Free Guide to Citizenship by Investment – CBI Citizen · 2020. 12. 30. · CBI Annual investments...

30/12/20, 3:30 PMFree Guide to Citizenship by Investment – CBI Citizen

Page 1 of 105https://cbicitizen.com/2020/12/04/expert-guide-to-citizenship-by-investment/

Free Guide to Citizenship byInvestmentPublished December 4, 2020

We give you important tips and advice on what to look for in a passportfrom the best experts working in the field. Take a look below on theultimate guide to citizenship by investment (CBI) programs.

This is a Free Guide to Citizenship by investment programs with lot ofdownloadable resources to make your decision. We give away all this forFREE!

Table of Contents

What is Citizenship by Investment?How BIG is the Citizenship by investment industry?Top 10 Citizenship By Investment ProgramsHistory of Economic Citizenship programsWhy Second passports are hugely popular?Which countries offer Citizenship by investment?What investment options available for Citizenship by investment?What is the difference between Citizenship vs Residency?Why you not confuse Citizenship with Golden Visas?How to protect yourself from passport scams?What to look for when buying a passport?How much it would cost to BUY a passport?Why prices of CBI programs dropped in 2017?How important are visa waivers?What you should know about EU citizenship?Common Myths DebunkedCan stateless people apply for citizenship by investment?

https://cbicitizen.com/2020/12/04/expert-guide-to-citizenship-by-investment/



Best Citizenship by Investment ProgramsGrenadaVanuatuDominicaSaint LuciaTurkeySt Kitts and NevisAntigua and BarbudaCyprusMontenegroMalta

What You should Know about Due Diligence?What about Taxes with Citizenship by investment?Why invest in Real estate for citizenship?Bitcoin and CryptocurrenciesWhy is Dual Citizenship important?How to use your dual passports for travel?Benefits of Commonwealth citizenshipEmbassies and ConsulatesWhat you should know about Agents?How to prepare the documents?Citizenship by Investment UnitsFAQsAbbreviations

What is Citizenship by Investment?

Citizenship by investment (CBI) is the process by which investors aregiven fast tracked citizenship within months in exchange for investmentsin the country (eg. Donation to state, Real estate, buying state debt etc).

The established CIP legislation requires all applicants including familymembers are required to pass strict background checks including



AML/KYC checks before being issued of passports.

Every country has established its own regulations. Some countries evendont require a physical visit, considering many CBI economic citizens,actually live in diaspora and do not immigrate physically to the secondcountry.

CBI schemes are common referred as “Economic citizenship” inAmericas , “Investor Citizenship” in Europe by the European commission.The news and media outlets call “Golden passports”, as many wealthyindividuals have acquired second passports by investing.

How BIG is the Citizenship by investmentindustry?

Citizenship by investment is estimated by industry experts to be worth$5 billion annually with Cyprus receiving good chunk of investments. By2025, the demand for investment passports are projected to double.

CBI Annual investments by country/region in Billions of US dollars

Revenues from Citizenship by Investment (CBI)

The Revenues from Citizenship by investment schemes has amassed atotal of $15 billion until so far, according to our calculations we did fromvarious financial and news reports.



Top 5 countries with highest CBI Revenues, according to our calculations. Please note official figures is not

published by some countries in the Caribbean.

The three Biggest CBI schemes are

1. Cyprus2. Turkey3. St Kitts and Nevis

*Latest approximate unofficial estimates of CBI revenues generated frompassport sales until 2019

CBI Revenues*

Antigua $287 million

Dominica $675 million

Grenada $170 million

Saint Lucia $37.2 million

St Kitts Nevis $1.75 billion

Turkey $2.7 billion

Malta €1.2 billion

Cyprus €9.6 billion’

Vanuatu $230 million

Montenegro €1.75 million

Moldova €0.5 million



These surplus CBI revenues were used by Governments to reduce debt,disaster recovery funds, hospitals, schools, public infrastructure, housingand pensions for the local population.

Top 10 Citizenship By Investment Programs

We published a study on best citizenship by investment programsassessing 37 important factors considered by clients before investing in apassport. We designed a PBS scoring model to score points and rankbest CBI programs. Here is what we found

Source: Best Citizenship By Investment Rankings for 2021 – Best-citizenships.com

https://best-citizenships.com/2020/12/14/best-citizenship-by-investment-rankings-for-2021/



History of Economic Citizenship Programs

The Economic Citizenship by Investment programs have been around formore than 40 years, they rose to popularity in the 1980’s when a numberof small caribbean and pacific countries selling passports for $50,000.Most of these schemes were dismantled after 2001 due to securityconcerns at that time. It was not until a decade by 2010, the St Kitts andDominica programs quickly rose to popularity. At that time the priceswere still high, St Kitts was selling a passport for $250,000 and Dominicapassport was only $75,000 (before securing schengen visa waiver) .

Not long ago Comoros passport program was popular remained thecheapest citizenship by investment for $50,000. The program was closedcouple of year ago.

Ireland did sell passports for 1 million euros in the 1990’s but the schemewas closed after backlash. Ireland joined European Union in 1999.

Cyprus was the first EU country to install the citizenship for investmentscheme in 2007. Later joined by Bulgaria in 2010 and then Malta in 2014.

History of Economic Citizenship [Infographic]Download

Do you know?The Two European states Moldova and Montenegro launched citizenshipfor sale schemes in 2018. Note that these countries are not part ofEuropean Union only part of Europe

How much it costs to buy a passport?

Please see below the latest prices of the citizenship and passport byinvestment (CPBI) schemes. Prices start from $100,000

https://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/history.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/history.pdf



Note:*: Applicants must pay additional fee such as agent fee, due diligence fee, application fee.

Montenegro requires Investment ($300K) + Donation ($110K). Vanuatu has no real estate option. Moldova is

suspended until Q3 2020

Why second passports are hugely popular?

A passport, is must in the wealth management portfolio for High-net-worth individuals. It is also considered as an insurance policy of thetwenty first century for asset protection. These shiny new gold standardinvestment passports have become an ultimate luxury item – a futureinvestment for family generation.

https://cbicitizen.com/2020/03/17/expert-guide-to-vanuatu-citizenship-by-investment/



Recent KnightFrank wealth survey reveals two out of three HNWindividuals have already invested in a second passport, while the rest areconsidering one.

Citizenship by investment schemes provide an an excellent opportunityfor wealthy families to become dual citizens by investment. Oneimportant benefit for dual citizens, is they are allowed to carry two ormore passports.

For many a passport gives new identity and new life making you truly aWorld Citizen. A World without borders opens up for you!

Do you Know?

A World citizen is a person who places global citizenship above anynationalistic or local identities and relationships.

Albert Einstein described himself as a world citizen and supported theidea throughout his life, famously saying “Nationalism is an infantiledisease. It is the measles of mankind”

What are the Second passport benefits?

You can call a country second home, visit anytime you wantGreater travel freedom and mobilityGet out of your country, when there is Global crisisAccess to best healthcare and education systems for your childrenoutside your country.Access to international financial freedom (open bank accounts)Retirement and to receive pensionsTodays citizenship investment will be passed to future familygenerations.Live, work, study and do business anywhere you want.Greatly Reduce your taxes with clever tax planning.



Expand your business opportunities attending events, conferences,trade shows across the globe.

Half of the US population are worried about about being a victim ofterrorism. The threat is REAL. The State Department warns As terroristattacks, political violence (including demonstrations), criminal activitiesand other security incidents often take place without any warning, U.S.citizens are strongly encouraged to maintain a high level of vigilance andpractice good situational awareness when traveling abroad. What canyou do about it?

