Spain opens visa-free doors to CARICOM, but not for Belize

By Breaking Belize News Staff (HP): Nine CARICOM countries have just gained visa-free access to Spain, but Belizeans hoping to visit the European nation will still need to queue for a visa, as Belize was left off the list.

According to a statement issued by the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Madrid, citizens of 60 nations worldwide will no longer need a visa to enter Spain for short stays. Among them are nine CARICOM member states: Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, The Bahamas, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, Trinidad and Tobago, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

The arrangement covers tourism, business trips, and other short visits of up to 90 days within a 180-day period. Spain is also extending the same visa-free access to citizens of eight African countries.

Conspicuously absent from the list are five CARICOM members: Belize, Jamaica, Guyana, Suriname, and Haiti. No reason for the omissions was given in the statement.

For Belize, the exclusion carries a particular sting. Spanish is widely spoken across the country, Spain remains a dream destination for many Belizean travellers, students, and business people, and Belize maintains diplomatic relations with Madrid. Yet while nationals of Barbados or St. Lucia will soon board flights to Spain with nothing but a passport, Belizeans must continue navigating the visa application process, with its fees, paperwork, and waiting times.

The development also lands at an interesting moment for regional mobility. Belize was among the four pioneering CARICOM states that launched full free movement within the Community in October 2025, positioning itself as a leader in openness. On this occasion, however, the openness has not flowed back.

The obvious question now falls to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade: is Belize engaging Madrid to secure the same access its CARICOM partners now enjoy, and if so, when might Belizean passport holders expect the door to open?

Until then, the visa line remains, even as much of the Caribbean family walks past it.

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