There are numerous citizenship by investment options around the world. Caribbean citizenship by investment programs are among the first programs ever to step into the sector. It is of course not enough of a reason to decide on a second passport from one of the Caribbean countries. Yet there are several other reasons to attract investors to this paradise. Here are 3 reasons to choose Caribbean programs for second citizenship.
Low Price Point
When it comes to being the cheapest citizenship option, Dominica citizenship stands alone. With Comoros CBI programme temporarily suspended, Dominica鈥檚 $100,000 plus government and legal fees option for citizenship is the single cheapest option there is.
Dominica is an island in the Caribbean鈥檚, a different country from Dominican Republic. The population of Dominica is less than 75,000. The donation of $100,000 for Dominica citizenship goes to aid tourism and public projects. With legal and government fees, a single applicant should expect to spend around $175,000, while a married couple with children should expect to spend closer to $300,000.
Dominica passport allows visa-free travel to UK, Ireland, Switzerland, Singapore, South Korea, Hong Kong and many more. However, most of the North America and continental Europe requires a visa. So, for a person who values easy travelling highly, it might be a tough call.
Antigua and Barbuda citizenship聽聽program became more attractive recently because of its new special promotion. By this new special, applicants can use the donation-based citizenship option for only $200,000. Each person has to pay a separate due diligence fee. So, a single applicant鈥檚 expenditure is close to $300,000.
Antigua citizenship is also available through real estate purchase or business investment. These options are substantially more expensive. Antigua and Barbuda passport also grants visa-free travel to most of the Europe and Americas.
St. Kitts and Nevis citizenship is just a little bit more expensive than Antigua and Barbuda citizenship. Government鈥檚 Sugar Fund accepts donations of $250,000 in exchange for St. Kitts and Nevis passport. While it is possible to get the passport within several months, the usual total expense is about just over $300,000. Applicants may also choose to buy real estate, but this option is considerably more expensive.
St. Kitts passport allows visa-free travel to Europe鈥檚 Schengen area. For now, St. Kitts is the cheapest, most reliable second passport with easy travel to Europe.
Speed
One of the qualities that makes Caribbean citizenship by investment programs desirable is the speed of their process. Other programs around the world usually take around 6 to 12 months; whereas Caribbean programs offer a much quicker route. In most cases, applications are approved with three to four months following the date of submission.
For further acceleration during the process, St. Kitts and Nevis government offers The Accelerated Application Process (AAP) service. By using AAP, the investors might adopt the fast track to St. Kitts and Nevis citizenship. This addition accelerates the process to end in 60 days.
For Dominica citizenship, it usually takes the Government 60 to 90 days to process the application. This period also includes the necessary due diligence procedures.
The processing time for Antigua and Barbuda citizenship application is also quite fast. The process usually gets completed within 3-4 months.
Investment Options
For St. Kitts and Nevis citizenship, applicants may qualify through a contribution to the Sustainable Growth Fund (SGF). For a single applicant,聽a non-refundable contribution of US$150,000 is required. Applicants may also prefer to invest in real estate. The minimum investment threshold for the real estate option is US$200,000 (resalable after 7 years)聽or聽US$400,000 (resalable after 5 years).
For Dominica citizenship, candidates can either make an economic contribution to a Government Fund or purchase approved real estate on the island. To be able to qualify, a non-refundable contribution of USD $100,000 must be made to the Government fund. Applicants may also choose to purchase real estate to achieve Dominica citizenship. In this case, candidates must buy real estate in the country for at least USD $200,000. They also need to maintain ownership for a minimum of three years.
Under the Antigua and Barbuda Citizenship program, there are 4 different options. First one is the option to donate USD $100,000 to National Development fund (NDF). Second one is a rather new option. In this option, applicants may choose to donate USD $150,000 to the University Fund. They can also prefer to invest USD $400,000 in real estate or USD $1,500,000 in a business.
