Aruba says it will require Venezuelans to obtain visa to visit

The Dutch Caribbean island of Aruba will require Venezuelans to obtain a visa to visit, its government said on Wednesday, adding to the nations that have tightened entry restrictions on the crisis-hit country because of mass emigration. "This decision was reached after verifying that the situation in Venezuela has worsened, along with an alarming increase in the frequency of irregular migration to neighboring countries," the government said in a news release.

The process to request a "temporary visa" could take about six months, an Aruba government source said, and authorities expect to process about 8,000 visas each year. The visa requirement will not apply to Venezuelans that already hold visas for the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, or Ireland, the source said.

Venezuela's economic collapse has unleashed the biggest migratory crisis in recent Latin American history, spurring more than 4 million people to emigrate, according to the United Nations. Chile, Peru, and Ecuador have all imposed new entry restrictions for Venezuelans in recent months.

 

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