U.S. Relations With Sint Maarten
More information about St. Maarten is available from other Department of State publications and other sources listed at the end of this fact sheet.
U.S.- ST. MAARTEN RELATIONS
St. Maarten is an autonomous part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The Kingdom of the Netherlands is responsible for the conduct of foreign affairs, including with the United States, and its embassies and consulates issue visas for travel to the island.
Tourism is the mainstay of St. Maarten’s economy. Approximately 425,000 stay-over tourists visited St. Maarten in 2011 with nearly 60% of those from North America. An additional 1,656,159 tourists visited the island that year as cruise ship passengers. In 2011, St. Maarten was ranked the 154th largest supplier of imports to the United States and the 104th largest purchaser of exports from the United States by value.
The U.S. Consulate General in Curacao is responsible for the day-to-day management of relations with the Dutch Caribbean, which includes Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten. Due to the strategic location of the Dutch Caribbean for the United States, the consulate deals with issues such as securing U.S. borders, countering terrorism, and fighting international crime, especially narcotics trafficking and human trafficking. The consulate provides a variety of services to U.S. citizens; it also can issue non-immigrant visas for certain travelers to the U.S. who wish to visit, work, or study for a temporary period.
The consulate was opened in 1793. It was one of the earliest U.S. consulates, reflecting the importance of Caribbean trade to the new United States. The Consul General resides in the historic Roosevelt House, which was the local government's gift of property to the United States in 1950 as an expression of gratitude for U.S. protection during World War II.
The Consul General in Curacao is James R. Moore; other principal officials are listed in the Department's Key Officers List.
The Netherlands' embassy in the U.S. is at 4200 Linnean Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C. 20008; tel: 877-388-2443; fax: 202-362-3430.
More information about St. Maarten is available from the Department of State and other sources, some of which are listed here:
Department of State Key Officers List
CIA World Factbook St. Maarten Page
U.S. Consulate General: Curacao
Human Rights Reports
Trafficking in Persons Reports
Narcotics Control Reports
Travel and Business Information