How Long Can Americans Stay in St Maarten? Visa Rules (2026)
How long can Americans stay in St Maarten? Up to 90 days, visa-free, on a valid passport. The same visa-free 90-day entry applies to Canadian, UK and EU tourists on the Dutch side. To stay longer, to work, or to live here you need a residence permit. St Maarten visa requirements are simple for short trips and stricter for anyone planning to relocate, and I always tell clients to confirm the current rules with the Dutch consulate before they book.
- US, Canadian, UK and EU tourists enter St Maarten visa-free for up to 90 days on a valid passport.
- The passport you hold, not your US or Canadian green card, is what the border works from.
- To stay past 90 days, to work, or to live here, you apply for a Dutch-side residence permit.
- Most travelers land at Princess Juliana airport on the Dutch side, where the 90-day rule applies.
How long can Americans stay in St Maarten?
How long can Americans stay in St Maarten? Up to 90 days as a tourist, and no visa is required. The requirement I can state plainly is a valid passport. There is no visa to buy in advance and no application to file for a standard vacation or a property-scouting trip. Any airport or travel charges you run into are a separate matter from visa rules, so check current fees with your airline.
I live on the Dutch side and I get this question almost every week, usually from buyers who want to spend a real stretch of time here before they commit to anything. The short version is that you fly in, you show your passport, and you are cleared as a visitor. That window is long enough to see the island in more than one mood, which matters more than people expect. The light, the wind, the traffic and the noise all shift with the season and with the cruise schedule, and a neighborhood can feel like two different places depending on the week you visit.
How the 90-day window is counted, and whether a trip off-island changes anything, is worth confirming with the Dutch consulate or an immigration advisor before you plan a long trip. I am an agent, not an immigration authority, and I would rather you have that answer in writing from someone who is. What I do tell every client is to photograph their entry stamp and set a calendar reminder well before the 90 days are up, so the date never sneaks up on you while you are busy looking at houses.
I also would not build a long stay around the idea of hopping to the French side and back. The island is one landmass shared by two nations with no border checkpoint between them, so crossing is not an immigration event you can lean on. If you are thinking past three months, you are in residence-permit territory, which is a separate process entirely. I cover it further down.
What are the St Maarten visa requirements by nationality?
St Maarten visa requirements are the same for most Western travelers: US, Canadian, UK and EU citizens enter visa-free for up to 90 days on a valid passport. The passport you hold, meaning your nationality, is what the border works from. Where you currently live, where you pay taxes, and where your flight departed are separate questions.
Officially the Dutch side is Sint Maarten, so you will also see this written as Sint Maarten visa requirements. Same island, same visa-free entry for the nationalities in the table below.
| Traveler | Visa needed? | Max stay | Document |
|---|---|---|---|
| US citizens | No | 90 days | Valid passport |
| Canadian citizens | No | 90 days | Valid passport |
| UK citizens | No | 90 days | Valid passport |
| EU citizens | No | 90 days | Valid passport |
| Other nationalities | Sometimes | Varies | May need a visa, verify first |
If your passport is not on this list, do not assume anything. Some nationalities need a short-stay visa, and these rules move. The safest step is to check with the nearest Dutch consulate or with your airline before you pay for flights, and to take the answer from them rather than from a forum thread or from me.
Three things I flag for clients before they book a viewing trip:
- Dual nationals should decide which passport they are traveling on before check-in, then check the rule for that specific passport. The answer can differ between the two.
- Everyone in the party needs their own answer, children included. Do not assume one household gets one ruling.
- Timing matters. Verify before you buy tickets, not at the airline counter on the morning of the flight.
Do US or Canadian permanent residents need a visa for St Maarten?
From everything I have seen at the airport, entry turns on the passport you hold, not on your green card, but I am not an immigration authority. St Maarten visa requirements for US permanent residents and for Canadian permanent residents follow the nationality printed in your passport, so confirm your own case with the Dutch consulate before you book. If your passport is from a visa-free country, the 90-day window is the one you are working with. If your passport is from a visa-required country, a green card or a PR card may not change that.
This is the single most common mix-up I see. A US green card or a Canadian PR card proves where you live, not which passport rules apply to you at the St Maarten border. I have watched clients assume the card was a free pass and then scramble at the airline counter, which is a very bad hour to discover a document problem.
If you are a permanent resident traveling on a passport from a visa-required country, sort this out weeks ahead. Email the Dutch consulate, get the answer in writing, and carry both your passport and your residency card. I would never leave this to a gate agent’s best guess, and neither should you.
There is a practical knock-on effect for buyers. If a visa does turn out to apply to you, it changes how you plan the trip: you build in lead time, you keep your dates flexible, and you do not schedule a tight run of viewings around a document that has not landed yet. Tell me early if there is any question mark on your entry and I will pace the property side around it rather than the other way round.
What documents do you need to enter St Maarten?
The requirement I can state plainly is a valid passport, with no visa needed, for a stay of up to 90 days. Officers at Princess Juliana airport may also ask about your onward travel and where you are staying, and entry paperwork changes over time, so confirm the current document list with your airline or the nearest Dutch consulate before you fly. I am an agent, not an immigration authority, and I would rather point you to the right desk than guess.
Here is the practical checklist I give clients flying in to view property. Treat it as preparation, not as a legal list.
- Passport, valid for your stay. Validity margins differ by country, so confirm your own country’s specific rule before flying.
- Your travel plan. Know your departure date and keep the booking reachable, because officers can ask when you are leaving.
