Standing outside the passport office in Georgetown as early as 5 AM, moving from chair to chair for hours to submit a passport application or simply renew one, will soon be a thing of the past.
By the end of 2025, citizens can expect the services of the passport office to be digitized, allowing for online applications. This was disclosed by Minister of Home Affairs, Oneidge Waldron, during her appearance on the Starting Point Podcast.
Minister Waldron noted that this initiative forms part of President Dr Irfaan Ali’s broader plans to digitize Guyana, particularly government services.
“So, the president has announced that by the end of the year, we are going to see a fully online passport application process,” she said.
The minister explained that the company contracted to create the online passport application system has made significant progress in digitizing the biometric system within the passport office.
“That contract still is in existence, and we’ve had some setbacks, but the timeline for the end of the year is achievable, and we’re going to see that,” she added.
Just a few weeks ago, the Ministry of Home Affairs launched an online platform for immigration services such as visitor visas, job permits, and extensions. Minister Waldron pointed out that before this digital transition, large crowds would gather daily outside to submit or inquire about applications.
“So, you found there were large crowds of people outside of the ministry every morning, and they had to come with their application form, or they come to inquire, and then sometimes, I got reports of push around, shoved around, because some of them don’t understand English, or they don’t understand the system; how to navigate, who to go to, who to talk to.
“And this is one of the issues that the president had highlighted very early, removing the human bias, the human element, the allegations of people using the opportunity to extort unsuspecting clients,” Minister Waldron stated.
She added that with support from the National Data Management Authority (NDMA), the ministry was able to digitize the immigration services to allow the entire process to be done online. Applicants now only interface with a person at the payment stage, though even that can be completed through Mobile Money Guyana (MMG).
Minister Waldron further noted that each online application is assigned a specific code for tracking and accountability. Additionally, two staff members have also been dedicated to assisting individuals who may not have computer access or capable of completing the online process.
Notably, all official communications are conducted via email, and each officer is assigned a unique code tied to a client’s application.
“We have guaranteed a two-day turnaround in terms of responses to increase the efficiency, so people are not left wondering and concerned,” the minister said.
Moreover, Minister Waldron said that since the launch of the online immigration platform, there have been noticeable improvements in processing times.
“We’ve had a tremendous backlog, and the system has been able to push that along. So that is one success story immediately at how digitization can really impact people and the services and increase efficiency. We’re seeing that right now,” she noted.