4 Caribbean islands' Programs

Antigua & Barbuda, Dominica,

St Kitts & Nevis, St Lucia

Comparing the 5 Caribbean programs

Prices for Caribbean ‘Golden Passports’ Have Grown

In March 2024, four Caribbean jurisdictions administering citizenship-by-investment programs (Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, the Commonwealth of Dominica, and the Federation of St Kitts and Nevis) came to an agreement on several aspects of the programs. St Lucia later joined them. One of the most important aspects is price harmonization. The countries agreed to raise the prices of ‘golden passports’ to at least US$ 200,000 by July 2024.

Date of ‘price’ Minimum investment Donation to Minimum investment Minimum investment

increase in property the state fund in Government bonds in business

Antigua and

Barbuda August 1, 2024 US$235,000 US$230,000 US$400,000

Dominica July 1, 2024 US$200,000 US$200,000

St Lucia July 1, 2024 US$300,000 US$240,000 US$300,000 US$250,000

St Kitts and

Nevis July 27, 2023 US$400,000 US$250,000

Grenada July 1, 2024 US$270,000 US$235,000

ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA CITIZENSHIP PROGRAM

The tropical islands of Antigua and Barbuda located in the heart of the Caribbean are the peqcefull place rich in vegetation, beautiful beaches, lagoons with a very pleasant and cool weather around the year. Antigua and Barbuda is an independent Commonwealth state with some 365 beaches of clean turquoise waters,

To apply for the Antigua and Barbuda Citizenship Program the applicant has to make a significant economic contribution to the country.

The pan-Caribbean deadline was initially set at July 1, 2024 but the Antiguan authorities said that they needed 30 more days to finalize the procedures and obtain parliamentary approval of the changes. According to insiders, Antiguans did try to meet the deadline and implement the amendments by June 30, but circumstances beyond their control forced the local government to request an extension.

On the condition that the Parliament approves the amendments, the investment thresholds are going to be as follows in Antigua and Barbuda:

A non-returnable donation to the National Development Fund (NDF):
- For a family of 1 to 4 members — US$ 230,000.
- For a family of 5 and more members — US$ 245,000.
A non-returnable donation to the University of the West Indies (UWI) Fund — US$ 300,000.
An investment into real property — US$ 325,000.
The amounts of investments into business ventures remain the same: US$ 1.5 million for an individual investor and US$ 400,000 for each investor participating in a joint investment project whose total value is at least US$ 5 million.

DOMINICA CITIZENSHIP PROGRAM

The Commonwealth of Dominica published new citizenship-by-investment regulations on June 28, 2024. They went into force on the date of publication. The document contains a new pricelist and the donation and investment amounts have been raised. This is in compliance with the Memorandum signed by the country in March 2024. The new regulations cancel the previously published ones.

The document describes the instances when applications for citizenship of Dominica by investment may be rejected. Besides, it explains why economic citizenship can be annulled. The roles of authorized agents and license promoters are clarified and detailed. Key takeaways:

Financial requirements

Donation to the Economic Diversification Fund (EDF):
- US$ 200,000 for the main applicant;
- US$ 250,000 for the main applicant and not more than three qualified dependents;
- US$ 25,000 for any extra dependent family member below 18;
- US$ 40,000 for any extra dependent family member above 18;
Investment into property:
- The required investment amount remains the same at US$ 200,000.
State duties (payable only by investors into property):
- US$ 75,000 for the main applicant;
- US$ 100,000 for the main applicant and not more than three dependents;
- US$ 25,000 for any extra dependent family member below 18;
- US$ 40,000 for any extra dependent family member above 18;
Complex security checks:
- US$ 7,500 for verifying the facts of the main applicant’s biography; and
- US$ 4,000 for verifying the facts of each adult (16+) family member’s biography;
Interview fee is US$ 1,000.

Family members that can be added to the application for citizenship

The following family members can be added to a family application for citizenship of Dominica:

Main applicant’s spouse;
Child of the main applicant and/ or his/ her spouse below the age of 18;
Child of the main applicant and/ or his/ her spouse between 18 and 30 years of age who is attending a recognized university and who is financially dependent on the main applicant and/ or his/ her spouse;
Unmarried daughter of the main applicant and/ or his/ her spouse below the age of 25 who lives with the main applicant and/ or his/ her spouse and who is financially dependent on them;
Child with physical or mental disabilities above the age of 18 who is financially dependent on the main applicant and/ or his/ her spouse;
Parents and grandparents of the main applicant and/ or his/ her spouse above the age of 65 who are financially dependent on the main applicant and/ or his/ her spouse.

