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Traveling with a Caribbean Passport?

JohnDones

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Mar 31, 2022
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Hey everyone,

I've obtained a passport through one of the Caribbean CBI programs but I never really used it. I got as a hedge for my Eastern European passport if it gets "canceled" like Russian these days.

Has anyone here used their Caribbean passport on a regular basis to travel, open companies, bank accounts etc?

For example my home passport doesn't have access to the UK visa free but the CBI one does. But I'm a bit anxious about showing up with a brand new passport in the UK with my family.

I'd love to hear your experience and thoughts!
JD
 
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Has anyone here used their Caribbean passport on a regular basis to travel, open companies, bank accounts etc?

Yes I travel on one but I from Bahamas.

But I'm a bit anxious about showing up with a brand new passport in the UK with my family.

What make you feel nervous about using it out of interest?
 
Some Chinese friends were denied entry because their Caribbean passports were obviously bought. My Caribbean passport (not by investment) is a bit of a shitty one, so I rarely use it for travel, but as I speak and look like a native I never got questioned.
If you find a smart customs officer or bank employee, he will ask you to show your “real” passport, or proof that you renounced that citizenship.
 
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Ok so this may be direction of OP fears on using passport.

To be honest right now with the climate of European scrutiny around CBI schemes and UK cancelling its I would think twice about traveling on it just now until dust settles.

Also obvious things like speaking broken English or accent at border control especially if your from Eastern Europe may all sound Russian to border control....lol. It may bring uncomfortable questions if you are not ready for them.
 
I have travelled plenty of times on my Caribbean passport and never had any problems. No need to feel nervous at all IMO. Of course if you feel nervous, customs officers are trained to detect that. Trust me, they don't care you bought your passport because it's not one of their business and it would be WAY beyond the remit of any customs officer to start questioning the nationality laws of other nations. But if you look nervous they might suspect there is some bigger problem. If you obtained your passport legally they have no reason to question it. If they ask you how you obtained he passport, say you obtained it via a CBI program. That's a perfectly legitimate answer and with that they have to let you go on your way. Always answer truthfully, but never volunteer extra information beyond what they ask for.
It's a good idea to have other backup ID's with you - a driver's license, a resident permit from another country or similar. Obviously you should comply with any other immigration requirements such as proof you have funds to support yourself during your stay, return ticket, accommodation pre-booked etc.
One other piece of advice: if you have never visited your country of citizenship, make that your first trip on the new passport. Carrying the passport of a country you have never visited is not illegal, but it would certainly invite questions. You need to know the basics of the national culture, cuisine, and so on. Also if you arrive in UK on a flight from, let's say, St Kitts with a St Kitts passport that looks totally credible and once you are in the UK system and have UK stamps in your passport, future visits will be a breeze.
 
Thanks everyone,

Really good answers I'll try to reply to all.
What make you feel nervous about using it out of interest?
If you watched that Wealthy Expat video about his trip to Romania, if his origin passport was NOT visa-free then he'd have more issues. Considering both his passports are visa-free it was fine.


To be honest right now with the climate of European scrutiny around CBI schemes and UK cancelling its I would think twice about traveling on it just now until dust settles.
Definitely agree for Europe travel.


One other piece of advice: if you have never visited your country of citizenship, make that your first trip on the new passport. Carrying the passport of a country you have never visited is not illegal, but it would certainly invite questions. You need to know the basics of the national culture, cuisine, and so on. Also if you arrive in UK on a flight from, let's say, St Kitts with a St Kitts passport that looks totally credible and once you are in the UK system and have UK stamps in your passport, future visits will be a breeze.
Love this advice. Basically I won't transit through the UK to Caribbean but go to the US and fly from there.

From there probably just visit other Caribbean countries to get it stamped a bit more and then fly to the UK from the CBI country. That should be a no brainer for them I guess.


Funny story, I was questioned at US border (entered with my origin passport) and they searched my stuff and found the Caribbean passport and had to Google wtf it was. Then they asked "how much did you pay for this", I told them the truth. Are you gonna live there? Yes in a few years. They let me go after that moment. US is all about do you have money or not.

I guess a valid answer when asked "how did you get this passport" would be "I invested in the country and they gave me the passport" - Would you agree?

As to why I don't look like I'm from there - Well that's just racist bro :p

Again, this was really helpful feel free to add more comments and keep the thread going if you feel it adds value.
 
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The OP has a legitimate inquiry. Carrying a travel document only, whether to travel or for business purposes is not sufficient. You have to establish a presence: utility bill, bank, stock broker statements and even such details like a library card are very useful.
 
The OP has a legitimate inquiry. Carrying a travel document only, whether to travel or for business purposes is not sufficient. You have to establish a presence: utility bill, bank, stock broker statements and even such details like a library card are very useful.
I thought about this too. So potentially get a property in the CBI country (if you actually want to spend time there), bank account and other minor things you can think of? And if you visit every year I doubt anyone can deny that you are a legit citizen. I guess first step is getting my a*s there and losing virginity on that passport.
 

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