- Where you are staying. The hotel, the villa, or the address, plus a way to be reached while you are on the island.
- Any entry form your airline or the airport asks you to complete, filled in before you land rather than in the queue.
In practice, most US and Canadian visitors clear immigration without drama. The questions are routine: how long are you staying, where, and when do you fly out. Answer clearly, keep your documents reachable rather than buried in a checked bag, and you are through.
Two things that are not entry requirements but make a buying trip work: get connected the moment you land, because I will be sending you addresses and last-minute schedule changes, and leave real gaps between viewings. The island is small but the roads are not fast, and a day packed edge to edge is how people end up seeing five properties and remembering none of them.
What if you want to stay longer than 90 days?
If you want to stay longer than 90 days, you need a residence permit. The visa-free window is for tourists, and it is not a path to living here. To work, to retire, or to actually settle on the island, you apply through the Dutch-side immigration process, which is separate from simply flying in as a visitor.
The 90-day stamp is a vacation, not a runway to living here. If you are serious about staying, start on the permit early, because the clock does not pause while you get organized.Wei Landgraf, Dutch-side agent
I walk buyers and relocating families through this regularly, and the pattern repeats: the property decision moves fast and the paperwork moves slowly. Requirements and document lists change, so I point people to current sources rather than to my memory of what someone was told last year. If you are weighing a long stay or a move, my guide to St Maarten residency options for retirees and the detailed US citizen residence permit application steps walk through what to expect. For the bigger picture of relocating, see my notes on moving to SXM. Confirm the legal specifics with an immigration advisor or the Dutch-side immigration office.
One distinction worth holding in your head: buying property and getting permission to live here are two different tracks, and they do not depend on each other. On the Dutch side there is no restriction on foreign ownership, so you can own freehold without being a resident. A civil-law notary is mandatory on the transaction and handles the title search, the deed, the escrow and the registration. That notary is exactly the right person for the property side and exactly the wrong person for your immigration questions. Ask me about the house, ask an immigration advisor about the permit, and get both answers confirmed before you make plans that depend on either.
Dutch side or French side: does the entry point change the rules?
Almost everyone arrives at Princess Juliana airport, which sits on the Dutch side and is the region’s main hub for direct flights from the US and Europe. That means the Dutch-side rule is the one most visitors meet on arrival: a valid passport, no visa, up to 90 days. The island is one landmass shared by two nations with no border checkpoint between them, so once you are here you move between the Dutch and French sides freely.
Because there is no manned land border, your entry is processed wherever you actually land or dock. Fly into SXM and you are handled under Dutch-side rules. The French side, Saint-Martin, is part of France and the EU, and its longer-stay rules are its own, so anyone planning an extended stay on the French side should verify those requirements separately with the French authorities rather than assuming the Dutch answer carries over. For a plain-language comparison of the two sides, see how the Dutch and French sides differ.
For a short vacation, none of this matters much. You land, you get your visa-free window, and you can have lunch in Grand Case on the French side and dinner in Philipsburg on the Dutch side without showing a document in between. The distinction starts to bite the moment you cross from tourist to resident, or from renting to owning.
That is where the two sides really diverge, and it is worth knowing before you fall for a listing. Together they make up 87 sq km: about 34 sq km on the Dutch side and about 53 sq km on the French side. Dutch-side buyer closing costs run about 4 to 6 percent of the price, roughly 4 percent transfer tax plus about 1 to 1.5 percent notary fee, and there is no annual property tax. The French side is generally more expensive to buy and to hold, with transaction costs often in the 7 to 8 percent range plus annual taxes. Your visa is the same 90 days either way as a tourist. The side you buy on changes the math for years, and that is a conversation to have with me before you get attached to a view.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you need a visa to visit St Maarten?
No. US, Canadian, UK and EU tourists do not need a visa for St Maarten. You enter on a valid passport and can stay up to 90 days. Other nationalities should confirm whether a short-stay visa applies before booking. I always suggest verifying the current rules with the Dutch consulate, since I am an agent and not an immigration authority.
How long can Americans stay in St Maarten without a visa?
Americans can stay up to 90 days without a visa, using a valid US passport. The visa-free window covers tourism and short stays. How the days are counted, and whether a trip off-island changes anything, is worth confirming with the Dutch consulate or an immigration advisor. To stay longer, to work, or to live on the island, you apply for a residence permit through the Dutch-side immigration process.
What are the St Maarten visa requirements for Canadians?
Canadian citizens follow the same rule as Americans: no visa for stays up to 90 days, just a valid passport. St Maarten visa requirements for Canadian permanent residents follow the passport you hold rather than your Canadian residency, so confirm with the Dutch consulate if your passport is from a visa-required country.
Do US permanent residents need a visa for St Maarten?
From what I see at the airport, entry turns on your passport rather than your green card, but I am not an immigration authority. If your passport is from a visa-free country such as the US, Canada, the UK or an EU member, the 90-day window applies. If it is from a visa-required country, a visa may still apply. Verify your own case with the Dutch consulate before you book.
What documents do I need to enter St Maarten?
The requirement I can state plainly is a valid passport, with no visa needed, for a stay of up to 90 days. Officers at Princess Juliana airport may also ask about your onward travel and where you are staying, and entry paperwork changes, so confirm the current document list with your airline or the nearest Dutch consulate before you fly.
Can I stay in St Maarten longer than 90 days?
Yes, but you need a residence permit. The 90-day visa-free window is for tourists only. If you plan to relocate, retire, or work here, start the residence permit process early and confirm the steps with an immigration advisor before your 90 days run out.
