Newsletter March 2016

CSL monthly Industry Updates

March 2016

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CSL Attends 2nd Annual MENA Investment Immigration Summit in Dubai, UAE

Dear Colleagues,

CSL’s Leadership Team wishes to thank everyone who recently met us and attended our workshops in Dubai, UAE last week. It was a pleasure assisting you and we look forward to our continued partnership in Caribbean Citizenship-by-Investment programs.

As we are traveling to various parts of the world on a regular basis, visit our Meet-Us section frequently to keep abreast of upcoming regional events or follow us on Social Media for daily Citizenship-by-Investment updates.

Photo: CSL leadership team and St. Kitts & Nevis economic citizen with St. Kitts & Nevis Prime Minister, Dr. Timothy Harris, after his presentation on the current state of St. Kitts CBI program during the town hall styled meeting in the One and Only Royal Mirage Resort hotel in Dubai on March 7th, 2016

Photo: CSL leadership team and St. Kitts and Nevis economic citizen with St. Kitts & Nevis Prime Minister, Dr. Timothy Harris, during a Cocktail Reception hosted by the Consulate-General of St. Kitts and Nevis in Dubai, UAE on March 7th, 2016

Photo: Prime Minister Harris interacts with Shannon Hawley, CSL Director of Client Relations at the cocktail event

With over three hundred persons in attendance of the town hall meeting, the room was ram packed with attendees standing at the back and in the garden. Citizens came in from far and near to be part of this auspicious occasion. Along with a dozen or so native born citizens now resident in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the audience consisted predominantly of citizens through the Citizenship-by-Investment (CBI) programme who flew in from as far as India, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Pakistan, Yemen and Kuwait, and drove from across the UAE, including Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Al Ain to attend the event.

The main theme of the event was to update citizens living in the Middle East of what is transpiring within the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis. During his discourse, Prime Minister Harris reassured citizens that St. Kitts and Nevis is experiencing continued economic growth and is poised for additional investment opportunities.

St. Kitts Resumes Accepting Citizenship Applications from Syria Nationals

URGENT UPDATE: On March 10th, 2016 St. Kitts & Nevis Citizenship By Investment Unit (CIU) has made an announcement about immediate resumption of processing of Citizenship by Investment applications from nationals of Syria.

Application processing resumption relates to all types of applications, including sponsorships and addition of dependents.
 
The CIU thanked all service providers, agents and clients for their patience during the period of non-processing.
If you would like to receive more information or assistance preparing your Citizenship by Investment application, please feel free to contact us. One of our experienced citizenship experts would be glad to assist you.
St. Kitts and Antigua get +1 country on the freedom-of-travel list

Great news for Saint Kitts & Nevis and Antigua & Barbuda passport holders: visiting Eastern Europe has just gotten easier!

Ukraine has granted St. Kitts and Antigua a visa-waiver – visa will now be stamped on arrival in any Ukrainian international port of entry. Changes effective immediately.

Beyond Citizenship – CSL Residency Lab

We continue our relationship with clients even after the citizenship process has been completed. Our dedicated team of professionals is ready to assist with ongoing client care and a network of related services to make your life easier. No request is too big or too small.

CSL is delighted to provide you with our wealth of local knowledge, introductions to a wide network of potential business partners, government officials, profound understanding of regional real estate market and personalized concierge support that distinguishes our team from the rest.

CSL Residency Lab services include:

  • Property management
  • Facilitating additional forms of photo identification, e.g. drivers license, resident’s ID card, etc.
  • Assistance in opening your persona bank account
  • Company registration
  • Company management and secretarial services, virtual office setup
  • Postal address set up
  • Introductions to potential business partners
  • Remote renewal of expired passports
  • In-house concierge support

State of the art 12,000 sq. ft. headquarters in Frigate Bay, St. Kitts and the largest in-house processing team in the region is here to serve you. We are readily available by phone and quick to respond to e-mail enquiries.

Contact us today for a complimentary consultation and find out how these tools can transform your life and your business. Give us a call to get started!

Expat Alert: Caribbean Citizenship, the “trendy" alternative to costly and lengthy EU Citizenship

Every year, according to the BBC, several thousand people spend a total of more than US$2 billion to add a second and sometimes third passport to their “portfolio.” The market is growing and governments are competing for the 20,000 or so families globally each year that are investing in residency and citizenship programs. In the past five years, the number of countries offering citizenship and/or residency, in exchange for a donation or property investments has nearly doubled.

Before making a choice about the economic citizenship jurisdiction each investor should answer the bottom-line question on the goal of obtaining their 2nd passport. A survey by the Economist’s Business Intelligence Unit showed that among investors’ prime motivating factors for obtaining a 2nd passport were quality of life, preferential tax rates, access to education, safety and the benefits of visa-free travel.

Some believe that Europe offers far greater benefits in terms of residency and more attractive citizenship for those who gain it. Among these benefits – larger list of visa-free countries and a right to settle anywhere within European Union, once the investor finally obtains EU citizenship. On the downside, time to gaining citizenship trough residency varies by country from 6 years in Bulgaria to 10+ years in the UK. Another fallback is the investment benchmark. The minimum investment required for Cyprus citizenship is at least 2,500,000 Euro, for Malta at least 1,500,000 Euro, for Austria at least 10,000,000 Euro, for UK at least 2,000,000 GBP.

Interest for the Caribbean programs is global with a higher proportion of investors seeking second passports rather than residency. It attracts citizens from those countries which face obstacles to travel with their home passports such as Pakistan, Iran, Qatar, Russia and China. The average citizenship processing time is just 3-4 month, while the required investment threshold is 5-100 times lower than in EU programs: investment minimum in Dominica is US$100,000 for a single applicant and around US$300,000 for a family of four in Grenada.

Other Advantages of Caribbean CBI Programs include:

  • Immediate citizenship, bypassing TR & PR status (TR & PR permits require ongoing commitment & carry risk of being withdrawn with the change of country’s legislation while citizenship is granted for life);
  • No or minimal physical residence in the country is required;
  • No active involvement, business planning or personal interview is required;
  • No language or citizenship test involved;
  • Overall simplicity of the process;
  • Investors can retire & settle in any of CARICOM countries.

Another subject to consider before becoming a US or EU citizen is tax planning. As more countries are moving towards the worldwide taxation model, it is wise to look at alternative citizenship options for the purpose of estate and tax planning. Becoming a citizen and resident of St. Kitts & Nevis, Antigua & Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada or Saint Lucia does not subject investors to paying taxes on their worldwide income as these territories have no foreign income tax.

If you would like to receive more information or assistance preparing your Citizenship by Investment application, please contact us today. One of our experienced citizenship experts would be pleased to assist you.

Top 10 Most Powerful Caribbean Passports

In 2015 St. Kitts & Nevis Passports ranked top 4 of most powerful Caribbean passports list, while Antigua and Barbuda Passports are now in the top 3:

1. Barbados
2. Bahamas
3. Antigua and Barbuda
4. St. Kitts and Nevis
5. Trinidad and Tobago
6. St. Lucia
7. St. Vincent and the Grenadines
8. Grenada
9. Dominica
10. Guyana

The rankings are based on visa restrictions that were in place on 1 January, 2016.

 

Click to view a full list of countries you could visit without applying for a visa:

For further information on recent developments and to receive monthly updates subscribe to CSL Citizenship-by-Investment Newsletter. You may also contact us directly for a complimentary consultation.