Barbados continues to rank among the Caribbean’s most compliant countries for travel to the United States. 

Along with St Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and Barbuda, they are in the bottom three as the Caribbean countries with the lowest numbers of nationals who overstayed their visas in the United States during the 2023 and 2024 fiscal years, according to the latest Entry/Exit Overstay Reports submitted to the United States Congress by Customs and Border Protection.

Haiti stands out as the Caribbean’s largest contributor to US visa overstays with Jamaica and the Dominican Republic following close behind in both years.

The Fiscal Year 2024 report, which covers October 1, 2023 to September 30, 2024, shows that while the vast majority of Caribbean visitors complied with US immigration rules, a small percentage remained in the country beyond their authorised period of stay.

Customs and Border Protection recorded 46.6 million expected departures globally in 2024, with an overall overstay rate of 1.15 per cent. More than 98 per cent of non-immigrant visitors departed the US on time.

An overstay is defined as a non-immigrant who was lawfully admitted to the US for an authorised period but stayed there beyond their authorised admission period. Non-immigrants admitted for “duration of status”, who fail to maintain their status might also be considered overstays. 

“Duration of status” is a term used for aliens who are admitted for the duration of a specific programme or activity, which may be variable, instead of for a set timeframe. 

The authorised admission period ends when the alien has accomplished the purpose for which they were admitted or were no longer engaged in authorised activities pertaining to that purpose. For example, a student who enters the United States for a programme must leave when the programme is completed, change to another immigration status, or go on to pursue another programme of study.

For 2024, Barbados recorded 51 015 expected departures by non-immigrant visitors arriving by air or sea. Of that number, 253 individuals overstayed their authorised period.

Among Barbadian students and exchange visitors (F, M and J visa holders), 19 overstays were recorded out of 621 expected departures. Other non-immigrant categories showed 15 overstays out of 381
expected departures.

In the fiscal year 2023, Barbados posted similarly low figures, with an overall rate of 201 overstays out of 38 365 expected departures for business and pleasure travellers and 15 overstays out of 599 expected departures among students and exchange visitors.

In 2024, out of an expected 506 640 departures, Dominican Republic registered 15 249; out of
308 173 expected departures, Jamaica registered 10 560 overstays and for Haiti they registered 15 981 overstays out of 64 345 expected departures by non-immigrant visitors arriving by air or sea.

Student and exchange visitor overstays were particularly pronounced. For Jamaica, of 18 896 expected student departures, 1 284 overstays were recorded. Other non-immigrant categories showed an even higher rate of 12.68 per cent, with 2 723 overstays out of 21 472 expected departures.

For Dominican Republic, of 11 351 expected student and exchange visitor departures, 656 overstays were recorded. 

Haiti was on the lower end of the scale with student and exchange visitor overstays totalling 196 out of 877 expected departures.

In 2023, Jamaica’s overstay rate for business and pleasure travellers stood at 12 268 out of 233 668 expected departures while F, M and J visa holders, (non-immigrant student and exchange visitors) overstays reached 1 236 out of 11 750.

For Dominican Republic, F, M and J visa holders, out of an expected 18 615 departures, 1 261 overstayed. The overstay rate for business and pleasure travellers was particularly high with 20 259 out of  440 894 expected departures.

Haiti was on the lower end of the scale with student and exchange visitor overstays totalling 262 out of 1 044 expected departures, but on the upper scale for business and pleasure travellers with 27 269 who overstayed out of  86 906 expected departures –  the highest among the three Caribbean states.

In the report, US authorities stressed that overstay figures did not automatically mean individuals were unlawfully present, as some visitors might have applied for and received extensions or adjustments of status after their initial admission period.

The report is used by US policymakers to assess immigration compliance trends and inform discussions on visa policy.