As at December 2022, there were approximately 35,300 Venezuelan refugees and asylum seekers registered with the Government or humanitarian organisations in Trinidad and Tobago. This number represents the highest per capita population of Venezuelans in the Caribbean, as the islands have a total population of 1.3 million people.
As at January 2023, an additional 9,200 Venezuelans had obtained regularisation of their migration status, while 4,000 were still waiting. The registration programme, established in 2019, only covers Venezuelans with an irregular status until that year, meaning there is no possibility for those arriving after 2019 to access regularisation and registration. Many Venezuelans, in fact, enter the country by irregular means and are not registered.
Sea routes used by migrants to reach Trinidad and Tobago expose them to protection and safety risks. There have been reports of boats shipwrecked on the way to the islands. Venezuelan migrants have also denounced cases of sex and human trafficking and child labour both during their journey and after arrival. Migrants with an irregular status also face protection risks related to discrimination and xenophobia. The inability to access legal status limits their livelihood opportunities as well.
(UNHCR 25/01/2022, TC 18/01/2023, CDH unimet 2022)
As at December 2022, there were approximately 35,300 Venezuelan refugees and asylum seekers registered with the Government or humanitarian organisations in Trinidad and Tobago. This number represents the highest per capita population of Venezuelans in the Caribbean, as the islands have a total population of 1.3 million people.
As at January 2023, an additional 9,200 Venezuelans had obtained regularisation of their migration status, while 4,000 were still waiting. The registration programme, established in 2019, only covers Venezuelans with an irregular status until that year, meaning there is no possibility for those arriving after 2019 to access regularisation and registration. Many Venezuelans, in fact, enter the country by irregular means and are not registered.
Sea routes used by migrants to reach Trinidad and Tobago expose them to protection and safety risks. There have been reports of boats shipwrecked on the way to the islands. Venezuelan migrants have also denounced cases of sex and human trafficking and child labour both during their journey and after arrival. Migrants with an irregular status also face protection risks related to discrimination and xenophobia. The inability to access legal status limits their livelihood opportunities as well.
(UNHCR 25/01/2022, TC 18/01/2023, CDH unimet 2022)
