Car rentals Guatemala - Entry and Exit Requirements

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Entry and Exit Requirements

ENTRY AND EXIT REQUIREMENTS: A valid U.S. passport is required for all U.S. citizens to depart the U.S. for travel to Guatemala. Even if dual nationals are permitted to enter Guatemala on a second nationality passport, U.S. citizens returning to the United States from Guatemala are not allowed to board their flights without a valid U.S. passport. Certificates of Naturalization, birth certificates, driver's licenses, and photocopies are not acceptable alternative travel documents. While in Guatemala, U.S. citizens should carry their passports, or a photocopy of their passports, with them at all times.

An exit tax must be paid when departing Guatemala. The exit tax (currently $30) is generally included in an airline ticket price, but may be charged separately. There is an additional airport security fee (20 Quetzales, approximately $2.50) that all travelers must pay at the airport.

Minors under 18 traveling with a valid U.S. passport need no special permission from their parents to enter or leave Guatemala. U.S. citizens do not need a visa for a stay of 90 days or less (that period can be extended for an additional 180 days upon application to Guatemalan immigration). Recently, in an attempt to stay longer than 90 or 180 days, some foreign nationals, including U.S. citizens, have obtained false or fraudulent immigration stamps in their passports showing they left and re-entered Guatemala. Immigration officials have detained and fined several such individuals.

A U.S. citizen whose passport is lost or stolen in Guatemala must obtain a new passport at the U.S. Embassy as soon as possible and present it, together with a police report of the loss or theft, to the Dirección de Migración (Guatemalan immigration agency), Sub-director for Migratory Control, to obtain permission to depart Guatemala. The agency is located at 4 Calle 4-37, Zone 9. Office hours are weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ; telephone 360-8578, 360-8544, 360-8580 or 360-8540. No fee is charged by Guatemalan immigration for this service.

For further information regarding entry, exit and customs requirements, travelers should contact the Guatemalan Embassy at 2220 R Street, NW, Washington, DC 20008; telephone (202) 745-4952, extension 102; fax (202) 745-1908; e-mail at info@guatemala-embassy.org; Internet web site - http://www.guatemala-embassy.org or contact the nearest Guatemalan consulate (Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, or San Francisco).