The United National Congress (UNC) Government has been working consistently—up to a March meeting—to have the UK visa imposition overturned, says Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister Sean Sobers.
And Sobers says it had cost the UK government 65,000 pounds sterling to handle each claim by the floods of T&T asylum seekers over 2024—and this was among reasons for the visa imposition.
Sobers disclosed this while piloting a border security bill in Parliament yesterday.
This provides a framework for the collection, transmission, sharing, storage and regulation of Advance Passenger Information and Passenger Name Record concerning people entering, departing and transiting through T&T. It also operationalises the Caricom Advance Passenger Information System.
Information will be shared with international jurisdictions, including Interpol. The bill enables authorities to identify high-risk persons before arrival/departure via the coordination of intelligence on individuals in human trafficking, narcotics smuggling, organised crime and terrorism.
The bill was passed with unanimous Government and Opposition support.
Addressing queries about Government’s actions on the UK visa issue, Sobers noted the UK’s position that its visa was introduced based on a significant increase in T&T nationals applying for asylum in the UK, with the first trend in November 2024.
Sobers cited a January 2025 meeting of Caricom’s IMPACS agency and the UK’s Home Office and National Crime Agency, where UK authorities cited the dramatic increase in T&T nationals applying for asylum.
“…From an average of 15 to 20 people monthly to 40 to 59 people in the last few months of 2024,”Sobers added.
“Concern was also expressed regarding the entry of gang members or individuals with criminal backgrounds from T&T into the UK. The UK, therefore, advised of the likely imposition of a visa regime in early 2025 if no action was taken by the PNM administration.”
He said the UK had meetings with PNM ministers in January, February and March 2025 but the visa was implemented. Sobers blamed this on People’s National Movement’s failure to take the UK’s issues seriously.
He said UK concerns included a spike in the number of T&T asylum seekers from 240 to 350 annually—with over 100 applying in December 2024 alone. Asylum claims seemed opportunistic in nature and most weren’t legitimate and therefore denied, he said.
“Nationals were making asylum claims on arriving at UK airports—representing a misuse and abuse of UK immigration systems – with significant impact on Gatwick’s frontline operations,” he added.
Sobers said there was a high cost associated with each asylum claim.
“… Whether approved or denied, the UK government was forced to spend an average of 65,000 UK pounds per claim! These were the issues they put to the last PNM administration!” he said.
“Once an upward trend in asylum claims was established and there were no efforts by the last administration to curb those claims, the UK had no choice but to implement the visa.”
He said the UNC Government, in May 2025, began working on the issue
The new Government proposed to the UK, the possibility of T&T nationals with valid US visas being exempted from the UK visa requirement; and strengthening/adopting new screening measures for nationals with convictions seeking to go to the UK.
A UK Home Office team met Government virtually, he said and Cabinet, in July 2025, mandated an inter-ministerial team to deal with the issue.
Sobers said he met up to March this year with UK’s Minister in the Home Office (Immigration).
“So, the UNC administration’s been consistently working to have the visa imposition overturned,” Sobers added.
Speaking during the debate, Opposition MP Keith Scotland said it was true that in late 2024 there was an increase and exodus of alleged gang members to the UK.
“It was the action of a PNM government that forced the hands of these people that they couldn’t stay in T&T. … we did systematic planning that drove them out, made it uncomfortable for them to live here,” Scotland added, saying the PNM would support the bill.
