Local Laws

CRIMINAL PENALTIES: While you are traveling in Guyana, you are subject to its laws.  Foreign laws and legal systems can be vastly different from our own.  Persons violating Guyanese laws, even unknowingly, may be expelled, arrested, or imprisoned.  Penalties for possessing, using, or trafficking in illegal drugs in Guyana are severe, and convicted offenders can expect long jail sentences and heavy fines.  If you break local laws in Guyana, your U.S. passport won’t help you avoid arrest or prosecution. 

There are also some things that might be legal in the country you visit, but still illegal in the United States.  You can be prosecuted in the United States for engaging in sexual conduct with children or for using or disseminating child pornography in a foreign country regardless of the legality of these activities under that country’s laws.  Counterfeit and pirated goods are illegal in the United States and if you purchase them in a foreign country, you may be breaking local law as well. 

Arrest notifications in host country: While some countries will automatically notify the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate if a U.S. citizen is detained or arrested in that country, others may not.  To ensure that the United States is aware of your circumstances, request that the police and prison officials notify the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate as soon as you are arrested or detained overseas.

SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES: Air Travel: Flights on all airlines can be delayed, rerouted, or canceled without notice.  Air travel within Guyana generally depends on demand, and therefore domestic airlines may cancel flights that are not full or passengers may be expected to pay for the empty seats. In addition, due to the risks of checked baggage being lost, delayed, or rifled through, you should hand carry medications, valuables, and perishable items and make sure to carry a prescription for any needed medications.

Illegal Drugs:Travelers to the United States from Guyana have found narcotics planted in their luggage, both in bags registered under their names and in items they were carrying for others. Travelers should never carry any items not personally purchased and packed, and should take care that no additional bags are registered in their name. Every year several U.S. citizens are arrested at the airport attempting to carry drugs to the United States. Drug laws in Guyana are strict, pre-trial detention can last for years, and final sentences are lengthy.

Travel in the Interior: The interior of the country is largely not policed and emergency services are generally not available. There is no cellular phone reception in much of the interior. Travelers visiting the interior should consider bringing their own safety gear, such as life jackets, first aid kits, and communications equipment (e.g., satellite phone). 

Flooding: There are two main rainy seasons in Guyana (December - January and May - July). However, even at other times of the year, heavy rains are possible and flash flooding can occur. The incidence of waterborne diseases increases during periods of flooding.

Drinking Water: The water supply system throughout the country should be considered contaminated, and travelers should treat or boil water before consumption, or purchase bottled water.

Changing Currency and Credit Card Use: You should have enough cash or travelers checks to meet your expenses. Although credit cards are accepted at certain institutions in Georgetown, travelers should consider the risk of using credit cards and ATM cards to withdraw cash from an overseas account, due to a high risk of stolen PIN data.

You are advised to exchange currency only with banks, hotels, and licensed money exchange houses ("cambios"). Many foreigners who opt to exchange money on the streets, lured by promises of higher exchange rates, become victims of fraud or receive counterfeit currency. Foreigners have been mugged after completing bank transactions. There is no legal recourse unless the police are successful in apprehending the perpetrator; even then there is no guarantee that the money will be recovered.

Firearms: Guyanese customs authorities may enforce strict regulations concerning temporary importation into or export from Guyana of items such as firearms. If you plan to take your firearms or ammunition to or through Guyana, you should contact officials at the Embassy of Guyana to learn about local regulations and fully comply with those regulations before traveling. Even harmless items like jewelry that looks like ammunition could result in arrest. You may consult the U.S. Customs and Border Protection web site for information on importing firearms into the United States.

Wildlife: Many plants and animals common in Guyana are globally threatened or endangered species protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).  More information may be found at the CITES web site. The Guyanese Ministry of Agriculture will grant an export permit for taking an exotic bird out of the country only to those persons who have been legally residing in Guyana for more than one year. There have been several U.S. citizens arrested for attempting to leave Guyana carrying birds without having obtained an export permit.

If you have legally resided in Guyana for more than a year and plan to take back to the United States any birds or animals, including pets that are listed in CITES Appendices I, II, and III, you must also have an appropriate U.S. import permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). This is a U.S. regulation that applies regardless of distinctions among the three CITES Appendices. Fact sheets and permit applications can be obtained from the USFWS Office of Management Authority, Branch of Permits, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203, telephone (703) 358-2104, fax (703) 358-2281.

WOMEN TRAVELER INFORMATION:  If you are a woman traveling abroad, please review our travel tips for Women Travelers.

LGBT RIGHTS: The laws of Guyana define marriage as a legal union between a man and a woman; there is no explicit protection from discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity under the Constitution of Guyana.

Consensual same-sex sexual relations are criminalized in Guyana for men.  A male who commits “any act of gross indecency with another male person,” if found to be guilty, can be imprisoned for up to a maximum of two years.   Anal intercourse is punishable with a maximum sentence of life in prison.  Although the U.S. Embassy is not aware of any recent arrests or prosecutions for such activities, they remain illegal.  There are no laws concerning same-sex sexual activity between women.  It is common for police to use the law to intimidate men who are gay or perceived to be gay. LGBT persons who are victims of crime in Guyana are sometimes afraid to file police reports because they are fearful that charges could be brought against them because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.  For more detailed information about LGBT rights in Guyana you may review the State Department’s annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices.  For further information on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) travel, please read our LGBT Travel Information page.

ACCESSIBILITY: While in Guyana, individuals with disabilities may find accessibility and accommodation very different from that in the United States. The constitution mandates the state to take measures to protect persons with disabilities but there is no law that mandates provision of access for such persons. There is also a lack of appropriate infrastructure that provides access to both public and private facilities.