With the digitalisation of the world, there are more and more countries for which the required travel authorisation can be obtained digitally. The Cuba visa card can also be ordered online. Furthermore, Cuba has introduced the "DʼViajeros" form on 23 January 2023. This digital form needs to be completed before departure. What does this mean for tourist travel to Cuba?

Introduction DʼViajeros form

On 23 January 2023 the new DʼViajeros registration form, was introduced. Completing the form is required for all travellers to Cuba and aims to speed up checks at the Cuban border. The DʼViajeros form is not a travel authorisation and is separate from the Cuba visa, which is also required for travelling to the country. You can order the paper visa card for Cuba online and then receive it by post and complete it at home.

Completing the required DʼViajeros form is free of charge. By completing this form, travellers provide certain information to the Cuban immigration service. This includes passport details, information on travel plans and information related to the travellerʼs health. The form can be completed up to seven days before arrival in Cuba. When boarding the plane to Cuba, you must be able to show the form to airline staff. The digital DʼViajeros form replaces a paper form that previously had to be completed on the plane and handed over to customs after arrival in Cuba. Upon arrival in Cuba, travellers must also be able to present a valid Cuba visa.

Explanation on completing the form

The form needs to be completed on the website of the Cuban immigration service. The form is available in English, Spanish, French, German, Italian and Russian and can be completed on your phone, tablet or computer. The explanation in this article is based on the English form.

Step 1: Personal information

You open the form by clicking on the red button “Form Request” on the home page. You will then be taken to the page with the first part of the form. Here you need to enter your personal details. This includes the following information:

• First and last name
• Gender
• Date of birth and country of birth
• Issuing country of the passport with which you will enter the country *
• Passport number of that same passport **
• Country of residence
• Email address and phone number(s) ***

* Keep in mind that this concerns the country of issuance of the passport. For example, if your passport was issued abroad by a consulate or High Commission of the UK or Ireland, you have to enter the UK or Ireland, respectively.
** The passport number needs to be entered without spaces. A UK passport number always consists of nine digits. UK passports never contain the letter "O." Therefore, if there appears to be an "O" in the passport number, it is always the digit "0." Irish passport numbers start with the letter P or L, followed by another letter and seven digits.
*** The input field relating to the email address is not a required field, but it is still very important that you enter your email address. Moreover, make sure that the email address you enter is correct. This is because, at this email address, after filling out the form, you will receive an email containing a QR code that you need to show upon arrival in Cuba. If you have two phone numbers, for example, a landline and a mobile number, enter them both.

Step 2: Travel information

After you have entered in all your personal details, at the bottom of the page, you click on Next (the red button) to go to the next page. You then arrive at the second part of the form, where you need to enter several travel details, such as your arrival date and arrival location in Cuba (for example, an airport or harbour). Here you will also enter some information related to your flight to Cuba, such as your flight number and the name of your airline. Other information you should enter this section of the form are your country of origin and the purpose of your trip (for example, tourism).

Step 3: Health information

After you have filled in your travel information, you again click on Next. On the next page you have to enter some information regarding your health. It concerns the following information:

• The province where you will stay in Cuba.
• The place where you will stay (for example, a hotel or someoneʼs home).
  • If you select that you will stay at a hotel, you have to enter the name of the hotel.
  • If you select that you will stay at someoneʼs home or that you are renting a house or a room, you have to enter the address of where you will stay.

• Countries you have visited in the last 15 days. (optional).
• Any recent symptoms you have had in the last 15 days (optional).
• Information about your vaccination(s). If you have been vaccinated, you select this square. If you do this, you will then have to:
  • enter the name of the vaccine you received,
  • and state whether you are fully vaccinated or not.

• PCR test. If you are not (fully) vaccinated, you can select this square. If you do this, you then have to:
  • select the date the PCR test was performed,
  • enter the name of the lab that issued the test result,
  • and indicate what the result of the test was (positive or negative).

Step 4: Information for customs

To go to the next part of the form, you again click on Next. This will take you to a page where you can enter information for customs. In this part of the form, among other things, you must indicate whether you have unaccompanied baggage by selecting Yes or No. This page will also ask about the number of minors travelling with you. You will also be asked about currency and goods to be imported. Convertible currency may be freely imported up to a monetary amount worth 5,000 USD (it does not matter which currency is involved). Monetary amounts of 5,000 USD (or similar) or higher must be declared before you can import them. You can do this by selecting the currency under Currency and then entering the total value of the currency to be entered under Amount.

Certain items can be imported freely up to a value of 1,000 USD (or its equivalent in another currency). These include items falling in the category of “miscellaneous” such as clothing, shoes, jewellery, household items, perfume and other similar items. If you bring any of these items, you should enter the total estimated value and check the items in question in the list.

You should also indicate which equipment and other items you want to enter that do not fall within the category of “miscellaneous”. Items that appear in this list include musical instruments and furniture. For these types of items, you must enter the following information:

• The category to which the item belongs (e.g. Furniture).
• The name of the item to which it belongs (e.g. Bookcase).
• How many of these items you are bringing with you.
• The value of the item, denominated in US dollars (USD).
• For the items you import that require special authorisation in the form of an import licence from the Cuban ministry of Communication (MINCOM), you can enter the number of the licence (Import Technical Authorization Number). If this does not apply to you, you can leave this field empty.

Finally, you should indicate on this page whether you need to declare something at customs, by selecting the answer that is applicable to you, Yes or No.

Step 5: Statement of approval

After you have completed the fourth part of the form and checked all the information, you click on the red button that says Next. A page will then appear with a short statement of approval. If you agree with this statement, you indicate that you have entered all information in the form completely and truthfully. You should indicate your agreement with the statement by checking the box next to I agree. After you have checked the box, you need to enter another Captcha code and only then can you click the Next to go to the next page.

Step 6: Complete form

On the page you land on after agreeing to the statement of approval, you can still choose to amend the form, should this be necessary. If you have entered all the information accurately, this will not be necessary. By clicking on New form, you can also open a new form for another traveller from this page. You can view your completed DʼViajeros form by clicking View (PDF). If everything is correct, you should also have received an e-mail with this PDF file at the e-mail address you provided after completing the form. In the PDF document attached to this email, you will find a QR code that you need to show upon arrival in Cuba. All travellers must show their own QR code, which means that a separate form must be completed for each member of your travelling group, regardless of his or her age.

Do not forget the Cuba visa

For travel to Cuba, travellers are required to have a valid Cuba visa. In addition to the QR code on the DʼViajeros form, each traveller needs to be able to show a filled-out Cuba visa card upon arrival in Cuba. The Cuba visa card can easily be ordered online. After receiving the visa, you need to fill in your personal details on both halves of the visa card yourself. This includes your first and last name, your birthdate, your passport number and your nationality. The visa card consists of two almost identical parts. The first half is taken upon arrival in Cuba and the other half is handed in as soon as you leave Cuba again. With the Cuba visa, you can stay in Cuba for up to 90 days. The visaʼs authorised stay can be extended once for 90 days up to a maximum of 180 days.

If you are arriving in Cuba by cruise (ship) or travelling to Cuba from the USA, please keep in mind that you do not need a normal green visa card, but a special pink visa card. The validity of these two visas is the same, but the cost of the pink visa is higher. The normal visa costs £44.95 per person, while in the case of the pink visa you will pay £58.00 per person.

Please note: this news article about the visa for Cuba is more than one year old. It might contain outdated information and advice, and no rights can therefore be derived from this article. Are you going on a trip soon and do you wish to do know what rules currently apply? Read all about the up-to-date information about the visa for Cuba.