Newsletter February 2016

STAY ON TOP OF THE NEWS:

Almost 11,000 economic citizenships granted by St. Kitts and Nevis via the Citizenship-by-Investment program since 2005

On January 26, 2016 Saint Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister, Dr. Timothy Harris has released the statistics of how many passports were issued to the new economic citizens under the St. Kitts and Nevis Citizenship by Investment (CBI) Program since 2005. 

Prime Minister disclosed that “as of the 31st of December, 2015, there were 10,777 primary passports issued under the CBI program.”

The full report on the number of passports issued by year:
2005 – 6 passports;
2006 – 19 passports; the year when Sugar Industry Diversification Fund (SIDF) donation option was introduced following the 2005 closure of the sugar industry;
2007 – 75 passports;
2008 – 202 passports;
2009 – 292 passports, a milestone year when St. Kitts and Nevis was granted visa waiver for European Schengen Zone;
2010 – saw the dramatic increase to 664 issued passports;
2011 – 1,092 passports;
2012 – 1,758 passports;
2013 – 2,044 passports;
2014 – 2,329 passports;
2015 – 2,296 passports.

Dr. Harris further reported that passports were issued to economic citizens from 127 countries across all continents, stating that data indicate that the program is most popular in Europe and Asia. Across that broad range of countries the number of passports issued to a single country vary from 1 to 2,272.

The CBI Program was established in 1984 and currently provides 2 paths to citizenship: through a non-refundable charity donation of a minimum of US$250,000 to SIDF Foundation, or a real estate investment of US$400,000, plus various registration and processing fees and fees for including dependent family members.

The CIP offers lifetime citizenship but does not require successful applicants to visit or reside in St Kitts and Nevis. Saint Kitts passport holders also enjoy visa free access to more than 130 countries including the UK, Switzerland, Ireland and Schengen zone states.

View the full list of Saint Kitts & Nevis visa-free countries here.

The Clock Is Ticking: Antigua & Barbuda NDF Limited Time Offer Ends in 75 days

On April 30, 2016, the Limited Time Offer on Antigua and Barbuda’s National Development Fund (NDF) Contribution is scheduled to end.

Under this special offer, applicants receive a discount of $50,000 on the required non-refundable US$250,000 donation. Furthermore, government processing fees for the first two financially dependent children under 18 y.o. are waived, saving the principal applicant $25,000 per child. The total potential saving for a family of four is up to US$100,000.

With just 75 days left until the special offer deadline, now is the best time to take advantage of the lower investment threshold as we expect a large volume of applications to be submitted at the end of April. To ensure that the process is stress-free, we encourage to apply in advance to reserve a spot in the processing queue.

Antigua and Barbuda Abolishes Personal Income Tax

Personal income tax will be abolished in its entirety as from April 2016. The historical announcement was made on January 21st, 2016 by Antigua & Barbuda’s Prime Minister, Mr Gaston Browne in his presentation of the 2016 Budget.

He noted that with this move, Antigua and Barbuda will be a location that is competitive and also the choice of retirees.

“Antigua and Barbuda will become a competitive location to attract the headquarters of companies and for professionals to relocate, thereby creating more jobs. Retirees will choose Antigua and Barbuda as their retirement home; Citizenship by Investment Program (CIP) investors will invest and choose Antigua and Barbuda over our competitors,” said the prime minister.

“Therefore, to those who speak of the regressive nature of consumption tax, we say a little learning is a dangerous thing, taxing income is destructive to investment, savings and consumption. Also, it penalises entrepreneurship. “

“We expect a more buoyant and expanded economy to empower the Government with increased revenues to fund the socio-economic development of the masses.”

MEET US IN PERSON IN YOUR REGION

CSL Team is attending the 2nd Annual MENA Investment Immigration Summit in Dubai, UAE, on 8-10 March 2016.

We hope to see you at the event and will be happy to meet with you in person, offer a professional consultation and answer any questions you might have on the Caribbean Citizenship-by-Investment programs, qualifying Real Estate investments or partnership opportunities.

If you would like to meet with our immigration consultants locally please take a few moments to fill in the contact form, mentioning that you wish to arrange a face to face meeting in Dubai on 7-14 March. One of our consultants will contact you to discuss the further meeting details by phone or e-mail. If you prefer to contact us directly, call +1 869 466 2133 or e-mail csl@corporatesolutionsltd.com.

CSL Team is traveling to various parts of the World on a regular basis. We will keep you informed on the upcoming regional events and visits on Meet Us page. Stay tuned!