This week, sources close to the United States government informed the Miami television network, América Noticias, that the issuance of B2 tourist visas to Cubans who wish to visit the northern country would soon resume, with a duration of five years. Despite the good news, not everything is happiness, since the procedures are not expected to be established in Havana.
According to him half independent 14ymedio, these long-term travel permits to the United States, which are favored by many elderly people with relatives in that country, will be issued at US embassies in third countries, as the Biden government has not yet planned to open that procedure in the Cuban capital.
Many believe that this possibility is open to favor Cuban-Spanish or European citizens, who have been affected by the cancellation of the ESTA to enter the northern country, because the island is on the list of countries “sponsors of terrorism.”
How to get the five-year visa to the US?
With this possibility close, because it still does not have an activation date, Cuban-Europeans will be able to get the five-year visa at the Embassy of their countries and will no longer have to go through this process and the cumbersome issue of appointments and documents that are required .
Those who are interested will have to demonstrate in the interview that they have financial means or roots in the country and, therefore, have no intention of settling illegally. The objective of this B2 visa is to carry out tourism, receive medical treatment in the US, family visits, or go shopping. With it, you are not allowed to work and with the stamped tourist visa, you can also travel to several Latin American countries without the need for a visa.
It was in 2019, when the US Embassy in Havana eliminated obtaining this five-year visa and changed it to a three-month permit with a single entry allowed to northern territory. Under the mandate of Donald Trump and the health crisis, everything was much more limited. Now apparently there will be a respite, always, until the next presidential election.
