Passport Pressure!

Do you remember the days of the blue passport? That was the passport with which most Jamaicans would use to travel overseas in the early eighties.

It had a distinctive light blue colour and had several features including a comments section at the back of the book where you could also add your address and telephone number.

Getting a passport back then was often a tedious and time consuming affair with long lines and interminable waiting periods.

Old System

The previous passport system involved a lot of bureaucratic red tape and it could take up to several months to complete the process.  There was a ‘speedy service’ offered to customers  but that too was never really quick enough if there was an emergency.

The cost for passports were not exorbitant but often people did not bother to apply for them until they were interested to travel overseas.  At that time the passport was seen as the ‘holding’ area for a visa.

Advancements

Fast forward to the year 2001 and the old format (blue) Jamaican passport had been replaced by a new machine readable (burgundy) passport.

This has been further revised and Jamaicans are now issued a dark blue passport with the title of Caribbean Community on the cover as well as  the name of the country.

Enhanced security features make this passport a success with immigration officers overseas as they can easily detect any fraudulent activity on the new passports.

Cost

The last time fees were increased for processing passports was in 2009.  A lot of time has passed since then and after six years of waiting, The Passport Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA) has announced an  impending fee increase which will take effect May 26, 2015.

The price to obtain an adult passport will move from $4,500 to $6,500.
The passport for minors will now cost $4,000, moving from $2,700.
And the price for replacing the travel document will be $11,500, up from $9,500.

Reasonable Increase?

Well let’s think about the fact that everything else has increased so why not passport fees?

According to the article published by The Gleaner on May 15, 2015,”The Passport Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA) says impending fee increases will provide the agency with the necessary funding to employ more staff, carry out technological improvements and address space requirements for customers and staff.”

That might be good for the company but what about struggling Jamaicans who will now be faced with a 40% increase on a necessary service?

Check the date on your passport, if it has almost expired, it would be a good idea to renew it before the increases take effect!

That’s my take! Drop me a line and share your thoughts!

UPDATE : The new deadline for the increase in passport fees is June 1, 2015.

Teri Ann Renee Paisley

Gleaner online writer

Tags: passport increase