The Consulate of Trinidad and Tobago is located on the fourth floor of the building. In order to…read moreenter the building you must show your ID to the security guards in the lobby. The entrance is marked by a shiny bronze plaque. There is a security guard on this level as well. He was very courteous and acts as a concierge- finding out what services you need and directing you accordingly. There is a comfortable and spacious waiting room. I went to renew my passport and was happy to find that I was there for less than 2 hours. One of the lady's at the desk was able to direct me to a post office nearby where I was able to obtain a money order. The cost of a passport renewal is $72 if you want it mailed to you, or $60 if you are able to pick it up at the Consulate. How to renew your passport: (if you have no changes) 1. Obtain the application form from the consulate * note- I printed an application I found online however, they wanted me to complete one on legal size paper which they provided * You must provide 2 references from Trinidad who have known you for more than 3 years 2. Have a color photocopy of your passport page with your biographical information (I saw that there is a place in the lobby that can provide this) 3. Get a money order (as I described above) 4. Bring your original passport If you are mailing in your application, then you submit photos. If you go there in person, they will take your photo there. Once your application is in and photo is taken then you just need to check online to see when it is ready. Overall- not a bad experience. Everyone I encountered was polite and professional, and the process was pretty efficient.

I've been calling the consulate for almost two months with no answer. Left messages, no response…read more This is the worst I've ever seen. Ridiculous.

When I came to get a copy of my birth certificate, the people working here were so rude. Simple…read morequestions were met with dismissive glares and curt replies. On top of that the fees made no sense at all, it seemed like there was an extra charge for everything. Get in line and pay, reach the front and pay. Not really but you get what I mean.

Everyone working in this office is lazy and corrupt. And I say this as a Vietnamese person myself…read more They are supposed to work from 9am - 5.30pm. When I arrived at 1.30pm I was greeted by nobody, and when I knocked on the door, they said they have lunch from 1-3pm. So I waited. When they finally started working, the person was very rude. Out of thin air she told me I needed to pay a $50 fee in order to get my document processed. There are no prices written anywhere, and they can just pull prices out of their behinds. Low and behold, this was not my first and only visit here. Every time it's something else. If you give them lots of money, they will process very quickly, but I am not playing this game with my own people. Makes me so embarrassed for my own country. I wish those workers the worst.

Appointment to renew a passport was done via email (no walk-ins). Reply was within 24hours with…read morewidely available dates/timing together with detailed information. At appointment day, approach the counter to check in then provide all your documents and payment. My new passport was ready within 20mins! The officer (Malay gentleman) was professional, efficient and extremely nice. If only all government services operates like the Immigration Office at the Malaysian Consulate, we would all have longer lives.

Very easy process to renew passport. Did it twice in last 8yrs and they were both awesome…read moreexperience. First, make sure you email them beforehand so you get your appointment slot. You can try to obtain an earlier slot by communicating with them via email. Once somebody else cancelled their slot, they will release those slots by first come first serve style via email. On D-day, arrive the consulate on-time or before the actual time. Step up to counter and tell them your appointment time. They will check you in and ask you to sit/ wait. They will call your name so you step up to counter, hand in all documents and cash/ money order, and take a photo onsite! No extra payment needed! After that, sit for an hour or hang out for an hour the. come back to pickup the new passport! That's it! Thank you for your service officers!

Had to get a visa for vacation. I expected long lines and staff asking many questions. It was…read morenothing like that. They are quick and efficient. Getting a visa is not a big deal.

I agree with Ester. This is by far one of the more efficient government offices I have been in…read more Pleasant; bustling; orderly; interested in your request. Clerks who DON'T weigh 350 pounds; clerks who sit up straight in their chairs; collars starched; and speak crisp; lucid English. Nothing like any standard New York City agency. Leave it to the Brazilians to do even this minor little thing, better than we can.

Just a thought for the people who report having been treated rudely here: The Thai people are known…read morefor their politeness; therefore if someone at the Consulate treats you rudely, chances are that you're being rude to them out of ignorance. Did you know, for example, that it's possible to be rude to Thai people simply by showing up...in the wrong clothes? If you don't know anything about Thai culture, customs, and traditions, please visit the consulate's website and look it over thoroughly before going there. Thai is the primary language used on the website, so unless you read Thai you're going to have to just skim past all that and look for English text and pictographs, such as the ones about *what not to wear to the Consulate*. Many articles of clothing commonly worn in the US (especially but not exclusively by women) are considered offensive by the Thai people, and if you show up wearing such clothing when the website requests that you do not, that will be considered rude and disrespectful behavior on your part, to which you might expect a rude response. (A rude response would not be considered skillful from a Buddhist perspective, but individual Thai people, despite being born and raised in a Buddhist country, are, like everyone else, at differing stages along the path of development and many have not yet quelled their own unskillful behaviors.) Basically, if you want to be treated with respect by the people you meet at the Thai consulate, treat them with respect by finding out what they consider disrespectful and refraining from doing that. Thai consulate, Thai rules. Oh...one reviewer says they were treated rudely by someone over the phone. Hmm. I'm not sure what you could do about that...

