How to obtain visa for a Jordan national

Q: My company has contracted the services of a specialist to train staff on a newly installed system. The trainer is a Jordanian national whose intended itinerary is Luxembourg to Jamaica, via London.

We are aware that Jordanian nationals visiting Jamaica require a visa prior to arrival.

Could you please guide as to the process by which the visa can be obtained.

Also, please advise which is the closest port/consulate to Luxembourg, at which point the traveller might be able to obtain the Jamaican visa.

Finally, would PICA (Passport Immigration and Citizenship Agency) have any special requirements of our company regarding his visit?

A: You are right in stating that Jordanians would need to obtain a visa prior to arriving in Jamaica.

Only travellers from non-Commonwealth nations do not need a visa to enter Jamaica. Exceptions to this are persons coming from Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nigeria, British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands.

To obtain a visa, he/she would need to visit a Jamaican High Commission or consular office and pay the required fee. He/she may visit the Jamaican Embassy in Brussels, the closest consular office to Luxembourg. The address is:

Embassy of Jamaica

Avenue Hansen-Soulie, 77

1040 Brussels, Belgium

Tel: (322) 230-1170

The cost for the visa is determined by the respective consulate. Please advise your guest to take along any correspondence or official document from your company, indicating that he had been invited to do conduct training on the island. He may be required to produce same to the immigration personnel at the port of entry.

Other considerations for persons visiting the island include:

- Passport (validity of which must extend beyond the passenger's intended length of stay in the island);

- Sufficient funds for duration of stay in Jamaica;

- Return ticket for persons on short visit (either for onward journey to a country where the passenger has legal status or for return to passenger's homeland).

Q: I am overseas and I have booked a flight to return home to renew my passport on my birthday, April 19.

I will arrive on the 18th. Is there anything I should, do to expedite the process I fly back to the UK on the 29th? Can I access online service, fill out the paperwork and pay for the fastest-possible method of obtaining my renewal? Please advise as soon as possible, thank you in advance.

A: You can obtain a passport application form from our website at www.pica.gov.jm. You may complete the form electronically and print it. however, you won't be able to submit the form or pay for the document online at this time. As a result, you would need to come in to our offices to submit and pay for the application.

Our regular turnaround time is seven days but you may obtain your passport sooner. In fact, you can do so in a matter of hours. Our same-day service is now being offered at our St Andrew offices, at 25c Constant Spring Road, at a cost of $16,500.(The regular passport cost is $6,500).

To benefit from the same-day service, you must submit your application by 10 a.m.

Please ensure your application is in order to avoid any delay. The application must be certified by any of the named individuals listed on the passport-application form. the same person should certify only one of the two required passport-size photos.

Please observe the passport-photo guideline on our website to ensure your pictures are compliant with our requirements.

Additionally, you must take along supporting documents such as your birth certificate, or marriage certificate, where necessary, and your documents should not be laminated or photocopied.

Observing all the requirements will ensure your application is compliant, and will allow you to obtain your document in the desired time.

You may also opt to do the next-day service, which costs $11,500, or three-day service, at a cost of $9,500. These are offered at our St Andrew head offices only. However our regional office and outposts offer five-day and seven-day expedited service in addition to their regular 14-day and 11-day services. Our five-day and seven-day expedited services at these locations cost $11,500 and $9,500, respectively.

For further information, visit our website at: www.pica.gov.jm. For enquiries please write to: info@pica.gov.jm. Like our Facebook page at Facebook.com/PICAJamaica/