A Legally acquired second passport can be used as “camouflage”passport giving you full citizen privacy. For example, You can hide yourUS citizen status showing a second passport instead of US passport.

US taxes are a nightmare. No other country in the world is so hungry forTaxes. If you are a U.S. citizen or resident alien, the rules for filing income,estate, and gift tax returns and paying estimated tax are generally thesame whether you are in the United States or abroad. Your worldwideincome is subject to U.S. income tax, regardless of where you reside

FATCA Act is another nightmare for American expats and accidentalamericans designed to identify and collect the appropriate tax from USPersons holding financial assets outside the United States.

IRS has been powered to cancel passports of Americans who holddelinquent debt above $50,000.

For these reasons, thousands of Americans renounce their citizenshipand go in search for new life that comes with real freedom

Which countries offer Citizenship by Investment?

As far as we know and the information we have compiled, there are 18citizenship by investment programs in total, spread across Asia, Europe,



Caribbean and the Pacific.

You have to decide for yourself whether you want a passport or justresidency.

What investment options available for citizenshipby investment?

Citizenship by investment regulations provide 5 types of investmentoptions to acquire immediate citizenship.

1. Lump sum Donation to State (one time)2. Real Estate Investment ($200K or more)3. Government bonds and stocks / Treasury securities4. Business Capital Enterprise Investment5. Bank Account Cash deposit

Price Status Investment Time (months)

1 Austria €10m defunct States Interest 12

2 Cyprus €2m defunct Real Estate 7

3 Bulgaria €1m Active Govt Bonds 18

5 Turkey €250,000 Active Real Estate 3

6 Antigua and Barbuda $100,000 Active Donation 3

7 St Kitts and Nevis $150,000 Active Donation 3

8 Vanuatu $130,000 Active Donation 2

9 Grenada $150,000 Active Donation 3

10 Saint Lucia $100,000 Active Donation 3

11 Dominica $100,000 Active Donation 3

12 Cambodia $250,000 Unknown Donation 12

13 Samoa $1.2m Active Business 20

14 Egypt $250,000 Active Real estate 3

15 Jordan $1.5m Active Capital 12

16 Moldova €100,000 Suspended Donation 3

17 Montenegro €350,000 Active Real Estate 3

18 Comoros $50,000 Closed Donation 2

19 Malta €750,000 Active Donation 12



The first and most popular option for most citizenship investors is Lumpsum donation . We have seen over 80% of the clients, go through thisroute because it easy, simple, cheap and fast.

The second most popular option with clients is real estate investment.This option attracts more wealthy and HNW investors who want to profitfrom real estate investment yields. You must hold on to the property for3-5 years before selling it off in the market. After you sell the propertyyou can still keep citizenship and passport.

The third option is financing the government bonds. At the moment 7 CBIprograms offer buying Government bonds or securities in exchange forpassport. Cyprus has scrapped this option since 2019. For example youcould finance Bulgaria €1m worth of Govt bonds only for a total€250,000 spread over 5 years (you only pay 5% interest). It would costeven less for Turkey and St Lucia.

Bank deposit is also an very interesting option if you want to risks withyour liquid cash. At the moment only Turkey and two other countries havethis option. The problem with this approach is the amount is too high andsome nationals may also face problems opening bank accounts.

The final option available is Business investment. This is a great option ifyou have business background, already successful investor and you cancreate jobs. Antigua and Saint Lucia are the only two caribbean countriesthat award citizenship by investment to business investors making atleast$1.5m or $5m jointly. Under the joint investment plan, each investormaking $400K qualifies for passport. For Turkey all you have to do iscreate 100 jobs to become a citizen.

We compiled a nice comparison of investment options available forcitizenship by investment program, so that you would know where andhow much to invest.

https://cbicitizen.com/2020/03/28/guide-to-citizenship-by-real-estate-investment/



Note: For Malta you must pay Donation + Bonds. For Montenegro there is€100,000 fee per application above real estate investment.

You can read our free real estate guide to citizenship by investment

Citizenship VS Residency

Be clear to under the difference between citizenship and residency(permanent)

Donation Real Estate Gov Bonds Bank deposit Business

Antigua $100K $200K x x $1.5m

Dominica $100K $200K x x x

Grenada $150K $200K x x x

St Kitts $150K $200K x x x

St Lucia $100K $300K $500K x $1.5M

Vanuatu $130K x x x x

Malta €650K x €150K x x

Cyprus x €2M x x €2M

Bulgaria x €500K €1M x €1M

Montenegro x €250K x x €5M

Moldova €100K €250K €250K x x

Jordan x x $1M $1M $750K

Egypt $250K $500K $750K $250K $400K

Turkey x $250K $500K $500K $500K

Benefits Citizenship Permanent Residency

What you get? Passport Visa /Residence permit

Travel Worldwide Regional (schengen area)

Price Cheap (starts $100K) Expensive (starts $250K)

Personal Visit NO YES

Citizenship Included Naturalization (slow)

Real Estate Ownership No restrictions Limited

Rent a place NO Yes

Renewals 5-10 years 2-5 years

Must live NO NO (yes if you want citizenship)

Education, Healthcare, Employment Equal rights Equal rights

Family members Immediate Immediate




*Please seek professional advise.

Why Citizenship is so much better on the long run?

Citizenship is often so much better than residency for thousands forreasons.

1. Cheaper than residence schemes2. Hassle free3. Application package completed within 3 months (all family and

children get passports)4. No visit to country required (saves you lot of money).5. Mitigate your taxes (prepare in advance)6. Collect your passport from agent or at consulate.7. Enjoy your full citizenship rights across the globe8. Citizenship once granted is also passed to future generations. (you

did not waste your money, you only invested in your future family)

Why you should not confuse Citizenship withGolden visas?

Golden visa schemes only offer permanent residency (no instantcitizenship) buying real estate. Greece and Portugal are the most popularones.

Secondly Citizenship schemes are much cheaper (half the price) thangolden visas.

Prices for Golden visas start with $300,000 (in dollars) for the most

Banking Access Yes Yes

Taxes* NO (unless you live) Yes

Rights* Full Citizen Rights Restricted (eg. No right to vote)

Deportation No Yes

Embassy help Yes Limited



popular program Greece

Greece – €250,000United States – $900,000Portugal – €280,000Malta – €250,000Canada – $1.2 millionSpain – €500,000

Golden visa programs attract two types of clientele

1. Those who are not interested in second citizenship or passport2. Nationals who come from a country where dual citizenship is

restricted (eg. India, China etc)

If you dont want citizenship or passport, then you can go for golden visaresidence schemes. Note that only passport is accepted travel documentworldwide. The residence permits issued by schengen states is not apassport so can only be used within the schengen region.

Portugal is the best scheme of all as Portugal has less strict requirementsto acquire EU portuguese citizenship after 5 years. It is possible withoutliving in Portugal. You just need to spend 2 weeks yearly and pass A2language test.

We will not go into deep on golden visas in this article.

How to protect yourself from passport scams?

It is also very important you only apply for legally running and officialprograms and you do not fall into a passport scams. Follow these 3cardinal rules.

Rule 1: Do not buy real estate or pay full Government contribution beforereceiving Letter of approval from the Citizenship by Investment Unit



(CIU) of Government. This should take 2-3 months. Most agents will onlyask you to pay initial retainer deposit which consists of agent fee and duediligence fee. If your application is refused you dont need to pay thecontribution. Dont let yourself be conned!

