Every person arriving in the Cayman Islands is required to produce for inspection by a Customs and Border Control officer a passport or some other valid document establishing their identity and nationality or place of permanent residence. This should be valid beyond the date of their return ticket.
Proof of citizenship or residence may be established by producing a photo identification together with a certified copy of a birth certificate, or a naturalization certificate.
Persons from certain countries will also be required to possess a valid visa for the Cayman Islands.
Requirements to be satisfied by visitors
A visitor must be in possession of a passport or other appropriate documentation that is valid beyond the date of their return ticket. However, this documentation does not necessarily have to be valid for over six months if this is more than the length of stay.
A visitor must be in possession of a paid up return ticket or ticket entitling him/her and his/her dependants, if any, to travel to their next destination outside the Islands. A visitor may also be required to satisfy the Customs and Border Control officer that he/she has sufficient funds to maintain him/herself and his/her dependants during the period of their stay in the Cayman Islands.
Length of Stay
Visitors may be granted permission to land in the Islands for a period of up to six months. This period may be extended for further periods not exceeding six months upon application to the Director of Customs and Border Control.
Children that are born in the Cayman Islands and are not Caymanian at birth are required to report to Customs and Border Control as soon as practicable in order to have their status in the Islands regularized.
The Customs and Border Control Law Section 94 (7) states: In the case of any child born in the Islands in such circumstances that it does not acquire the right to be Caymanian at birth, such child shall be reported to the Director as soon as practicable and shall thereafter be subject to Customs and Border control in a manner appropriate in all the circumstances and having regard to the immigration status of the parents or, in the case of a child whose parents are not married, of the mother.
Parents must provide the following
- Evidence of application for Work permit amendment or Residency variation (from the Workforce Opportunities and Residency Cayman)
- a passport or an original Cayman birth certificate
- complete an extension form (BC10)
The Officer at the “Extension Counter” will land and condition the child accordingly and give ample authorization for the amendment to be reviewed. You will be provided with an Embarkation / Disembarkation card as a substitute for a travel document that will be endorsed until same has been obtained.
Sponsors
Any person acting as the sponsor of a tourist visitor seeking permission to land in the Islands or seeking an extension of the permission may be required to give an undertaking in writing to be responsible for that tourist visitor's maintenance and accommodation during the period of his stay in the Islands. The sponsor is also required by law to inform the Director of Customs and Border Control within twenty-four hours of the expiration of the grant of permission if the tourist visitor in question has failed to depart from the Islands before the expiration of the permission granted.
Seeking employment whilst in the Cayman Islands as a visitor
There is no prohibition against seeking employment whilst visiting the Islands as a tourist. However, both the Department of WORC may refuse the grant of a work permit for a person who is in the Islands as a tourist visitor. As such ensure that consultation with this Department is made prior to submission of any application for Work Permits whilst on Island as a visitor.
Additionally visitors should note that no application for a Temporary Work Permit in respect of a person who gained entry as a visitor shall be considered or approved unless the visitor has departed and remained off the Islands. However, the Director of WORC may grant a Temporary Work Permit to a visitor if he is of the opinion that there exist special circumstances for doing so.