Immigration Ministry provides assistance to the diospora in Miramar, Florida

For three days this week, Belize’s Ministry of Immigration is taking its services directly to Belizeans living in Miramar, Florida and surrounding communities through its Mobile Passport Hub.  The outreach is being held at the Miramar Town Centre from today through to Saturday, with appointments running daily from eight-thirty in the morning until six o’clock in the evening. Nearly two hundred and fifty appointments were secured in the weeks leading up to the exercise through an online booking portal provided by the Ministry.  The delegation is being led by Director of Passports Dayna Blades, who says the strong response reflects the continued demand for accessible immigration services among Belizeans residing in the United States.

Dayna Blades, Director of Nationality and Passports Department: “According to our appointment system we have logged over 250 applicants already. But nevertheless, we do know that there are persons in the area that need the service. So even if they’re not on the appointment list we do accept walk-ins. The next three days we will be offering passport services for first-time applicants and for renewal of the passport. We’re doing nationalities through descent for first-time and replacements. For the passport service, when you’re entering, we have someone that does the intake. What that does is that it gives us the number by the time we leave we will know the exact number of persons that accessed the service both for nationality and both for passport. At intake, then we will determine what service it is that you are actually seeking and we have various desks. If you’re going for passport then you’re directed to the passport desk. If you’re doing nationality, you’re directed to nationality. Now there is an intake for a reception one for passport. After reception one, you pay and then after payment that’s where the fun part comes in where we capture the biometrics for the applicants. For nationality it’s a simpler process because you go directly from intake to the nationality desk and you pay for the service. We have done this in Los Angeles, we have done this in New York, Houston and everywhere we go, even in Mexico we have walk-ins and we do welcome the walk-ins. There are times where we end up staying very late in the night because once you are here you will get service. No one is turned back and no one will leave here without service.”

Belizeans in the diaspora are being assisted with passport applications and renewals at a cost of two hundred and fifty U.S. dollars, while replacements for lost or stolen passports cost three hundred U.S. dollars. The delegation is also processing nationality-by-descent applications, including nationality certificates for one hundred and fifty U.S. dollars and replacement certificates for two hundred U.S. dollars.  Also participating in the three-day outreach are representatives from the Vital Statistics Unit, which is complementing the Immigration Department’s work by providing birth-certificate services. Ray Gongora is a well known Belizean living in Florida who came to the town hall to get his birth certificate. He told Love News that he is leaving very satisfied.

Belizean: “I’m here for service”

Reporter:  All right, what kind of services are you getting? 

Belizean:“Vital stats, my birth certificate. Yes, yes, yes, yes..”

Reporter: All right and how has that process been for you?

Belizean: “I’m impressed. I’m impressed. I got my birth certificate corrected. My mother’s name was spelled wrong, her maiden name, and came here they took care of everything. Had to pay my little fee, you know? I don’t mind because it’s done and I am impressed with the immediate service because they emailed me an original copy of my birth certificate that I could use anywhere. And the birth certificate now has a QR code that you can scan and make things happen anywhere, anyhow.”

Reporter: So you’re a happy customer? 

Belizean: “Very happy.”

Today is the first of three days where the Ministry of Immigration and VSU will be operating in the City of Miramar, Florida.