Rule 2: You are only supposed to pay the donation or contribution ONLYdirectly to the Government bank account. Don’t pay to third parties.

Rule 3: Don’t invest in real estate developments that are not approved orauthorized by Government. CIUs are required to publish list of approvedproperty developments in their website. You wont qualify forcitizenship/passport investing in unapproved developments. These arelikely scams to lure investors. Governments running CBI programs, havemoved establish escrow legislation to protect property investors.

A Word of Advice

Don’t fall for cheap passport scams, these might involve $10K-$15,000.You will be disappointed and lose what you bargained for! Look for thered flags! Seek a trusted legal advisor

For example. there are no south american countries that offer instantpassports for investments. The only way to become a citizen is tobecome a resident and naturalize, atleast not before 3 years.

What to look for when buying a passport?

With so many CBI programs around, often it can be more confusing toclients to pick the right passport for the right price. It is important thatyou do not overspend and pay only what you need for.

We will give you 10 important tips.

1. Price factor



Price is the first most important factor for clients applying for investmentcitizenship schemes.

The most expensive passport may not be the best passport for you. Youhave to find the right balance between the price you pay and thepassport benefits. Always pick the right one for you and family. Dontoverpay for the passports.

We plotted a graph between the passport power and the prices. As youcan see see in the graph, Cyprus, Malta and Bulgaria are the mostexpensive passports. Look closely in the 140 mark there are cluster ofprograms around Grenada. These are the cheap and best passports thatare in the market. You also have to keep in mind that the more familymembers you add, prices rise exponentially.

Passport power VS Pricing – Comparison of Citizenship by Investment

2. Application process and time



A significant number of clients have asked us about which citizenshipprograms have simple application and fast processing times.

We have always told them the same answer. Allow 3-4 months and applyas early as possible.

We have seen applications approved in 80 days and Vanuatu has simpleand super fast application processing times. We have seen letter ofapprovals issued by Citizenship commission, as early 4 weeks.

If you want the fastest program, our suggestion would be Vanuatu. Allcaribbean passport schemes takes atleast 3-4 months.

3. Passport power

The strength of a passport to visit many countries without visas,especially to most important six BIG countries in the world is equallyimportant.

Please note Canada and United States impose Electronic travelauthorization (ETA) on visa waiver countries.

Visa Free United States United Kingdom Russia China EU Schengen Canada

Malta √ √ ˣ ˣ √ √Cyprus ˣ √ ˣ ˣ √ √Bulgaria ˣ √ ˣ ˣ √ √Grenada ˣ √ √ √ √ ˣAntigua ˣ √ √ ˣ √ ˣSaint Kitts ˣ √ √ ˣ √ ˣSaint Lucia ˣ √ ˣ √ ˣDominica ˣ √ √ ˣ √ ˣVanuatu ˣ √ √ ˣ √ ˣMontenegro ˣ ˣ √ ˣ √ ˣMoldova ˣ ˣ √ ˣ √ ˣTurkey ˣ ˣ ˣ ˣ ˣ ˣ



Another important thing to remember for clients, they should pick theright passport, that has visa free access to the country they frequentlyvisit. For example if you have business ties or family or children studyingin United Kingdom, it would not make sense to apply for Montenegro orMoldova passport.

You should also be able to spot minor difference with visa free accessusing CBI passport. For example. Turkish passport is an excellentpassport to visit Japan or South Korea

e – eVisa√ Visa not requiredₓ Visa required

Which CBI passports have access to overseas territories?

There are some 61 territories (dependent colonies) in the World. Someare British, French, Dutch and

For example you may want to travel to british colonies such as Bermuda ,Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands (BVI), or US colonies such as US

South Africa Israel Japan Singapore South Korea

Antigua and Barbuda √ ₓ ₓ √ √

Bulgaria ₓ √ √ √ √

Dominica ₓ √ ₓ √ √

Grenada ₓ √ ₓ √ √

Saint Kitts and Nevis ₓ √ ₓ √ √

Saint Lucia ₓ √ ₓ √ √

Cyprus √ √ √ √ √

Turkey √ ₓ √ √ √

Malta √ √ √ √ √

Moldova ₓ √ ₓ e ₓ

Montenegro ₓ √ ₓ √ √

Vanuatu ₓ √ ₓ √ ₓ

Jordan √ ₓ ₓ ₓ ₓ

Egypt ₓ ₓ ₓ ₓ ₓ



Virgin Islands (USVI). Sint Maarten is also worth mentioning a Dutchterritory. These wealthiest islands are beautiful attract many wealthymillionaires often travel to these locations for holiday vacations.

We have compiled visa requirements for these territories for 14 CBIpassports.

CBI visa free regime to territories.pdfDownload

Disclaimer / Note : Visa requirements often change from time to time.Please always check with your nearest embassy before travels. Theabove information is for knowledge purpose only.

4. Passport Validity

Passport validity is a very important to consider when applying forcitizenship by investment programs. Some countries issue passports for5 years or 10 years.

Passports with ten year validity is more convenient to clients, as theydont have to go through hassle of renewing passports quickly.

Note that Antigua, St Lucia and Grenada have passport validity of 5years. All other passports come with 10 year validity. Antigua is a specialcase, once you renew the passport first time, the passport validityextended to 10 years.

CBI Validity

Antigua 5 years

St Kitts 10 years

Dominica 10 years

St Lucia 5 years

Grenada 5 years

Vanuatu 10 years

Turkey 10 years

Malta 10 years

https://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/cbi-territories.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/cbi-territories.pdf



5. E-2 Visa to enter United States

Access to E-2 investor visa is a very important benefit that comes fromCitizenship by investment (CBI) schemes to enter US.

E-2 visas are cheaper alternative to EB-5 in terms of processing speedand cheaper investment. Certain countries such as China, Vietnam,Nigeria, Russia do not have E-2 treaty direct with US, so citizens fromthese countries can take advantage of CBI schemes as backdoor entry toUS. Remember E-2 visas are non-immigrant visas and even familymembers can apply.

Here are some of the important difference between E-2 and EB-5 visas.

Cyprus 10 years

Bulgaria 10 years

Moldova 10 years

Montenegro 10 years

E-2 EB-5

Visa Category Non-immmigrant Immigrant Visa

Min. Investment $100,000 – $200,000 $900,000 to $1.8 million

Visa validity 2-5 years Temporary Green card (2 years)

Green card No Yes

Job creation 5 jobs 10 jobs

Waiting time 3 weeks 2-15 years

Citizenship No Yes

Residence conditions None Must move and live in US. Not absent for 6 months per year

Quota none 10,000 annual limit

Working Full time Director

Work permit Spouse only Spouse and children < 21

Application paperwork Easy Complicated / Strict rules

Who can apply? E-2 treaty countries No restrictions

Taxes on Worldwide income* May be Yes

Visa fee $205 $3,675 (I-526 petition)

Legal costs $10,000 to $20,000 $50,000 to $100,000



*Please seek professional tax advise before your immigrate to US.

There are only 7 CBI countries that have E-2 treaty investor signed withUnited States. All other Citizenship by investment programs (CIP) do notoffer this benefit

MontenegroTurkeyBulgariaGrenadaMoldovaEgyptJordan

6. Right to Vote

The Citizenship by Investment Regulations of

Antigua,St Kitts and Nevis,Vanuatu

do not permit right to vote to CBI citizens.

All other countries offer voting rights and even holding governmentpositions and holding public offices and entering politics.

St Lucia, Grenada are the most complete CBI programs in the Caribbean.

