BELIZE CITY, Thurs. Nov. 26, 2020– It has been 9 months since the US Embassy in Belize canceled routine immigrant and non-immigrant visa appointments. At that time, they were unable to indicate a specific date on which those services would be resumed, but this past week, Chargé d’Affairs, Keith Gilges, told local media they are considering a resumption of those services sometime in February 2021. This means that Belizeans will be able to once again apply for US tourist visas.
On March 16, 2020, the US Embassy announced that they would be closed due to the spread of the novel coronavirus. The embassy closed its doors and bunkered down, processing only specific visa applications on a case-by-case basis, and rendering consular services to United States citizens.
This was at the start of the global pandemic. Since then, both Belize and the United States have seen a surge in coronavirus infections, and a record decline in international travel due to restrictions.
Both countries have opted to once again permit international travel, notwithstanding the ongoing and increased spread of COVID-19. The United States is still grappling with the coronavirus, with over 12.7 million confirmed cases and almost 263,000 recorded deaths as of November 26, 2020.
Belize also started to see a surge in cases since August. To date, there have been over 5,423 confirmed cases and 129 deaths.
Only essential travel is recommended at this time. However, US citizens and Belizeans with the necessary travel permits are not strictly restricted, so some leisure travel and non-essential movement is still taking place. Recently, the Office of the Director of Health Services announced that an increase in arrivals at the Philip Goldson International Airport may pose a problem.
Why does this even matter?
The science shows that the SARS-CoV2, the virus that causes COVID-19 infections, requires a host in order to survive. This means, basically, that it cannot live outside the human body for an indefinite amount of time. Recent data indicate that the virus may live about three hours as air droplets and up to three days on hard surfaces. Human interactions are the primary cause of spread. This is accelerated by the movement of persons.
So, while people may be itching to travel, we still have a global pandemic on our hands, and possible vaccines are still in the trial phase. Chargé d’Affairs Gilges said, “I think a lot of Belizeans would like to be able to come in and get visas to travel. At this point, we are looking at February as our start-up date. Again, that is a flexible thing, so don’t hold me to it.”
This is good news for those wishing to travel in 2021, although it is not set in stone.
Countries in the European Union Schengen territories have still not reopened travel to the US. Many of those territories are contending with a second wave of COVID-19 at this time.