Saint Lucian nationals are facing increasing difficulty securing United States visas, with one recent denial affecting a high-ranking government official, according to multiple local media reports.
Stephen Fevrier, former OECS Ambassador to the UN who is currently affiliated with St Lucia’s United Workers Party (UWP), confirms the reports to IMI Daily, saying that US visa officials have also declined applications from Saint Lucian nationals who “previously held visas without issue.”
The denials affect ordinary citizens, “including students,” says Fevrier, though he notes it’s difficult to estimate exact denial rates or patterns since consular authorities “haven’t disclosed specific metrics on visa approvals or rejections.”
The available information, he adds, “suggests a broader tightening of scrutiny” rather than a “formally declared, category-specific restriction.”
High-Profile Denial Spotlights Emerging Pattern
Concerns about rising denials intensified following a recent incident in which US consular officials refused to issue a visa to Richard Frederick, a St Lucian MP representing the Castries Central constituency in Saint Lucia’s capital, who also serves as a government minister.
Unitedpac St Lucia News recently reported that consular staff told Frederick during his embassy appointment in Barbados that they could not issue him a visa “at this time,” citing multiple sources familiar with the exchange.
The report said consular officials denied visas to several other Saint Lucian applicants during appointments that same morning at the US Embassy in Barbados.
Frederick identified himself as a government minister during the interview, but this disclosure did not change the outcome.
Fevrier indicated that he views such incidents as evidence that Washington may have intensified its screening across all categories of Saint Lucian applicants rather than targeting specific groups.
Escalating EU and US Pressure
Two of Saint Lucia’s neighbors now face visa bans imposed by Washington starting January 1, 2026.
A December 16 US presidential proclamation cited national security concerns linked to the CIPs operated by Antigua and Barbuda and Dominica.
Washington excluded Saint Lucia, along with Grenada and Saint Kitts and Nevis, from this proclamation, even though they operate similar programs.
Fevrier says this reprieve may prove temporary. He noted that the absence of a residency requirement would lead to continuing scrutiny of regional CIPs.
The EU Commission has also adopted an increasingly stringent position toward Caribbean CIPs, creating layered pressure for Saint Lucia.
The Commission’s eighth annual Visa Suspension Mechanism report stated that countries operating such programs give grounds for suspending their visa-free status, regardless of the programs’ structure.
Fevrier explains that the regulation also lowers the threshold for triggering visa suspension from a 50% increase to just 30% in indicators such as refusals, overstays, asylum claims, or serious criminal offenses.
For CBI countries, this means that problematic travel behavior can “reach the EU trigger point quickly,” he cautions.
Critical Juncture for Saint Lucia
Fevrier emphasizes that Saint Lucia’s CIP is critical for generating government revenue and funding national development.
As such, he stresses that “it’s important to find a workable solution” because the program serves as an essential instrument for “infrastructure investment, climate-resilience projects, and social development initiatives.”
“Whether Saint Lucia’s CBI program can survive under visa restrictions will depend on how quickly, credibly, and completely the country implements reforms,” Fevrier says.
Fevrier adds that to chart a sustainable path forward, St Lucia will “need to ensure” the long-term resilience of its economic strategy “with or without CBI.”