7. Citizenship transferable to Generations

These citizenship by investment programs allow transferring citizenshiprights upto three family generations only.

Dominica

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/visa-information-resources/fees/treaty.html



St LuciaSt Kitts and NevisVanuatu

Except these four programs, all other CBI programs offer full lifetimecitizenship.

8. No personal visit

Citizenship Programs that have no personal visit requirements forpassports are much more attractive and desirable to clients.

Imagine you live in UAE, the Caribbean or Vanuatu is still far way and youdont want to spend thousands of dollars in flight bookings to take yourfamily just for a passport. This is unrealistic, especially the world isreeling with the outbreak of coronavirus. It is really not a good time totravel during disease outbreaks.

Except 5 CBI programs, all other countries require a personal visit atleastonce

9. No Residence conditions

CBI Validity

Antigua 5 years

St Kitts 10 years

Dominica 10 years

St Lucia 5 years

Grenada 5 years

Vanuatu 10 years

Turkey 10 years

Malta 10 years

Cyprus 10 years

Bulgaria 10 years

Moldova 10 years

Montenegro 10 years



Citizenship by investment programs that have zero or no residenceconditions are more attractive to many clients.

All countries (except caribbean and vanuatu) issue residence permitsbefore issuing naturalization certificate under CBI.

*Antigua imposes 5 day residence requirement when you renew yourpassport after 5 years. If you dont visit Antigua, your passport will becanceled. For Turkey, formalities can be completed by issuing Power ofAttorney

10. Healthcare / Education / Safety

European countries are superb when it comes to education andhealthcare, especially Malta, Cyprus and Bulgaria. These countries alsohave low crime rate and high safety rankings. Moldova and Montenegroare okay catching up to european standards but they have a long way togo.

Caribbean countries still struggle with crime and do offer affordablehealthcare. They also have some nice universities eg. St George Medical

CBI Residence

Antigua 5 days*

Dominica None

Grenada None

Saint Lucia None

St Kitts None

Turkey none

Vanuatu None

Malta 12 months

Cyprus 6 months

Montenegro None

Egypt None

Jordan None

Bulgaria 24 months



University in Grenada and the newly opened University of West Indiescampus at Antigua.

You should only consider this if you want to move and live the country. Ifyou just want a passport for mobility, probably you can ignore these.

11. Quotas

You must also seriously consider limited quotas with citizenship byinvestment schemes. This is because once the quota reaches the limit,the schemes wont reopen again and you missed the opportunity toacquire citizenship through investments.

These are limits currently imposed on certain CBI schemes. TheCaribbean passport schemes do not have any limits

12. Tourist arrivals

Tourist arrivals is an important indicator on the attractiveness of countryto apply for citizenship.

Tourism plays an important role in driving revenues, economic growthand prices in the real estate market. You may want to consider this datawhen investing in hotels and resorts.

Malta Total quota 1500 (New)

Montenegro Total quota 2000 (expires in 2022)

Vanuatu No limits

Turkey no limits

Cyprus 700 per year

Moldova 5000 (total quota)

Jordan 500 per year

Caribbean No limits



Tourist arrivals in countries running citizenship by investment programs for 2018 – Source: World Bank Data

Source: World Bank Data 2018

How much it would cost to BUY a passport?

These are some of the rough estimates on how much it would cost to buya passport under citizenship by investment programs.

CBI Tourist Arrivals (2018)

Bulgaria 9,273,000

Cyprus 3,939,000

Malta 2,599,000

St. Kitts and Nevis 125,000

Antigua and Barbuda 269,000

St. Lucia 395,000

Turkey 45,768,000

Grenada 185,000

Vanuatu 116,000

Egypt 11,196,000

Jordan 4,150,000

Dominica 63,000

Montenegro 2,077,000



Please expect accredited Agents charge you upto $20,000 (not added inthe list below) per application. It depends on whether you are applyingsingle or group as family.

Note:

– Above prices are the cheapest options calculated. There can be no lessthan this. – Turkey, Montenegro, Cyprus ONLY offer real estate option since there isno donation. – Montenegro Government requires 100,000 fee per application. – Real estate option not included in the above prices for Caribbean. Thisroute costs more– Bulgaria financing option for Government bonds.

How do family members influence passport prices?

Family members have a BIG impact on the prices of CBI schemes. Thecosts increase when more family members according to the frameworkof CIP legislation established by Governments.

How much it costs under donation?

Single persons Main + Spouse + 1 Child < 18 Main + Spouse + 2 children < 18

Antigua $135,000 $130,000 $130,000

Dominica $109,950 $175,000 $200,000

Grenada $158,500 $200,000 $200,000

St Kitts and Nevis $157,750 $195,000 $195,000

Montenegro €365,000 €385,000 €395,000

Vanuatu $130,000 $175,000 $190,000

St Lucia $109,500 $165,000 $190,000

Turkey $270,000 $270,500 $272,000

Malta $900,000 €975,200 €1.05m

Cyprus €2.16m €2.16m €2.16m

Bulgaria €1m €1m €1m



We compare the six most popular low cost CBI schemes, assuming maininvestor, spouse and children under 18, apply for citizenship byinvestment schemes.

Take a look on the price variations for family citizenship by investment programs for Main applicant, Spouse

and number of children below 18 years included in the application for donation route.

How much it costs to buy a citizenship under real estate?

These are our rough price calculations to buy a passport depending onthe number of family members.

Assuming 1 main application, 1 spouse, and number of children under 18added below, here are the rough estimates of minimum real estateinvestment required. For example 1 main applicant, spouse and 3 children< 18, make the total family members five.

Family 1 2 3 4 5 6

Antigua 137,800 $ 145,600 $ 145,900 $ 145,900 $ 188,500 $ 201,800 $

Dominica 109,950 $ 200,000 $ 216,850 $ 200,000 $ 244,750 $ 271,200 $

Grenada 158,500 $ 200,000 $ 218,000 $ 200,000 $ 247,000 $ 274,000 $

St Kitts 157,750 $ 195,000 $ 207,250 $ 195,000 $ 217,750 $ 228,000 $

Vanuatu 130,000 $ 175,000 $ 176,000 $ 190,000 $ 225,000 $ 242,000 $

St Lucia 109,500 $ 165,000 $ 206,500 $ 190,000 $ 233,500 $ 259,500 $



Approximate calculations for buying real estate under citizenship by investment depending on family members

Please contact us for accurate price quotes. We work with trusted realestate partners with citizenship by investment and golden visa programs.

Read our Free Guide to Citizenship by Real Estate Investment

Why prices of CBI schemes dropped in 2017?

After the 2017 Hurricane season, in a desperate attempt to bringrevenues, caribbean countries engaged a race to the bottom cuttingprices for CBI schemes. As a result the price dropped by almost 50%making passports affordable to average and middle class population.

The 2017 has been the most important year for the CBI industry, because

Real Estate 1 2 3 4 5

Antigua $237,800 $245,600 $245,900 $246,800 $247,000

Dominica $234,950 $250,400 $251,850 $253,300 $255,000

Grenada $278,500 $286,500 $288,000 $290,000 $292,000

St Kitts $242,800 $267,100 $277,400 $287,800 $289,000

St Lucia $349,500 $365,500 $366,500 $366,500 $366,500

Montenegro $406,000 $417,000 $428,900 $430,000 $432,000

Turkey $270,000 $275,000 $277,500 $279,000 $280,000




so many engaged price cuts. First the Caribbean countries then followedby Vanuatu and Turkey.

Turkey dramatically cut the prices for passport down to just $250,000from $1 million. It is just a huge price cut for citizenship!

