KEY FIGURES
21.4K VENEZUELANS GRANTED ASYLUM IN BRAZIL IN DECEMBER
30K VENEZUELANS ESTIMATED IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
8K WORK AND RESIDENCE PERMITS TO BE ISSUED BY TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO IN DECEMBER
REGIONAL: VENEZUELAN MIGRANTS & REFUGEES
BRAZIL
Brazil’s refugee agency, CONARE, granted asylum to 21,423 Venezuelans on 6 December. Prior to this, CONARE had granted asylum to only 263 Venezuelans. CONARE reports that it expects to make a prompt decision on 98,000 pending asylum requests.
Brazil estimates that there are around 224,000 Venezuelans currently in the country, with an average of 500 daily entries UNHCR welcomed Brazil’s decision, calling the move a milestone in refugee protection in the region. Venezuelans who wish to apply for the asylum under Brazil’s provisions must be over 18 years old, already be living in Brazil, not hold any other residence permit and have no criminal record.
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
The Dominican Republic announced on 9 December that it will require visas for Venezuelans beginning on 16 December. The Caribbean country, a popular destination for Venezuelans to purchase basic goods and medical supplies, has witnessed a steady increase in legal and illegal migration from Venezuela in recent years. The R4V Coordination Platform estimates that there are around 30,000 Venezuelans living in the Dominican Republic. The Dominican Republic’s measure follows a string of similar measures across the region in 2019, including Chile, Ecuador and Peru.
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
On 9 December, Trinidad and Tobago began issuing permits to Venezuelans that will allow them to legally live and work in the country for a year. Trinidad and Tobago had previously issued more than 10,000 cards in October after fielding 16,500 requests. National security officials said that they prepared more than 8,000 cards for Venezuelans who qualified for this second batch.
Local media reports say hundreds of Venezuelans flocked to Immigration headquarters for the permit, which requires Venezuelans to present their permit registration and a valid identification document.