LJUBLJANA, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- The Slovenian Interior Ministry has started issuing new residence permits with added security features to citizens of the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland.

The new permit was introduced on Jan. 1 this year, the Slovenian Press Agency STA reported.

The new measures was taken aiming at addressing certain difficulties experienced by EEA and Swiss citizens with the old ones when crossing borders, especially during identification.

The new cards have a broad multi-colored thread which is visible only under ultraviolet light, and a hologram stretching across the entire document.

There are around 24,000 persons in Slovenia eligible for new permits, for which they will have to pay less than 10 euros (12.04 U.S. dollars), said STA.

The Interior Ministry also reported that in five years, 65,000 foreigners attended an integration program for immigrants, includes Slovenian language courses.

A majority of the foreigners came from Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia, Macedonia and Russia.