Looking on the flip side!This only benefited the clients and helped to increase the popularity ofthe passport by investment schemes.

Prices of Citizenship by Investment Programs Before and After 2017

How important are visa waivers?

Visa waivers fuel demand for passports that come with visa free



movement. It has become the most important marketing factor to attractclients applying for passports. Imagine with one powerful secondpassport, you could visit all the 196 countries in the world.

You will see below the soft visas (eVisa, ETA, VOA etc) and hard visasrequired to visit 196 countries in the world for CBI passports. ClearlyMalta is powerful and Caribbean passports are not far behind.

Source: Best Passport Rankings Study 2020

On 28 May 2015 the EU signed short-stay visa waiver agreementswith St Lucia, the Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, St Vincent andthe Grenadines, the Republic of Vanuatu, the independent State ofSamoa and the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.

Canada revoked visa waiver agreements for all Caribbean countries

Visa notrequired

Visarequired eVisa eTA

Visa onarrival

eVisa / Visa onarrival

TotalAccess

Malta 118 30 13 3 18 14 166

Austria 117 30 12 3 13 21 166

Cyprus 117 33 15 1 16 14 163

Bulgaria 110 34 15 1 17 19 162

Antigua 98 54 11 1 26 4 140

Saint Kitts 99 53 10 2 27 4 142

Grenada 92 59 13 1 26 4 136

Saint Lucia 90 60 12 2 27 4 135

Dominica 87 61 14 1 27 5 134

Vanuatu 80 67 13 0 29 5 127

Montenegro 74 68 16 0 23 14 127

Samoa 78 69 13 0 29 6 126

Moldova 72 76 14 0 20 13 119

Turkey 65 79 9 2 22 16 114

Cambodia 17 127 19 0 20 11 67

Jordan 16 130 18 1 18 11 64

Comoros 14 138 10 0 24 9 57

Egypt 16 132 16 0 21 10 63

https://best-citizenships.com/2020/01/12/best-passport-rankings-2020/



selling passports by 2015 citing citizenship for sale pose a serious risk toCanada’s borders.

We noticed when Canada revoked visa waiver and imposed visarestriction on Antiguan citizen in 2017, the applications for CBI passporttook a nose dive. This goes on to show how important are visa waiversfor citizenship by investment programs.

But the Caribbean countries have managed to expand their visa waiveragreements to Russia and other countries in an effort to boost tourismand passport revenues.

Who are CBI citizens?

CBI citizens are a new class of diaspora population created by citizenshipby investment programs.

Approximately less than 10,000 people become CBI citizens every year,and an estimated 50,000 CBI citizens living in diaspora. These are smallcommunities of wealthy individuals live in United Arab Emirates, China,Europe, Americas and Africa.

Here are a brief numbers of CBI population that exist as of 2020

*Note: Approximate unofficial figures calculated based onpassports/applications approved for investors. For Dominica PWC report

St Kitts and Nevis 18,000

Grenada 3,300

Antigua and Barbuda 3,500

Dominica 6,000

Malta 1,200

Cyprus 4,500

Vanuatu 2,000

Turkey 5,100

Montenegro 5*



What you should know about EU citizenship?

The European Union (EU) citizenship, first of all does not exist as its own,it a supplemental citizenship conferred by member states of the EU. TheCitizenship of the European Union shall not replace national citizenshipand is automatically lost if revoked by the member state.

EU citizens can also be dual citizens. Most EU states do grant citizenshipthrough ordinary naturalization meeting conditions such as long termresidency, integration, passing civic and language tests.

Only three member states (Malta, Bulgaria, Cyprus) grant expeditedcitizenship based on investment. Of all Cyprus has the fastest citizenshiptime (6 months)

Bulgaria – €1m (Government bonds, financing possible)Malta – €900,000 (€650K Donation + €150K Bonds + Processingfee)Cyprus – €2m (real estate)

Bulgaria remains the cheapest option, while other programs are onlysuitable for High-net-worth investors costing excess of one million euros.

What rights do EU citizens enjoy?

Right to free movement, settlement and live anywhere across theEU.Right to trade and transport goods, services and capital freelythrough EU borders ( no restrictions on capital movements)Right to vote in and run as a candidate in local elections, europeanelections and european citizens initiative Right to consular protection by embassies of other EU memberstates when embassy is not presentRight to equal pay, discrimination at workplace,



Right to legal protection, data protection and privacy.Full citizen rights including protection from deportationFavourable tax regime (requires advance planning)

Non-EU Nationals

Iceland, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Norway are not part of EuropeanUnion therefore these country nationals are not EU citizens. Althoughthese countries are not members of the EU, their nationals can work inthe EU on the same footing as EU nationals, since they belong to theEuropean Economic Area.

EU/EFTA/Schengen and candidate countries

What is the difference between EU and Schengen?Download

Do You Know?Swiss citizens are not EU citizens. Swiss nationals are free to live andwork in the EU.

https://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Differences-EU-EFTA-Schengen.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Differences-EU-EFTA-Schengen.pdf



UK citizens cease to be EU citizens from 2021. The Brexit transitionperiod ends on 31 December 2020.

Common Myths Debunked

We will debunk some of the common myths many think about citizenshipby investment programs (CIP)

Myth 1: Citizenship by investment (CBI) schemes offer diplomaticpassports.Reality: CBI schemes issue ordinary passports have nothing to do withdiplomatic passports. Diplomatic passports can only be issued to citizensaccording to Vienna convention. Diplomatic immunity is only available tocertain classes of high level diplomats (not to all).

Myth 2: Only criminals or money launders acquire passports byinvestmentReality: All applicants must pass due diligence checks before being givenpassports. High risk clients are rejected. It is a fact that 99% of the thepeople applying are genuine families, they ONLY benefited from theseschemes, getting a new life and identity. Less than 1% of thoseunscrupulous persons known to abuse the citizenship schemes.

Myth 3: No background checks are done for passport investors.This is completely false. Due diligence forms the heart of the industryprotecting the integrity of citizenship by investment programs. Infact over90% of work done on applicants involve these checks. Some do abusethe passport programs bringing negative reputation to the CBI industry.All immigrant investor programs (including US EB-5) have issues. Novetting system is 100% perfect, but it is a constant struggle to improvisethe checks.

Can stateless people apply for citizenship byinvestment?



Citizenship by investment programs do not restrict stateless people fromapplying for passport programs. As far as we know, at the moment only 4CBI programs accept stateless people

1. Vanuatu2. Dominica3. Turkey4. Cyprus5. Antigua

There are 12 million stateless people around the world who do not haveany form nationality. Stateless people are denied basic human rights suchas right to education, healthcare, employment and freedom ofmovement, due to lack of papers and identity.

Citizenship by investment schemes who can afford to make investment,provide stateless people new identity, healthcare and other righteousbenefits.

Statelessness is caused by collapsing states, discrimination againstparticular ethnic/religious groups, gaps in nationality laws, stripping ofcitizenship or states that not let women pass on their nationality.

The UN Human Rights agency has pledged to end statelessness by2024.

Best Citizenship by Investment Programs

We will give you a quick review analyzing 15 most popular citizenship byinvestment programs. We will also tell you the Pro’s and Con’s with eachof the programs.

