Under what circumstances do I need a visa in Belize?
Christian Burn
If you are an American and you are just going on vacation in Belize, you do not need a visa because you will get one as soon as you enter Belize with your passport. You get a 30-day tourist stamp on your passport. If you want to stay longer than 30 days, you can just extend your visa. You will pay US $50 to get another stamp on your passport. You can extend your visa via this process for up to six months. Many people who want to” try before they buy,” do that; just extend...
If you are an American and you are just going on vacation in Belize, you do not need a visa because you will get one as soon as you enter Belize with your passport. You get a 30-day tourist stamp on your passport. If you want to stay longer than 30 days, you can just extend your visa. You will pay US $50 to get another stamp on your passport. You can extend your visa via this process for up to six months. Many people who want to” try before they buy,” do that; just extend their passport stamps up to six months.
There are different requirements for residency. I just know of two types, which are the permanent residency and the Qualified Retired Persons Residency. For the retired person residency, you have to have a medical checkup and a police report, and you have to show that you have sufficient funds. I think you can apply at any point. If you are going for your permanent residency, you cannot race from point zero to getting a residency. The process is that you need to be in Belize for a year with a work permit, and not leave the country for any more than a total of 14 days in a year. If you leave for 15 days, you negate your entire process. There is a fee involved in getting your residency.
You can go from a retiree residency to a permanent residency. The advantage of becoming a permanent resident is that you would be that you are able to work legally in Belize. The retiree residency does not allow you to work in Belize, whereas the permanent residency does.
If you are a resident, you are still not entitled to a Belizean passport because you are still not a citizen. The only people who get Belizean passports are citizens of Belize. I am a permanent resident of Belize, but I have a Canadian passport.
There are different requirements for residency. I just know of two types, which are the permanent residency and the Qualified Retired Persons Residency. For the retired person residency, you have to have a medical checkup and a police report, and you have to show that you have sufficient funds. I think you can apply at any point. If you are going for your permanent residency, you cannot race from point zero to getting a residency. The process is that you need to be in Belize for a year with a work permit, and not leave the country for any more than a total of 14 days in a year. If you leave for 15 days, you negate your entire process. There is a fee involved in getting your residency.
You can go from a retiree residency to a permanent residency. The advantage of becoming a permanent resident is that you would be that you are able to work legally in Belize. The retiree residency does not allow you to work in Belize, whereas the permanent residency does.
If you are a resident, you are still not entitled to a Belizean passport because you are still not a citizen. The only people who get Belizean passports are citizens of Belize. I am a permanent resident of Belize, but I have a Canadian passport.
Posted December 2, 2014