Easier visa access for St Kitts-Nevis citizens travelling to Canada

St Kitts and Nevis’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs has achieved another diplomatic victory that will save ordinary citizens thousands of dollars. Nationals wishing to visit Canada will no longer have to travel to Trinidad and Tobago or Barbados in order to obtain a Canadian visa, but can acquire one with ease from their home country.

Last year, Canada introduced biometrics as a requirement for Canadian visitor, study, and work visas, a move which initially meant applicants from St Kitts and Nevis would have to travel to the biometrics centre on the island of Trinidad. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, led by the department Minister and Premier of Nevis the Hon. Mark Brantley, responded quickly with a concerted diplomatic mission to remove the financial and time-consuming burden that had been placed on all citizens.

The first result came last year, when Canada agreed to set up a biometrics centre in Barbados, which is closer and easier to access than Trinidad. Yet, recognising that this would have continued to cost citizens time and money, Minister Brantley’s team took further steps. Such efforts culminated this month, with Canada agreeing to implement intinerant mobile biometrics centres in St Kitts and Nevis – where Canadian officers will come directly to the Federation in order to collect applicants’ biometrics. In the week commencing 26 August 2019, Canadian officials will be visiting the Federation for this purpose.

Not only does this diplomatic feat save ordinary families and residents thousands of dollars, but it further cements St Kitts and Nevis’ deepening relationship with its North American neighbour. Just at the beginning of this month, the two countries announced the expansion of the shared Canada/Caribbean Seasonal Agricultural Workers Programme (CCSAWP), which will enable Kittitians and Nevisians to spend two years in Canada developing their agricultural skills and experience.

Such successes exemplify the significant improvement of relations between St Kitts and Nevis and Canada, particularly as compared to 2014, when Canada imposed visa restrictions on citizens wishing to enter the country, something that can largely be attributed to Minister Brantley and his Foreign Ministry.