St Kitts-Nevis woos European and UAE investors   Wednesday, June 23, 2010/ www.caribbeannetnews.com   BASSETERRE,St Kitts (CUOPM) -- St Kitts and Nevis is wooing investors from Europe and the United Arab Emirates. Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Dr Denzil Douglas, is in Zurich, holding discussions with leading investors from Switzerland, other neighbouring European countries and the United Arab Emirates on investment opportunities in international financial services, hospitality and tourism services, telecom and energy services and real estate and construction services.  Douglas will be guest of honour at a Kittitian-Nevisian reception on Wednesday night. In Geneva, the St. Kitts and Nevis leader will hold discussions with representatives of the Swiss Federal Government which recently gave its approval for the opening of a St Kitts and Nevis Consulate General in Zurich. This is expected to expand the Federation’s representation beyond Geneva where there is an Honorary Consul for the past several years.   Green passport no longer accepted for intra-regional travel   Saturday, June 5, 2010/ www.caribbeannetnews.com   BASSETERRE, St Kitts, (SKNIS) -- The Ministry of National Security has advised citizens of St Kitts and Nevis to apply immediately for a CARICOM Passport which must now be used for intra-regional travel. The CARICOM passport, was introduced in St Kitts and Nevis in 2005 with the Governor General Sir Cuthbert Sebastian and the Prime Minister Denzil Douglas becoming the first two citizens to receive the new machine readable travel document. At that time, the general public was strongly encouraged to upgrade their passports to the new one.   The green passport on the left was replaced by the blue CARICOM Passport. The clipped section at the top right of the green passport indicates that the owner upgraded to the machine readable ducoment on the right. (SKNIS photo) The machine readable feature is in line with security specifications preferred by the international community. This makes it more difficult to forge and also allows for easy access to the relevant traveler information. A press release from the Government Ministry noted that “as of June 30, 2010, the non-machine readable passport (green book) will no longer be in circulation for intra-regional travel (to countries within the Caribbean Community).” It continued that “nationals, who must have a visa to gain entry into a foreign country (such as the United States), must also ensure that they are in possession of the new machine readable passport.” The Ministry of National Security further advised that nationals must adhere to the established immigration requirements to gain legal entry into countries that have a visa waiver programme with St. Kitts and Nevis such as the United Kingdom, the Schengen states of the European Union or Canada. The release further warned that immigration and airline officials will be closely scrutinizing all travel documents as part of the routine processing of passengers to ensure compliance with the regulations. The application process for a CARICOM passport requires a completed form, two passport sized photos, a birth certificate and a stamp fee of $85 for persons over the age of 16. Applicants under the age of 16 need $50 in stamps. Other requirements are necessary in particular cases.