KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Passport, Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA) will be engaging members of the Jamaican Diaspora in Lauderhill, Florida, in the United States, with its second Access Jamaica Expo, from Friday, March 6 to Sunday, March 8.

The event is being held in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade and the Consulate General of Jamaica, Miami.

PICA’s Chief Executive Officer, Andrew Wynter, said the agency will be offering passport application and renewal, citizenship application and unconditional landing services to attendees of the Expo.

According to Wynter, the event will allow members of the Diaspora to reconnect with Jamaica and to learn more about the services of the agency.

“Many of them are unaware of many of the new services and products that we are offering, and it is a good way to engage them and also to get them to recognise that it is not difficult to access our services anymore. Services such as the online passport renewal, the online passenger declaration form and also that if one of their spouses wants to come and live, then we have permanent residency if they don’t want to become citizens. These are some of what we will be sharing with them,” he added.

In addition to PICA, Victoria Mutual Building Society, Western Union, JN Money, and law firm Legal Forum International will also be present at the Expo.

“VMBS will be talking about the various loans and money services that they can offer to persons, as they have a good presence in Florida, and JN will also be putting out the full suite of their services,” Wynter noted.

Legal Forum International’s CEO, Charmaine Smith Bonia, is encouraging members of the Diaspora to attend the Expo, and to receive advice, especially in light of recent changes to immigration rules in the United States.

“People can come and have their questions answered. A consultation is critical to filling out these new forms, and one mistake on a form stays on your file, so come and speak to our trusted legal advisers and we can explain what the new changes mean,” Smith Bonia said.

Services that will be offered by PICA include passport renewal and claim for Jamaican citizenship by descent. The passport renewal service will cost US$130, while the claim for Jamaican citizenship by descent is US$150.

—JIS