This place has done the best business for me and Thai people, just be patient, they are less staff…read morethan Thai people in NY. P.S. when you don't understand the system, doesn't mean they are not good at their job. Just read and study the website before wanting to contact them.

I'm sorry, but there needs to be more reviews on here. The following is a summary of my…read moreexperiences , having gone 4 or 5 times in 4 months. This was for the purpose of document authentication (NY birth certificate -- translated and original, and POA), so that these documents can be recognized as forms of ID in Taiwan. TECO also does visa applications / renewals, I believe. Several visits in, I was trying to figure out the purpose of TECO. One thing that I can tell you is that they absolutely CANNOT verify or register your Chinese name, even if you get it notarized or use a translation service. To do that requires a visit to the embassy or some agency in Taiwan. As far as I can tell, TECO can authenticate the Taiwanese POA form (on their website), as well as the specific birth certificate in the state, and a notarized translated copy (with the notary being in that state -- for example, NY TECO can authenticate documents notarized by NY notaries). Documents in other states have to be presented to the other TECO or mailed there, with all the documents being notarized. I know this because I tried to do my siblings' documents, 2 of which are in California For the appointment, you have to first make it on their website -- with the earliest appointment being 9 AM. For your own ID, you should bring your passport and a photocopy of your passport. You should also have the application form filled out, stating why you are there. If you need more copies, then you should specify it on the form. Each document (or copy) being authenticated is $15. If your appointment is at 9 am, I would actually recommend going earlier. That appointment time is actually for a block of people, and not just for you. The security guard will check your appointment email, give you a number, and you will sit to the side. Eventually you'll be called up to go to the 4th floor. On the 4th floor, another security guard will ask you why you're there and ask to see the application. Then you will go on a line -- one line for document authentication; the other is for visas. At this point, make sure you have some thick skin. They do speak English, but they are not very nice. In fact, they're not very nice speaking in Chinese either. Part of the problem is that the TECO website is pretty terrible as well, and it's hard to get exact information regarding what you need. Anyway, for whatever your goal is -- you need to go through these obviously disgruntled employees at the counter. Almost like the DMV, but not nearly as pleasant. As for what you need, I think the most important is your passport AND A COPY of the passport. The last two times I went they would not make a photocopy even though they obviously have a copier there (I was told to walk 2 blocks down to Staples to get literally 1 copy). The first time I went, they didn't even look at the application form, but then they required it the next couple times. I also wrote a check the first time, but had to do cash the next several times For verification of birth certificates, you may have to bring a copy of your parents Taiwanese passports and/or ID cards. They do not need to be notarized. I'm not really sure if they really do anything with them though. When you get through this, I was able to get the documents in probably 7-10 days. I would get an email saying I either had to pick it up or that it's being sent. If you don't want to go back, you can include an addressed USPS priority mail envelope with $9.90 in stamps (don't forget your tracking #). For pickup in person, you would do that in the lobby on Tuesday or Friday at 3 pm. You'll see a bunch of people waiting / standing, and someone will come down and read Chinese names aloud and you have to just go get your documents. In the end, what do you get? They will put together a document for what you submitted. In the front is a document that says it was inspected at TECO, and there's a seal that's stamped across all the other pages. It actually does have some ID numbers in there that you can verify on a Taiwanese government website -- but I'd be surprised if they actually scanned it to the system. I tried to make this review informative and hopefully helpful, but I think the reality is that TECO is an old fashioned bureaucracy, and if it's not clear, I was told something different each time and each time was absolutely terrible. You also may think how hard is it to fill out a form? Be prepared for the agent to white out things on your form. The cherry on top was when she told me to refill something out -- and when I used white out, she told me I'm not supposed to do that. She luckily accepted this, but I'm sure on another day I'd be told to go to Staples again. In the end, I preferred 30 minutes of pain, which unfortunately I did several times. To anyone that has to do this, I salute you. Welcome to the TECO bashing club -- it consists of over 98% of the people that go there

absolutely amazing this was the best day of my life. the…read morebirth of my child pales in comparison to this. first of all, i walked in and saw the great taiwanese flag, it was glorious, then, i walked in further to see the beautiful stairs 1000/10 def recommend

I submitted my application three and half months in advance. Yet I only got my visa one to two…read moreweeks before my trip. The officials here were very responsive to my emails and kept me updated. It was a bit stressful even though I ended up getting my visa in the end.

I have conducted business and personal dealings with many consulates in the New York Metropolitan…read morearea. I can safely say this is- by far- the most helpful and transparent consulate I have dealt with. I fondly recall a day when an emergency work obligation resulted in my needing to change an appointment time at the last minute. The Consul General and her staff could not have been more gracious, sincerely helpful and understanding. To be sure, the consulate´s outreach efforts and cultural program offerings have only been enhanced under the stewardship of Ms. Davies and her staff. The professionalism and inspiring humanity you will encounter at this Consulate are exemplary in more ways than one.

Get the Globak Precheck and you'll never regret it…read more Some credit cards actually give you the fee back for Precheck so it's a no brainer at this point.

I should've done this ages ago! Zip right through security lines. Best yet, no need to take your…read moreshoes or belt off, stuff out of your pockets (except cell phone), or electronics out of your bags. Bing. Bang. Bong.