Guapa

Does anyone know if I would be able to apply for my Barbados ID card from here in the uk.I mean can you get it done here at the Bajan Embassy in London.Also is it true you need the ID card first as you need this to apply for the passport.
Thanks.

Sunniebgi

if you are a Barbadian residing in the UK, I'd say contact the Barbados Embassy there and see if they actually issue those ID Cards there. I have been told, the process is.. ID Card and then you use the ID Card to get the passport.. not sure if that is correct, but this is what I've been told.

grassisgreener

I believe you need to be in Barbados, with the intention to stay here to get your ID, although I know people who've got it whilst on holiday. I got my Barbados passport in England before I had an ID card, you just need proof of citizenship.

Guapa

Thanks for the info guys.My wife also got her passport here in London without an ID card about two years ago.I am hoping to get mine done in Barbados as they say it is preferable as they are the newer machine readable type,hand written only here in London apparently.

N101

You don't need an ID card to get a passport, but you do need to provide proof of citizenship.

I applied for and got my Barbadian passport last year via the Barbados High Commission. All I had to provide was proof of citizenship, birth certificate and my passport. They copied it all and it was submitted with my application. They said it would take 6-8 weeks as everything had to be done in Barbados. In reality, it took 6 months (not sure if the volcanic ash from Iceland played a part).

If you apply for your passport in Barbados it would probably take less time, though if you're not in a hurry you can apply via the High Commission in the UK. I don't think you can get an ID card through the High Commission, your best bet is to get it in Barbados, moreso if you've never applied for one before.

Hope this helps. Good luck.

Guapa

Thanks for all the info guys.

N101,can I ask,did you apply here in London,if so is your passport hand written or the more modern machine readable type.
Thanks.

N101

Yes, I applied for it via the Barbados High Commission in London. Which is why I say it may take longer than 6-8 weeks, it definitely did for me...or maybe just bad timing. I applied late January and received it in June.

Do they still do handwritten passports? I'm sure my brother's Barbadian passport when I saw it a few years ago wasn't handwritten. It's machine readable, but interesting enough, the passport info page is at the front and not at the back.

Guapa

As I stated earlier in this thread my wife got her passport here in London in 2009 and it was hand written,ID page at the back,took about two weeks.I phoned last week for the application form for mine and was told they now take 6-8 weeks and are sent to Brigtown for processing.The hand written one definatley looks homemade,but no probs last year when she used it for the first time.

N101

My understanding is that readable passports were introduced in 2009, so your wife's passport may have been among the final batches of handwritten ones. Maybe I'm used to handwritten passports, some UK passports were handwritten up until the 90s - I still have my old handwritten one.

One of the things it says on the application is that the new passports issued are machine readable. Also, I was told when I went to apply for my passport that they were only accepting first-time passport applications. I'm curious as to the process for renewals.

Guapa

Just to update this tread for anyone in the same boat.
Took about three weeks here in the UK to get my Bajan passport,£110 for ten years,and is the modern machine readable type.