Best Citizenship by Investment Rankings 2020Download

1. Grenada

https://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/BCBIR-2020.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/BCBIR-2020.pdf



Beautiful Caribbean sunset and beaches in Grenada

Pros

Grenada established itself No.1 citizenship by investment in theworld.Only Caribbean country that has visa free access to all thesecountries China, Russia, United Kingdom, Schengen statesGrenadian citizens have access to E-2 investor visas to visit UnitedStates (cheapest alternative to EB-5). It is a non-immigrant visa.No requirement to visit Grenada and Zero residence requirements.Passports delivered through Authorized agents.Permanent residence card at additional cost.

Cons

Costwise it may be slightly expensive, but you get what you pay forin terms of quality of passport.



Grenada may refuse applicants who are rejected already applying forCBI programs in other countries.

List of Authorized Agents for Grenada Citizenship ProgramDownloadGRENADA_CITIZENSHIP_BY_INVESTMENT ACT 2013DownloadGrenada Citizenship-by Investment-Amendments 2019_DownloadGrenada Approved Real Estate Regulations 2019Download

2. Vanuatu

Eton Beach on Efate Island, Vanuatu, near Port Vila – famous beach on the east coast

Contribution Program (VCP)

$130K

One time Donation

Free Quote

Pros:

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– Fastest application approval times (3 weeks)– Passport issued within 2 months (entire process completed)– Easy and straight forward application process (no personal visitneeded)– Very good passport from a pacific country with visa free access to UK,Schengen, Russia etc.– Non FATCA country, may interest american expats. – Pure tax haven, no corporate taxes or income, wealth or inheritancetaxes.– Full privacy to citizenship investors (names not disclosed to public)

Cons:

– Slightly expensive compared to the caribbean passport programs– Visa required to visit Japan, South Korea, Canada, Australia, SouthAfrica etc.

Visa free list for Vanuatu passport holders DownloadList of Licensed Agents for Vanuatu Citizenship ProgramDownload

Expert Guide to Vanuatu Citizenship by Investment Program

Citizenship Act and Legislation

Vanuatu Citizenship Act [Cap_112]

Citizenship regulations Order 91-95 of 2018

Citizenship Regulations (Order 32-33) of 2019

3. Dominica

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Roseau, Capital of Commonwealth Dominica

Pros

Cheapest citizenship by investment program for single personsProcessing time only 2-3 monthsVisa free access with EU schengen area, United Kingdom, Russia etcBeautiful lush green country with springs and forests.

Cons

Expensive program for families under donation routeVisa required to visit UAE, Japan, Canada, Nigeria, Lebanon, Mexicoetc.Names of CBI citizens are published in Government Gazette topublic, twice a year, creating privacy issues.

Dominica Citizenship by Investment BrochureDownloadVisa free list for Dominica passport (pdf)DownloadList of Authorised Agents for Dominica Citizenship ProgramDownloadDominica Citizenship By Investment Regulations 2013Download

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Dominica Citizenship-by-Investment Act 2014DownloadDominica Citizenship-by-Investment Amendments 2016Download

4. Saint Lucia

Pitons are the landmark of St Lucia featured in numerous movies and films.

Pros

Beautiful country very popular for holiday destination in theCaribbeanCheapest and low cost passport program for single personsCitizenship program very popular with AmericansApplications are processed within 80 days if paperwork is intact.No person visit required and zero residence requirements.

Cons

Price tag little expensive for families applying for passportsReal estate requirement is high compared to other caribbeanpassport programs (Canelles resort and Alpina Hotel by Desert Star

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Holdings are approved developments)Names of CBI citizens available to public in St Lucia.$500K Government bonds option is available as additional optionbut most applicants do not use this route due to non-availability offinancing option.

Visa free list for Saint Lucia PassportsDownloadList of Licensed Agents for St Lucia CitizenshipDownloadCitizenship-by-Investment-Act-No-14-of-2015DownloadCitizenship-by-Investment-Saint-Lucia-Regulations-S.I-89-of-2015DownloadCitizenship-by-Investment-Amendment-Act-No.-12-of-2019DownloadCitizenship-by-Investment-Amendment-Regulations-2019DownloadSaint-Lucia-National-Economic-Fund-Act-No.-18-of-2019Download

5. Turkey

Turkey’s $2.3 trillion economy is the 19th biggest economy in the world, attracts all sorts of investment into the

country.

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Turkey Citizenship by Investment (TCBI) BrochureDownload

Pros

Biggest and popular citizenship by investment program in EurasiaVery popular among Arab investorsBest real estate investment for citizenshipTurkish Passport within 4-6 monthsVAT for foreign property buyers exempted, makes the program allthe way attractive.Candidate country for EU already in the process of incorporating EUlegislation into national law.Easy application process and no restrictions on who can applyTurkish nationals working legally in an EU country are also entitledsame working conditions as the nationals of that country.

Cons

Passport is weak. No visa free access to EU schengen area, UnitedKingdom or Russia.Visa free access to Turkish citizens available to Japan, South Korea,Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, South Africa, Hong Kong.Applicants must apply for residence card before becoming a citizen.Property prices still high above EU countries in some areas.

Visa free list for Turkey passport holdersDownloadAcquisition Of Turkish Citizenship for Foreigners DownloadTurkey Exceptional Citizenship by Investment RegulationsGuideDownloadTurkey Citizenship Implementation Circular 2019 DownloadAdditional Notes and New Arrangements for CitizenshipDownload

6. St Kitts and Nevis

https://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/TCBI-Brochure.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/TCBI-Brochure.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Turkey.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Turkey.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/AcquisitionOfTurkishCitizenship_ENG_GER_FR.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/AcquisitionOfTurkishCitizenship_ENG_GER_FR.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/kilavuz.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/kilavuz.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/2019-5_1799_sayili_genelge.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/2019-5_1799_sayili_genelge.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/klavuz_icin_kisa_notlar_getirilen_yeni_duzenlemeler.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/klavuz_icin_kisa_notlar_getirilen_yeni_duzenlemeler.pdf



Oldest and most trusted citizenship by investment program in the world

Pros

Richest caribbean country renowned for tourism, beauty andholidaysTrusted citizenship by investment program since 35 yearsVery Strong and powerful passport in the Caribbean.Special visa free regime with Israel, South Korea, Ukraine, Turkeyand Taiwan, RussiaNo residence or physical visit required.No oaths requiredSimple and efficient application process.Cheaper for very big families over 5 or 6 dependantsLow real estate investment (reduced to $200,000)Fast track passport processing (AAP) available for additionalpayment. Decisions on citizenship taken within 45 days.Pure tax haven with no personal income taxes.



Cons

Slightly expensive programReal estate must be held for 7 years before selling.No E-2 visa treaty with United StatesVisa required to visit Canada, South Africa, UAE and Thailand

St Kitts and Nevis Citizenship BrochureDownloadVisa free list for Saint Kitts and Nevis PassportsDownloadList of Licensed Agents for St Kitts Citizenship ProgramDownload

Legal text for St Kitts Citizenship by Investment Legislation

Saint Christopher (St Kitts) and Nevis Citizenship ActDownloadSt Kitts and Nevis Citizenship-by-Investment Regulations 2011DownloadSt Kitts and Nevis Citizenship-by-Investment Amendments2017DownloadSRO No.7 of 2018 Sustainable Growth Fund RegulationDownload

7. Antigua and Barbuda

Antigua made important changes to citizenship by investment programfrom April 1, 2020. As a result donation option slightly expensive by$5000 and real estate becomes cheaper by $20,000. Some countryrestrictions (Iraq) has been lifted and can now apply for passports.

