New immigration rules to be enforced soon under e-ID programme

In an effort to ramp up its effort against the illegal entry into the country, the government will soon roll out a new immigration policy that mandates all immigrants—both legal and undocumented—to register under the electronic identification (e-ID) programme.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Commissioner of Police, Clifton Hicken said the initiative is set to take effect within the next three to four weeks and is part of a broader effort to identify all foreign nationals residing in Guyana.

“Sooner or later, while we have been monitoring them at the ports of entry as they come in, they are registered but within the next three or four weeks, we are going to use another mechanism where we are going to ID all the immigrants in Guyana that are not registered,” Hicken told reporters.

The announcement comes amid heightened public attention on immigration and border security, following Sunday’s deadly explosion at the Mobil gas station on Regent and King Streets, Georgetown, which claimed the life of six-year-old Soraya Bourne.

The prime suspect, a Spanish-speaking foreign national, has been arrested and confessed to the crime.

According to Minister of Home Affairs, Oneidge Walrond, the new e-ID system will issue digital identification cards for both citizens and non-citizens.

The cards will be required to access government and public services.

“What will happen is that we will have cards for citizens and we will have cards for non-citizens.

“Persons who are in Guyana illegally will be given a grace period to come forward and register for an E-ID card. You will not be able to do anything, access any services without this e-ID card for non-citizens,” Walrond said.

She cautioned that migrants who fail to register within the grace period will face deportation and other sanctions.

“That is the policy,” she stressed.

According to Hicken, immigration authorities currently collect fingerprints from persons entering Guyana legally.