St Kitts and Nevis upgrades biometric passport and issuance system

The government of St Kitts and Nevis is shifting its efforts towards a paperless travel document issuance process with the rollout of a new biometric passport and ePassport Issuing Control System (ePICS) in November 2024.

According to the official announcement, the new system, developed in collaboration with Canadian Bank Note Company, will introduce an upgraded ePassport that incorporates security measures.

Senior officials from the Ministry of National Security, including Permanent Secretary Glenroy Blanchette, Chief Immigration Officer Sheldon Jeffers, and Passport Office Supervisor Floretta Saunders, recently visited Canada to finalize the system with representatives of Canadian Bank Note Company.

The nearly two-decade-long partnership between the Ministry and the Canadian firm has culminated in the forthcoming transition to a largely paperless operating environment. Additionally, the new ePassport includes a polycarbonate data page.

The government is taking steps to participate in the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Public Key Directory (PKD), the system that allows aviation authorities to confirm the validity of electronic passports.

“On September 5th, 2024 the federation became the newest member of ICAO PKD out of one hundred and ninety-three (193) member countries worldwide, and only the third country in CARICOM,” Jeffers adds.

The ICAO PKD plays the central role in the global authentication of modern passports, ensuring that biometrics and other digital information stored on the embedded chip can be verified in real-time at border controls worldwide.

Permanent Secretary Glenroy Blanchette stated that the updates adhere to ICAO Doc 9303, which establishes international standards for machine-readable travel documents. This alignment ensures global compatibility while enhancing the security and efficiency of international travel.

Elsewhere, St Kitts & Nevis government officials also gathered for a consultation at the National IT Centre in the capital Basseterre to discuss the development of a digital ID authentication system, and will be using Taiwan’s IT and digital governance knowledge to implement the project. A competition was also set for the people of St Kitts and Nevis to design the digital ID card.

Article Topics

biometric passport  |  Canadian Bank Note Company  |  Caribbean  |  ICAO  |  ICAO PKD  |  identity document  |  St Kitts and Nevis