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English Harbour in the South of Antigua

Pros

Cheapest family citizenship by investment program with big pricedifference, remains attractive for families acquiring secondpassportsBeautiful and fastest growing caribbean country, famous holidaydestination in the Caribbean.Powerful passport in the Caribbean with visa free access toSchengen, UK, Russia and over 150+ destinations.Special visa waivers exist with South Africa, Qatar, SerbiaCitizenship is private and not reported to public.Most transparent citizenship by investment program in theCaribbeanPopular with families from China, Bangladesh, Libya and Russia.Pure tax haven, no personal income taxes

Cons

Antigua imposes 5 day residence condition when you renew the



expired passport. This is a problem for many clients.Passport validity is low issued only for 5 yearsNo right to vote or hold government offices.Visa required to enter Canada, UAE, Japan, Israel, Mexico etc.Name change is not allowed after acquiring citizenship.

Visa free list of countries for Antigua passportDownloadList of Licensed Agents for Antigua Citizenship ProgramDownloadAntigua and Barbuda Citizenship-By-Investment Amendment Act2016Download

8. Cyprus

Cyprus is a EU member state since May 2004 and uses Euro. Cyprus to join schengen area and likely to get US

waiver in the future

Note: Cyprus investment program has been suspended by government. Itis no longer possible to apply

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Pros

Best citizen by investment program in the European UnionFastest passport in 6 months.Must buy a home for €500,000Limited quota of 700 applicants annuallyFull EU citizen rights including right to vote in European ParliamentelectionsStrong EU passport with visa free access to Canada, UnitedKingdom and full rights to live, work, study in 28 Member states.

Cons

Very expensive, only suitable to UHNW millionaires.No Government bonds investment option.VAT 19% is very high, you would essentiate waste money buying realestate for €2m. You have to structure investment properly to payless VAT.Investors have to pay additional €150,000 donation to research andhousing development.

Visa free list of countries for Cypriot passportsDownloadList of Authorised Agents for Cyprus Investment ProgramDownloadCyprus Naturalisation by Investment GuidelinesDownloadCyprus Investment Scheme – Presentation SeminarDownloadInvestors Citizenship Scheme in Cyprus by EuropeanCommissionDownload

9. Montenegro

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Montenegro uses Euro, a candidate country to join EU and Schengen area by 2025

Real Estate North

€250K

Govt Application fee €100K

Free QuoteReal Estate South

€450K

Govt application fee: 100K euro

Free Quote

Pros

Picturesque country visited by over 2 million tourist arrivals.Montenegro opened brand new economic citizenship program in2018.

https://cbicitizen.com/contact/https://cbicitizen.com/contact/



Rock bottom lowest property prices in Europe.Passport and permanent residence issued within 3 months.E-1 and E-2 treaty with United StatesVisa free agreements with Schengen, Russia, Turkey, Israel, SouthKorea etc.

Cons

Limited quota of only 2000 investors get citizenship until Dec 2021.Weak passport with no visa waiver agreement with United Kingdom,Canada and IrelandNo option to invest in residential properties, currently only hotelinvestments allowed.Application fee very high exceeding €100,000 along with other fees.

Visa free list of countries for Montenegrin passportDownloadList of Authorized Agents for Montenegro Citizenship ProgramDownloadAcquisition of Montenegrin Citizenship by Admission for Investment[ACT] DownloadMontenegrin Citizenship by Investment Guidelines 2019 DownloadMontenegro Citizenship by Investment Amendments 2020Download

10. Malta

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Malta launched Individual investor program in 2014

Malta launched New Direct Investment scheme in Nov 2020, replacingthe Individual investor program (IIP) with very strict background checks.

Malta Government has relaunched the citizenship by investmentprogram, under new regulations published in L.N. 437 of 2020 under theGranting of Citizenship for Exceptional Services Regulations, 2020 whichwas published in the Government Gazette Of Malta No. 20,524–20.11.2020

Legal Background

L.N 440 of 2020 – National Development and Social Fund (Establishmentas an Agency) (Amendment) Order, 2020L.N 439 of 2020 – Malta Individual Investor Programme Agency(Establishment) (Amendment) Order, 2020L.N 438 of 2020 – Identity Malta Agency (Establishment) (Amendment)Order, 2020

https://legislation.mt/eli/ln/2020/437/eng/pdfhttps://legislation.mt/eli/ln/2020/440/eng/pdfhttps://legislation.mt/eli/ln/2020/439/eng/pdfhttps://legislation.mt/eli/ln/2020/438/eng/pdf



L.N 437 of 2020 – Granting of citizenship for Exceptional ServicesRegulations, 2020L.N 436 of 2020 – Community Malta Agency (Establishment) Order,2020L.N 435 of 2020 – Agents (Licences) Regulations, 2020L.N 434 of 2020 – Declaration of Intent Regulations, 2020 for PropertyAgents

Malta offers excellent opportunity to become EU citizen by investmentthrough Exceptional citizenship by direct investment program. You haveto make donation the new regulations.

Malta citizenship doesnt come cheap. For example for a small family of 3with main applicant, spouse and 1 child under 18, the costs would comedown to €975,000 without agent fee. The more family members you add,it would exceed €1m plus other fees.

Pros

Ideal Citizenship by Investment program for HNW familiesYou will become a full EU citizen under Maltese investor program.Malta citizenship program popular with Russia, Middle Eastinvestors.Powerful european passport with visa free access to United States,Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, South Africa etc..Excellent education system and world class healthcare standards.

Cons

Very expensive program not suitable for small and middle classfamilies.Not a 100% direct real estate investment program. You have to rentor buy real estate on top of donation.Refusal rates are very high (25-30%) complying to very strict vetting

https://legislation.mt/eli/ln/2020/437/eng/pdfhttps://legislation.mt/eli/ln/2020/436/eng/pdfhttps://legislation.mt/eli/ln/2020/435/eng/pdfhttps://legislation.mt/eli/ln/2020/434/eng/pdf



standards.No privacy for citizenship buyers, as names are published in Gazetteavailable for public.Residence requirement imposed for 12 months. (e-residence cardmust becoming a citizen)Takes atleast 14-16 months to get Maltese passport (very slow)Property prices extremely high in Malta makes the schemeunpopular for property buyersMalta has no visa waivers signed with Russia, China.

List of Licensed Agents for Malta Citizenship ProgramDownloadInvestor Citizenship and Residence in Malta by EuropeanCommissionDownloadIndividual Investor Programme Regulations, 2014Download

11. Bulgaria

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Bulgaria is a member country of the EU since January 1, 2007 comprising of 1.4% of EU population. Bulgaria to

join schengen area in the future.

Do you know about Bulgaria? We have one special citizenship by investment program to tell you about.Thats Bulgaria. It low profile investment citizenship scheme is not widelypromoted and least known to many investors.

Fast Track citizenship

€1m

Business Capital

Free Quote

Bulgaria, probably the cheapest citizenship by investment program inEurope, you can possibly think of

The trick here is financing Government bonds.

At 5% interest rate you only have to pay around €275,000 (includes€250K financing cost for 5 years and other €250,00 legal charges tofinance €1m Government stocks/bonds.

It is still cheap considering you get EU passport and it is 4x timescheaper than Malta

Pros

Bulgaria offers excellent opportunity to become EU citizen byinvestmentFast track investor citizenship scheme still running and not abolishedyet.Cheapest EU citizenship by investment programBulgaria has powerful EU passport with visa free travel to Canada,

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United Kingdom and other countries.Immediate permanent residence cardExcellent healthcare and education benefitsCorporate tax haven in Europe with low taxes and cost of living.One personal visit required. No requirement to permanently stay inthe country.Citizenship privacy CBI citizens as it is not reported to public.No requirement to open bank account.No country restrictions on who can apply

Cons

Hold permanent residence for one year before applying forcitizenshipBulgaria not yet in schengen area likely to join in the future.Passport takes 18 months to receive.Citizenship is revoked is investments not maintained for 5 years.If citizenship is refused by president, cannot be appealed.

