As economic citizenship becomes more popular, new players are entering the golden passport market. This stimulates competition and increases the range. What can you choose from right now? Let's try to figure it out.
This is the second part of a series of three articles that was created as a complete guide for Russians, Belarusians and Ukrainians who would like to apply for economic citizenship. :
- What is economic citizenship?
- How to determine if a country offers citizenship by investment?
- What gives a second passport to an investor?
- Citizenship by investment should not be confused with this…
- Where can I get citizenship for money?
This time the following tasks will be covered:
- Where can I get citizenship for money?
- How to get the right to economic citizenship?
Where can I get citizenship for money?
Citizenship by investment programs come and go regularly. But there are two exceptions. This is, firstly, the most "ancient" such scheme, which has been launched in St. Kitts and Nevis for more than three and a half decades and is still operating without interruption. Second, the Dominica program, which has been in existence for over a quarter of a century.
All other schemes are less than ten years old. However, over the past two decades, many states have come and gone from the investor passport market, including the Comoros (the country's offer is no longer available) and Grenada (restarted its program in 2013 after more than a decade). Some other states, such as Montenegro and Turkey, have only recently entered the market under consideration.
Others, such as Cyprus, have a limit on the number of applications they process each year. There are programs that face political resistance, such as the Moldovan scheme, which was temporarily suspended until the second half of 2020, and then the program was completely curtailed.
The bottom line is that nothing is permanent in this industry. But, if we take the current proposals, they look like this:
Malta Citizenship by Investment
- Passport processing time: more than 12 months (one year in resident status)
- Minimum investment: € 880 (price valid until October 000)
- Financial options: hybrid model requiring donation and investment in bonds + residential real estate (housing can also be rented)
- Visa-free access to more than 18 dozen destinations, including the USA
- The best passport for visa-free travel around the world and the most affordable citizenship by investment of the EU country
Cypriot citizenship by investment
- Passport processing time: 7-8 months
- Minimum investment: € 2
- Financial Options: A hybrid model requiring a donation and investment in real estate or business
- Visa-free access to more than 17 dozen destinations and hassle-free travel within the EU (may provide visa-free entry to the US soon)
- The fastest investor passport in the EU
Montenegrin citizenship by investment
- Passport processing time: 3-6 months
- Minimum investment: $ 350
- Financial options: business investment or hybrid model requiring donation and investment in real estate
- Visa-free access to more than 12 dozen destinations, including the Schengen states
- The best passport to live in Europe
Commonwealth of Dominica Citizenship by Investment
- Passport processing time: 3-4 months
- Minimum investment: $ 100
- Financial options: donation, real estate
- Visa-free access to 139 jurisdictions, including the Schengen states
- Best passport for single applicants
Saint Lucia Citizenship by Investment
- Passport processing time: 3-4 months
- Minimum investment: $ 100
- Financial options: donation, real estate, bonds or business project
- Visa-free access to 145 states, including Schengen member jurisdictions
- The most affordable passport for bachelors and the cheapest citizenship by investing in the purchase of government bonds
Antigua and Barbuda citizenship by investment
- Passport processing time: 3-4 months
- Minimum investment: $ 130
- Financial options: donation, real estate or business
- Visa-free access to one and a half hundred jurisdictions, including the Schengen states
- The best passport for a family and tax reduction (there is no PFD in the country for fiscal residents)
Citizenship of Saint Kitts and Nevis by Investment
- Passport processing time: 1,5-4 months
- Minimum investment: $ 150
- Financial options: donation or real estate
- Visa-free access to one and a half hundred countries, including the Schengen states
- Best Passport for Tax Reduction (St. Kitts and Nevis has no NDIT for Fiscal Residents) and Fastest Way to Get a Second Passport
Grenada Citizenship by Investment
- Passport processing time: 3-6 months
- Minimum investment: $ 150
- Financial options: donation or real estate
- Visa-free access to more than 14 dozen countries, including China and Schengen
- E-2 visa access to the United States of America
Vanuatu citizenship by investment
- Passport processing time: 1,5-3 months
- Minimum investment: $ 145
- Financial options: donation
- Visa-free access to 125 countries, including the Schengen states
- The fastest way to get a second passport, liberal requirements for candidates
Turkish citizenship by investment
- Passport processing time: 2-4 months
- Minimum investment: $ 250
- Financial options: real estate, bank deposit, investment in securities or business (hiring local residents)
- Visa-free access to over a hundred jurisdictions
- The Best Passport for Real Estate Investors and E-2 Visa Access to the United States of America
How to get the right to economic citizenship?