Adding new family members to the application after citizenship of Dominica has been granted to the main applicant

Child. If an economic citizen of Dominica gives birth to or adopts a child below 18 within 5 years from the date of acquiring citizenship, the child will qualify for citizenship of Dominica by naturalization. The application processing fee is US$ 2,000.
Spouse. If an economic citizen marries after acquiring citizenship of Dominica, his/ her spouse is entitled to become a naturalized citizen of the country. A state duty of US$ 75,000 is payable. Besides, a due diligence fee has to be paid in a year.
Dependents. An economic citizen of Dominica can apply for citizenship for a dependent family member who was not included in the original application for citizenship. A state duty of US$ 50,000 is payable. Besides, a due diligence fee has to be paid in a year.

Transition period

The CIU has also announced a transition period for those immigration agents who had started negotiating with potential clients before the regulations were amended and who had been paid before that time. They have the right to apply for citizenship of Dominica on behalf of their clients using the old pricelist.

The CIU was accepting notifications of such cases until midnight June 30. The immigration agents had to specify their clients’ names, the selected financial routes, their passport numbers, and the number of qualified dependents.

Later, however, the deadline was extended to July 31, 2024. In addition to the information specified above, confirmation of payments from the client’s bank account is required to make sure that the CIU costs are covered.

ST. KITTS & NEVIS CITIZENSHIP PROGRAM

The authorities of St Kitts and Nevis raised the prices on July 27, 2023. On that day, the local CIU issued a press release with the new rules of acquiring a ‘golden passport’. According to independent experts, the changes were made under pressure from Brussels and London. The authorities of St Kitts and Nevis did not want their visa-free agreements with Great Britain to be canceled, as had been the case for Vanuatu and Dominica. Besides, the threat of losing visa-free access to the Schengen zone was also growing for citizens of St Kitts and Nevis.

As a result, the program has been rebranded and the prices have been raised. The Sustainable Growth Fund (SGF) that used to accept donations has been replaced by the Sustainable Island State Contribution option (SISC). The required donation amount has grown from US$ 125,000 to US$ 250,000.

The required investment amount has also been raised significantly. Previously, 2 foreign investors could make a joint investment putting US$ 200,000 each in a Government approved development project to qualify for citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis. They had to keep the property in their possession for 7 years. If a single investor put US$ 400,000 into real property, he/ she could sell it back after 5 years. Now a foreign national has to invest at least US$ 400,000 into a development project and keep the property in his/ her possession for 7 years to obtain a passport of St Kitts and Nevis.

Initially, one of the Caribbean countries that issued ‘golden passports’ did not join the agreement between the other four. The authorities of St Lucia requested additional time to solve some issues and discuss legal obligations with their partners.

However, according to the press release from the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) that came out on June 22, 2024, St Lucia has now joined the agreement signed by other countries in March 2024.

The press release states that ‘selling’ citizenship at a price below the set threshold will be deemed illegal. The document also calls on national CIUs, agents, and developers to report any attempts or instances of unjustified discounts to the relevant authorities.

The press release also says that the Government of the signatory states will create an Interim Regulatory Commission that is going to have 7 members: representatives of the 5 countries, an OECS Commission representative and an representative of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank.

This is going to be a regional regulatory agency. The Interim Commission is going to remain functional until a permanent Commission is established. Its functions are going to include the following ones:

Developing and enforcing regional standards for all economic citizenship programs;
Monitoring compliance with national legislations and international agreements;
Dealing with complaints;
Facilitating information exchange and interaction with regional and international stakeholders.

The Caribbean countries administering ‘golden passport’ programs will have to provide the Commission with periodic updates on the progress of the agreement implementation.

The St Lucian CIU has distributed an official memorandum to licensed immigration agents and other stakeholders informing them about the changes in the prices. The changes went into effect on July 1, 2024. The prices are in compliance with the agreement set out in the memorandum of March 2024. Key takeaways:

New prices:

Non-returnable donation to the Saint Lucia National Economic Fund:
- Main applicant with up to 3 qualified dependents — US$ 240,000;
- Each extra dependent family member below 18 – US$ 10,000;
- Each extra dependent family member above 18 – US$ 20,000.
- Child below 12 months US$ 5,000;
- Main applicant’ spouse – US$ 35,000;
- Other adult dependent family members — US$ 25,000 each.
Investment into property (an approved development project):
- Main applicant with up to 3 dependents — US$ 300,000 plus administrative fees;
Investment into an approved corporate project:
- Main applicant with up to 3 dependents — US$ 250,000 plus administrative fees.