Visa free list for Bulgaria passport holdersDownloadCitizenship and Residence Legislation in Bulgaria from Invest BulgariaAgencyDownloadInvestor Citizenship in Bulgaria compiled by EuropeanCommissionDownload

12. Moldova

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Above Chisinau at sunset. Chisinau is the capital city of Republic of Moldova

Moldova opened first citizenship by investment scheme (MCBI) in Oct2018, to drive economic investments into the country. The Governmentexpected to raise €1.3 billion euros from the citizenship by investmentscheme by handing out fast track citizenship to approximately 5000economic investors from abroad.

The scheme remains suspended currently until Sep 2020 and the fate ofthe scheme after that is unknown.

Moldova received 36 applications and so far only 5 investors receivedcitizenship before the scheme was placed on moratorium.

Moldovan passport has visa waiver arrangement with the EU schengenarea, Russia, Turkey, Israel, Ukraine etc.. Moldova still has NO visa freeaccess to United Kingdom, Ireland and Canada.

Moldova Citizenship by Investment – MCBI GuidelinesDownload

https://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/MCBI-guidelines-181121.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/MCBI-guidelines-181121.pdf



13. Austria

Austria is one of the best countries in the world ranks highly for peace,freedom and highest living standards.

16th-century Alpine houses and alleyways in Halstatt, Austria

Austria does not have any official citizenship by investment program.

Note: Austria citizenship is NOT guaranteed by government forinvestments.

Article 10(6) of the Citizenship Act does specify economic investment asthe criteria for discretionary naturalization in the interest of the statewaiving all residence and language conditions. Few investors receivedAustrian citizenships for investments before 2012, after this this programdisappeared into unknown.



Austria does grant exceptional citizenship for extraordinary contributionsin the interest of state in the fields of arts, music, research, science,sports and medicine.

Currently the only for investors to acquire Austrian citizenship is throughthe residence program. Foreign Investors can apply for self employmentpermit with Red-white-Red card which offers temporary residence. After10 years of living, you will get to become Austrian citizen. One problemwith Austria is dual citizenship is not permitted, so you have to probablyrenounce previous nationality.

No doubt Austria has world class and strongest passports in the World.

14. Comoros

Great Mosque in Moroni, Comoros



Comoros launched Citizenship by Investment Program in 2008 basedbased on Article 19 of the 2001 Constitution of the Union of the Comorosmaking it the first citizenship by investment scheme launched in Africa.Further amendments to the citizenship by investment scheme were madein 2013.

Comoros citizenship program is permanently closed since 2016

Comoros ran the passport for sale program from 2009 to 2016 requiringforeign investors to pay just $40,000 donation per application plusadditional fees

The Government officially announced from 2009 to 2016, a total of52,000 passports were sold as part of the economic citizenship program.Most of these Comorion passports were issued to large number ofstateless people in UAE and other countries.

Since May 2016 the citizenship by investment program in Comorosremains closed, after alleged abuse of the scheme.

15. Egypt



Egypt history dates back to thousands of years back from Pharoah’s boasts of $1.3 trillion economy

In June 2019, the Egyptian parliament approved Citizenship forInvestment Law aimed at attracting foreign investors to reside in Egypt.The New Law granted the Prime Minister has the power to grant Egyptiancitizenship to any foreign national who buys a state-owned property or aprivate property to establish an investment project.

Subsequent amendments to the citizenship law reduced the investmentand time for citizenship. There is a $10,000 filing fee per onlineapplication submitted to the Special citizenship by investment unit setupby the Government.

Pros

Brand new African citizenship by investment schemeEgypt is a $1.3 trillion market connecting Asia, Europe, the Middle



East, Africa and Americas.Fast track Citizenship decision made within 90 days for investmentE-2 investor visa treaty with United StatesBank deposit option also available ($750K)Egypt permits dual citizen status

Cons

Weak passport in terms of visa free travel to less than 50 countries.Investment ceiling is too high for real estate and donation.Scheme is not popular yet.

16. Samoa

Samoa lies about halfway between Hawaii and New Zealand, has $1.2 billion GDP with 200,000 population.

Samoa (Western Samoa) opened a citizenship by investment scheme in2017, under the Citizenship Investment Act and Regulations of 2016.Under the scheme foreign investors must invest $2.4 million to become a



citizen.

This program did not become popular and remains unknown to many,due to several issues with the program. However the scheme is still openfor investors who want to invest in energy, real estate, IT, agricultural andfisheries manufactories and communication tech fields. All applicants aresubjected to due diligence.

The program is administered by Ministry of Commerce. The citizenshipinvestment program received 5 applications from agents and investorsaccording to the 2018 annual report.

Pros

Exclusive and unique citizenship by investment program.Powerful second passport with visa free access.Samoan passport visa free access to 130+ countries includingCanada, Russia, United Kingdom and Schengen states.Financially secretive tax havenEntire investment can be withdrawn leaving only 15% after PR.

Cons

Very high investment threshold15 day residence requirementInvestors must prove networth of atleast $1mPassport takes a very long time more than 2 years, only issued afteryou become permanent resident.Passport valid only for 5 years with extensions.70% of the investment must be paid upfront along with theapplication.

Samoa Citizenship Investment Act 2015DownloadSamoa Citizenship by Investment GuidelinesDownload

https://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Samoa-Citizenship-Investment-Act-2015-Eng.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Samoa-Citizenship-Investment-Act-2015-Eng.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/SamoaFINALinvestment.pdfhttps://cbicitizen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/SamoaFINALinvestment.pdf



17. Jordan

Jordan is a $100 billion economy with 98% Arab population out of 10 million residents crossroads of Asia,

Africa and Europe.

Permanent Residency

280K

Real estate

Jordan approved the regulations for citizenship by investment in 2018and the next year the program was relaunched in 2019 with reducedinvestment requirements. It is the first citizenship by investment programlaunched in Middle east remains attractive for some investors.

Pros

Citizenship attractive to Arab investorsJordan is at strategic geographic location for trade and businessBank deposit option available for $1m



Passport issued for 10 yearsVisa free access to 50 countries including Malaysia, South Africa,Egypt Lebanon30 day application processDual citizenship not restricted

Cons

High investment thresholds compared to other programs in themarketWeak passport. No visa free access to Schengen/UKCitizenship cannot be passed through mothers (only father)Limited Quota of 500 investors per year

What You should Know about Due Diligence?

Due diligence is the heart beat of the investment immigration industrycollecting $15 billion in investments through CBI and Golden visaschemes.

Governments have maintained highest standards of due diligencekeeping out high risk applicants to protect the integrity of the migrationschemes.

Agents first do preliminary due diligence and background checks beforepassing the files to Governments. Governments and CIUs do variousprofiling checks for sanctions, source of funds and other risk tools toidentify risk. Third party due diligence reports from Thomson Reuters,Exiger, Refinitiv, S-RM are sought by Governments before a decision ismade on approvals. Sometimes this takes atleast 2-3 months. Over 90%of the work involved for passport applicants lies in screening for risk.High risk applicants including Politically exposed persons (PEPs) aresubjected to Enhanced due diligence (EDD)

Free Guide to Citizenship by Investment – CBI Citizen · 2020. 12. 30. · CBI Annual investments...

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