Attorney General Talauega Eleasalo Ale doesn’t believe Samoa’s new travel document requirements will have much effect on American Samoan travelers using Certificates of Identity.
Samoa s Consul General Auseugaefa Vaasatia Poloma Komiti announced on Wednesday that effective September 1st US passports with less than six months validity on the scheduled date of arrival in Samoa, will not be accepted for travel to Samoa.
In addition travelers using American Samoa Certificates of Identity that are valid for less than three months on the date of arrival to Samoa will not be allowed entry.
The policy, according to the Samoa Consul General is part of international protocols under the International Civil Aviation Organization – ICAO.
According to the announcement, passports would be the accepted travel document and CI’s should only be used for emergency purposes and not as a regular travel document.
American Samoa Attorney General Talauega Eleasalo Ale doesn’t believe there will be any impact on residents using CIs to travel to Samoa.
He says they currently issue a 6-month as well as a 12-month CI, adding that residents may purchase the 12-month CI for $100.
The 6-month CI costs $50.
According to the AG, most residents use Ceritficates of Identity for only one round trip travel to Samoa generally for stays of one week or less.
He says the 6 month validity on passports is not a problem either and says that American Samoa enforces the same requirement.
Samoa’s Consul General Auseugaefa tells KHJ News that a good number of travelers from the territory using CI’s use the document even when there’s less than two months or a month left before the expiry date.
He says whereas in the past, Samoa has allowed such travelers in because of the special ties with American Samoa, that will no longer be the case come Septemeber 1st.
Auseugaefa, who previously headed the Immigration Divison of the Samoa Prime Minister’s Office when he held the post of CEO of the Prime Minister’s Office says the new rule is being enforced after several discussions with the American Samoa AG’s office.
He says the protocols were agreed to in previous inter-Samoa talks.
