This upgrade is designed to deliver tangible benefits to Saint Lucian citizens by reducing the frequency of renewals and associated costs. Over a decade, passport holders will no longer need to apply twice, resulting in significant time and cost savings for individuals and families.

The introduction of the 10-year biometric passport was promised by Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre during the 2025/2026 budget address.

In April of this year, the Immigration Department had indicated that they were gearing up for this transition.

“The Immigration Department is increasing efforts to improve public service with the rollout of the new 10-year passport expected soon. We are also tasked to monitor the implementation of the 10-year passport for persons 18 years and above. We are in conversation with CBN, who is the service provider, and they have indicated that once they have taken care of the logistics of things, we should be seeing the first passport valid for 10 years being issued in the not-too-distant future,” explained Inspector Crescent Lionel of the Immigration Department during a police press conference in April.

A Saint Lucia passport allows visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to over 146 countries. This includes the Schengen Area of Europe, the UK, and Singapore