The new Barbados passport is ready and anyone who is now applying will received the upgraded edition.
During a media conference at the Wildey, St Michael, headquarters on Monday, Minster of Home Affairs Wilfred Abrahams said not only does it capture the historical and cultural features of Barbados, it also has enhanced security.
“This was a process. We went through a number of designs. When you see the passport has a pelican, places of interest in Barbados, these are not just there for aesthetic purposes, they are also incorporated into the security features,” he explained.
“It is a top-of-the-line, first rate, first class very, very secure passport and I am pleased that we are putting it into operation from today,” he added.
In the meantime, existing passports are still valid.
The standard passport remains blue in colour. The diplomat’s passport is still red and the official’s passport is green.
Abrahams explained that the businessman’s passport – which tended to have more pages because of frequency of travel – has been discontinued because it is “easier to control and makes it more secure”. Also, many places are no longer stamping passports.
Chief Immigration Officer Margaret Inniss said this was “a passport that really and truly makes you proud to be a Barbadian”.
In capturing the history, culture and landscape of the island, Barbadians can look for features such as Parliament Buildings, a pelican, the iconic rock at Bathsheba and Kensington Oval.
Inniss said the Barbados passport was ranked No. 1 in the Caribbean and 25 globally.
“And this passport has been designed, not only with greater or enhanced security features, but certainly, to keep us in the high ranking worldwide wherever we go and within the region,” she said.
Immigration Officer Kareem Carter also dived a bit deeper into some of the obvious features of the document. These include Intaglio (subsurface) printing, different laminate and stitching, an upgraded chip which is tamper resistant, more ultraviolet features and changed perforations. There is also latent printing that is revealed when the passport is held at an angle. (SAT)