As noted in the previous article, some governments offer citizenship by investment because they consider such an investment in the economic development of their countries as an act that entitles a foreigner to their passports. Both parties can and should benefit from the deal.
You need a second passport to create a Plan B based on it, expand your freedom of movement, get better tax planning opportunities, and many other benefits.
Governments need foreign direct investment to stimulate the economy, whether it be investing in the real estate market, developing local businesses and boosting employment, or buying government bonds, the proceeds of which can be redirected to more government-specific projects.
Depending on the country and its specific needs at the moment, the candidate for economic citizenship will be offered several options to choose from. Here are the most common types of investments that will allow you to obtain citizenship for money in another state:
1. Donation
The most trivial way to get citizenship for money is to make a donation. Donations start at $100 in several Caribbean jurisdictions and go up to €000 in Malta. You make a donation and the officials give you a legal second passport. You will not receive this money back.
Donations are accumulated in a special fund, the money from which is used to achieve various state goals. For example, Dominica uses this money to build housing for the poor.
A donation is usually the cheapest and easiest way to get citizenship for money, as you won't have to deal with the "headache" of selling your investment assets later.
Yes, you might think it's a waste of money. But if you can save a million dollars in taxes by getting a certain passport, then who cares about spending a "modest" $100? If you can travel to China with a new passport and expand your business there, substantially increasing your turnover, consider that $000 as an investment in your business.
2. Investing in real estate
Virtually all citizenship by investment programs, with the exception of Turkey, Malta and Cyprus, require applicants seeking citizenship by real estate to purchase only assets that have been pre-approved by the government.
This often means inflated prices due to lack of supply and difficulty exiting investments. At the same time, in the case of most Caribbean programs, applying for citizenship for real estate, you can get not a specific villa or apartment, but a share in them.
There is another important question: if you decide to buy citizenship for real estate, what are you going to do with it? Especially when it comes to real estate on a tropical island, where the market is not strong enough for an investor to easily resell the relevant asset. The most effective way to resell would probably be to find a new buyer among those who also receive citizenship for real estate.
On the other hand, you can buy almost any property in Turkey, and if the investment amount meets the official requirements, you will be allowed to apply for Turkish citizenship. And because the asset doesn't have to be pre-approved by the government, it won't be overpriced.
3. Hybrid model
In some countries, officials like to complicate matters and require applicants to make several types of investment plus a grant to obtain citizenship. Most hybrid programs can be found in Europe.
For example, Malta requires applicants to make a significant donation, purchase government bonds, buy or rent a home, and be a resident of the state for at least a year in order to establish a “genuine connection” with it.
This, of course, is due to the fact that Malta is part of the EU. This status makes her passport much more valuable than Caribbean documents. At the same time, those wishing to issue such a Maltese document are subject to strict control.
Nobody in Saint Lucia cares if you have that “genuine connection” with the country. They will accept your donation and you can complete the process. Yes, the Saint Lucian passport is not as prestigious and valuable for the same travelers as the Maltese one. But you can always compromise.
Among the hybrids is the Cyprus proposal, which requires both investment in real estate and a mandatory donation to public funds. You can also remember the Montenegro offer (new to the golden passport market), which also requires both a donation and the purchase of pre-approved real estate.
4. Banks, bonds and business
In recent years, governments have become increasingly creative in offering options to investors interested in citizenship. In Turkey, for example, instead of investing $250 in real estate, you can also deposit $000 in one or more banks for three years and still qualify for citizenship. Also, one can open/buy a business and hire 500 Turkish people and get citizenship in the same way.
In both Antigua and Saint Lucia, it is possible to invest in a local company and qualify for citizenship. In Antigua you will need to contribute $400 plus fees (much higher than the $000 fixed donation) and in St. Lucia you will need to contribute $100 million and create some jobs.
Finally, in Saint Lucia and Malta, you can buy interest-free government bonds and hold them for a certain period of time to qualify for a passport. In Malta, investment in bonds is one of the many requirements under the hybrid option. In Saint Lucia, this is one of four independent options.
To be continued. If you liked the first and second parts of this guide, stay tuned. In the third and final part, citizenship by investment will be considered from the point of view of a bureaucrat (process). You will also learn who should get citizenship for money and how to choose the best economic citizenship.
Do you have any questions? Ask them in the comments!
Source: habr.com