements you need to comply with in order to work in Belize.
For example, I am a permanent resident here in Belize, so I am legally entitled to work here, which is a different process than, for example, getting a Qualified Retired Person’s Residency. In order to become a permanent resident in Belize, you have to obtain a work permit and maintain it for a year. I was employed by a company in Belize that purchased a work permit for me. They wanted their senior staff to stick around so they decided to buy all their senior staff residency permits. This was way back in 1997. I ended up getting my residency then.
Once you have your residency in Belize, you have it for life. In Belize, getting a residency is extremely easy, because you don’t have to maintain it. I became a resident of Panama this year and the laws in Panama are such that every two years I have to make sure I am in Panama for a few days or I won’t be able to maintain my residency there. I also have to maintain an account in Panama. In Belize, you don’t have to do that. You don’t have to maintain anything.
The process of getting residency is relatively straightforward. The work permit is the first step. The next steps include an interview, a police report and a medical exam ensuring that you are not HIV positive. You also have to prove that you have the ability to support yourself. With my residency, I have the ability to work or buy real estate. A resident who is retired can buy real estate, too. For the younger people, even if you are working from home in Belize, technically in order to work, you should have a visa or permit that says that you are legally allowed to work.
Posted December 6, 2014
Ryan Wrobel - Wrobel & Co., Attorneys-at-Law
In order to retire or work in Belize, you do not need Belizean citizenship or a Belizean passport. (In order to obtain a Belizean passport, you would first have to become a Belizean citizen, with the passport being essentially a travel document.) If you would like to retire to Belize, first of all, you would enter Belize on a tourist visa. If you are an American citizen or a Canadian citizen, you would be granted a tourist visa at the...
In order to retire or work in Belize, you do not need Belizean citizenship or a Belizean passport. (In order to obtain a Belizean passport, you would first have to become a Belizean citizen, with the passport being essentially a travel document.) If you would like to retire to Belize, first of all, you would enter Belize on a tourist visa. If you are an American citizen or a Canadian citizen, you would be granted a tourist visa at the airport and the tourist visa would allow you to reside in Belize for 30 days. Every 30 days you can apply for an extension or renewal of that visa. The tourist visa would give you the ability to come here to Belize and to stay, but not permanently. Typically those 30-day visas are renewed and there’s never a problem with renewal unless the visa holder gets in trouble here in Belize. Other than that possibility, it’s pretty much a regular rubber stamp renewal after 30 days.
You cannot work in Belize under a tourist visa. In order to work in Belize, you would have to apply for a work permit. Once you acquire a work permit then you would have the ability to work for hire here in Belize, or work for a salary.
( Lebawit Lily Girma travel journalist and author of Moon Belize stayed at Hotel de la Fuente in Orange Walk, Belize, pictured.)
Posted December 4, 2015