Q. My 17-year-old cousin was born in Jamaica but holds a British passport as she was born to a British mother. My cousin has never been to England but has travelled to the United States with me once for vacation. Upon returning to Jamaica, she was told by a Jamaican immigration officer that she also needs to have a Jamaican passport. She wants to acquire the Jamaican passport but is worried about the fact that her mother does not have any Jamaican identification for the application process as her mother only holds a British passport. Does she really need a Jamaican passport along with her British passport to travel? If so, can her mother use her British passport as an ID for the application process?

A. As a resident of Jamaica, your cousin needs to ensure that she regularises her status on the island. That is to say she needs to legally update her immigration landing/residency status. This will allow her to travel to and from Jamaica with no restrictions when either a Jamaican or British passport is presented at the port of entry. The use of either document is, of course, dependent on the options chosen.

In regularising her status, two options are available to her. Option A is to apply for a Jamaican passport. Option B is to apply for Unconditional Landing status.

Option A

At 17, your cousin is considered by law to be a minor. As such, the law stipulates that no child under the age of 18 years shall be granted a passport without the written consent of the father or mother, or by the court, as in the case of a child who is a ward of court. The law further indicates that proper identification is required by the parent or guardian giving the consent.

In the case presented, the minor, born in Jamaica, is entitled to a Jamaican passport. An application can, therefore, be submitted providing that section C (Consent for a Minor) of the passport application form is completed by either parent. As mentioned earlier, the parent giving consent must produce proper identification. This may be in the form of a Jamaican or non-Jamaican valid passport, Jamaican electoral identification card or Jamaican driver's licence.

Option B

Option B may be utilised by a holder of a British passport where an application for a Jamaican passport cannot be readily submitted or processed. An application may be submitted to the Immigration Visa Unit at the Passport Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA), on behalf of the minor for unconditional landing status. This status is granted to a person born in Jamaica holding a non-Jamaican passport. The status allows the holder to remain in the country indefinitely.

To apply for Unconditional Landing Status, the following are required:

A completed extension of stay application form

National Passport

Jamaican original birth certificate.

Unconditional landing may also be granted to an individual born overseas to Jamaican parent(s), who is a holder of a non-Jamaican passport.

This applicant would be required to submit:

A completed extension of stay application form

National Passport

Original birth certificate

Jamaican parent's original birth certificate.

In either situation, if the application is on behalf of a minor and the parents are unavailable, a guardian may make the application providing the following are submitted, in addition to those mentioned above:

Notarised letter of consent from parent

Copy of any of the following forms of identification for the parent:

- passport (whether Jamaican or not)

- Jamaican electoral identification

- Jamaican driver's licence.

All applications should be submitted to the PICA, 25 Constant Spring Road, Kingston 10.

Costs

The cost for a Jamaican passport for a minor is $1,500.

The cost for unconditional landing is $10,000 as of Thursday, October 1, 2009.

'At 17, your cousin is considered by law to be a minor. As such, the law stipulates that no child under the age of 18 years shall be granted a passport without the written consent of the father or mother, or by the court ... .'