Venezuela: Information on the issuance of Emergency Passports, Transeunte visas and other identification documents to foreigners and refugees or refugee claimants
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 April 1992 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | VEN10697 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Venezuela: Information on the issuance of Emergency Passports, Transeunte visas and other identification documents to foreigners and refugees or refugee claimants, 1 April 1992, VEN10697, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ab131c.html [accessed 9 October 2022] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
The information that follows was provided by a Consular Officer in charge of the Consular Section of the Embassy of Venezuela in Ottawa (14 Apr. 1992). Additional and/or corroborating information could not be found among other sources currently available to the IRBDC.
The Emergency Passport is issued to people who cannot obtain a valid passport from the authorities of their country of origin. These usually include refugees or refugee claimants, although it may be issued to foreign visitors or residents who have lost their passport and whose country does not have an embassy or consulate in Venezuela. The Emergency Passport is essentially a temporary emergency travel document, and it always indicates that the person to whom the passport is issued is not a Venezuelan national.
The transeunte visa is equivalent to a temporary residence permit which allows a person to work legally in Venezuela. It can be issued to refugees, refugee claimants or other foreigners. It is valid for one year and is subject to renewal. Usually, a person would ask for a residence visa after the transeunte visa expires, although under certain circumstances the transeunte visa could be renewed more than once. A person with a transeunte visa has the same rights as other foreigners residing in Venezuela. These are virtually the same as those of Venezuelan nationals with the exception of political rights: foreign residents and people with transeunte visas can only vote in municipal elections, and cannot be elected to public office.
Every foreigner legally residing in Venezuela, even under a transeunte visa, must have an identification card. The card has an eight-digit number and shows whether the holder is a Venezuelan national (additional information on this identification card can be found in Response to Information Request No. VEN9551 sent to your Regional Documentation Centre). The Social Insurance document is granted to people who work. Its number is usually the same as the Identification Card number, and the document is used mostly for taxation and health services. If a person does not have a Social Insurance document, free health services can be obtained at hospitals of the Ministry of Health or university hospitals.
Health Certificates are usually required from all foreigners who arrive in Venezuela to reside in the country. In the case of refugees and refugee claimants, however, the certificate is not required as a condition of admittance into the country. In these cases, the persons will normally be required to undergo a medical examination at some point after their arrival to detect and treat any communicable diseases.
References
Consular Section of the Embassy of Venezuela, Ottawa. 14 April 1992. Telephone Interview with Consular Officer.
