Colombia Clarifies, Will Not Require Valid Passport for Venezuelans

Colombia has rectified an earlier statement, announcing that it will not require a valid passport for Venezuelan citizens to enter and leave the country. On April 25, sources from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained that, after three years, the government was preparing a resolution to normalize the migratory flow of Venezuelans, following the reestablishment of relations between both countries.

Three years ago, when Colombia and Venezuela had no political or commercial relations, the government of President Duque created the concession that Venezuelan citizens could enter and leave Colombia with an expired passport. As reported last week, with the recovery of Venezuelan consular activity in Colombian territory, the government was determined to reinstate the requirement of a valid passport.

Today, both President Gustavo Petro and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Luis Gilberto Murillo, have denied this statement, assuring that nothing will change and that the concession for Venezuelans is maintained, since the government’s objective is not to harm the migrant population.

Leak from the Colombian Foreign Ministry

Apparently, the leak came from officials of the Ministry itself, to whom the minister has today sent a message. “It is important that the officials of this Ministry, the officials of the foreign policy sector, the officials of the Government, understand that the philosophy of this Government is not to hinder the migrant population or those who are in human mobility, but to facilitate their reception,” Murillo explained to the media.

For his part, the Colombian president, Gustavo Petro, also explained on his social network account that the announced measure was false. “This is not true. My government will not require passports for Venezuelan migrants,” the president wrote shortly after the news was published.

Everything remains the same for Venezuelans

Thus, everything remains the same for Venezuelans, who may continue entering and leaving Colombia with an expired passport. This is an exceptional measure, taken to facilitate transit and intended, above all, for the Venezuelan population that resides in border areas and, on a daily basis, crosses into Colombia to work.

In this regard, and in line with an announcement made by the Ministry a few weeks ago, Colombia Migration issued a statement that it is evaluating the possibility of issuing a temporary work visa to migrants in general, not only Venezuelans, and that it is also working on the idea of expanding family reunification to regularize the presence of people without papers in Colombia.

It should be recalled that around 2.8 million Venezuelan citizens live in Colombia. Likewise, there are many others who, while residing in Venezuelan territory, cross the border daily to attend their jobs in Colombia. The difficulties for these people to renew their passports are mainly due to the high cost of this procedure compared to the Venezuelan salary, which makes it unfeasible for many migrants to have their documents in order.

Other countries seek the departure of Venezuelans

Contrary to Colombia’s actions, other countries are seeking the return of these Venezuelans to their country. Mexico recently announced an important subsidy policy for foreigners, mainly Venezuelans and Colombians, who decide to leave Mexico and return to their countries of origin.

The Lopez Obrador government will grant financial assistance of US$110 per month to Venezuelans and Colombians who choose to leave Mexico. It should be recalled that the Venezuelan minimum wage is currently US$3.60 per month. With this, the Mexican government seeks to alleviate the pressure of migrants from these countries who reside permanently in Mexico or are waiting to cross the northern border to settle in the United States.

For years, Venezuela has been seeing a massive outflow of population, in view of the serious economic and social crisis in the country. The main recipient, by proximity, has been Colombia, where the Venezuelan diaspora has been increasing progressively year after year.

The policies of the Colombian governments, both of President Duque (2018-2022), as well as the current one of President Petro, maintain special assistance for this vulnerable population, seeking their integration as much as possible in Colombian society.