Smudge51

Hello all,
Would anyone have advise for the special entry permit application, in particular the government fees for the main applicant and spouse, does the spouse pay the same as the main applicant? or just pay the application fee.
Lawyers fees, has anyone applied direct for the SEP or through a Bajan lawyer and what are the lawyer fees?
The other thing we need to sort is the Police certificate, in the UK I can find the ACRO one, does anyone know if this is the one that would be acceptable.
I've got most of the other requirements for the SEP under control and if anyone needs info please come back to me.
For info we are both over 60, retired and own apartment in Barbados,

A.

Serendipidy

Welcome to the Forum Smudge - hopefully someone who can help with your enquiries will pop up soon

satellite_ian

When I needed a police certificate of character when I was applying for my Bajan citizenship the ACRO certificate was exactly what was required from the UK.... hope this helps.

Smudge51

Thanks Ian yes good will go for the Acro then. For the fees I think the spouse pays full goverment fee but if any dependants then for them its only the application fee that's payable. How does that sound? Can anyone confirm or not.

julesdoopydoo

Hi Smudge51,

We applied for ours in 2018, the 5 year one as we were both still under 60 at the time. We did it all ourselves, it was not arduous or difficult. Just download the application form from the Barbados Immigration site and work through, do not overlook anything it will just delay the matter.
We had the regular ACRO certificate of character - that came back within a week and I think was about £10 each.
You will both need to apply and pay the same fee - we paid BB$7000 each!! Not cheap but 5 years of peace and stability. When it expires we will apply again and as we will both be 60+ we should be able to get one "for life". I think the fees for that are BB$10000 each. I don't know if the fees have changed but I'm sure you'll find them easily enough.
We had to supply evidence of "our means" by way of bank statements covering a couple of years and evidence of current income - pensions for us.
The only extra thing we did (which was sort of suggested as being a good idea) was to have our house professionally valued. This cost BB$1000 but I assume it helped with the "means test". There isn't a means test, but......!!

It took us the full 6 months to get everything together but having had our interview - just going through the paperwork in reality, it only took a couple of weeks. We then got a formal letter confirming the visa and a stamp in our passports.

Good luck.

Julie

Happyowner

Hi there. I got my Life Special Entry Visa a few years ago. I went to Immigration who tried to say I needed a 5 year one ( must be because I look so young ha ha ) but I persuaded them I was entitled to the Life one.

Although it was only me, the Visa at the time covered Husband and wife for the same price but that may have changed.

I had to own a property here worth over $150,000 .00 US. and I had to prove that I could keep myself by showing Bank Accounts either from here or in the UK. I obtained a Police Certificate of Character in the UK and being a member of BARP I had their Medical Insurance which I had to provide. They also wanted my Birth Certificate and Marriage Certificate as my name had changed.

I also had to provide the Deeds to my condo here as proof of value I assume.

I think I paid $300 BDS to make the Application then whatever the full price was then when it was approved. I applied in the August and it was granted by the end of September.

I have a stamp in my Passport which I assume I shall have to have transferred to a new Passport when the time comes,and I have a I D card which cost $20 I seem to remember.

I applied when it was quite new and it used to cause a bit of confusion at the Airport,but now I trot through the Citizens and Residents line and they say welcome home, not that I have been off Island since Christmas.

You won't regret getting one.

Smudge51

Thanks Julie and Happyowner, some very good advice and tips. Piecing things together now, will be applying for our SEP
very soon. This will be our first year of property ownership in Barbados, for the land tax bills, am I corect in saying they are posted out each year around August/October and are payable anythine until 31st March for following year?

Happyowner

Hi Smudge,I just got my Land Tax bill the other day so watch out for it. To get the discount it must be paid by the 23rd of September and wow, as it gone up this year , so any discount is vital.

Smudge51

Yippee, just be granted our life special permit, nice letter arrived, just need to get the passports stamped.😎

Happyowner

Congratulations Smudge , don't forget that when things go back to normal you go through the Citizens channel at the Airport and don't have to queue for hours,

Also,don't forget to go and get your ID cards, it makes life so much easier and it's cheaper at the Doctors ,Pharmacists etc.

Smudge51

Thanks happyowner, will do, ps going back to my question on land tax bills , we got a copy of our bill after we arrived on island and checked. The one posted to the UK is still somewhere trying to find our address.🙄

Happyowner

That happens I'm afraid. Much easier all round if you can have things sent to your address here or care of a neighbour you trust.

I never got one item of post from the Turf Club when it was sent to my English Address. I have everything sent here now and if I am not here , my neighbour lets me know she has it and asks what to do if anything. You never know, when Covid goes away , I might get back to England one day.

Smudge51

Hello, as a SEP holder and ID card holder, do we still need to renew the visitors driving licence yearly, or is that also indefinte?

julesdoopydoo

Smudge, you will need a local driving permit whilst you are still using your UK licence to drive here. Once you have your ID card you can go to the Licensing office at Pinehill and apply for your Barbadian driving licence. The first one is issued for one year, thereafter you can renew for multiples of years. Be prepared for a long day - three separate queues ! You need to take a passport sized photo with you - but it's not used on your licence!! Take your UK licence also. Regards

Sunniebgi

drivers licenses are never indefinite.. regular licenses are valid for 1 , 3 or 5 years. , based on what you pay... with an SEP, you likely would need a regular license, but I have no idea.. best to maybe check with the Licensing Authority to double check..