DOMINICA
Investor Program
Advantages
• Citizenship and a second passport for life for the applicant and dependent family members • Travel visa-free to more than 115 countries
• Visa Free access to Schengen Area countries granted in May 2015
• Enjoy tax free status
• No requirement to reside in Dominica
• No management or educational requirements
• No country restrictions (Open to all applicants)
Requirements
• Applicants can make a non-refundable donation to the government fund or invest
in a government approved real-estate project
• Be over 18 years old
• Have no criminal record
• Provide all the documents are required in English
• Provide a letter of application for economic citizenship addressed to the Minister
responsible for Citizenship
• Have basic knowledge of the English language
• Make a deposit in a bank account at the National Commercial Bank of Dominica
• Must use a government authorised agent
Investment Options
1. The Government Fund option (non-refundable) Minimum to be invested:
• USD 100,000 for a single applicant
• USD 175,000 for applicant accompanied by a spouse
• USD 175,000 for applicant accompanied by up to two children under 18 years old
• USD 200,000 for applicant accompanied by a spouse and two children under 18
years old
• Add USD 50,000 for each additional dependent of the main applicant other than
a spouse 2. The Real Estate option (saleable after 3 years) Purchase authorised
real estate with a minimum value of USD 200,000, which must be held for at least
three years. In addition to the cost of the real-estate the following additional
government fees apply:
• Main applicant: USD 50,000
• Spouse: USD 25,000
• Dependent under 18: USD 20,000
• Dependant aged 18-25: USD 50,000
Process (3-4 months)
• Prepare all the documents required and submit them via an authorised agent, and
pay due diligence fees
• After approval, every applicant must sign an oath of allegiance in front of a Notary
Public, Justice of Peace or Commissioner of Oaths
• Obtain the passport after the citizenship confirmation
New Zealand: The Reform That Found Its Market
April 2025's overhaul — NZ$5 million, 21 days' presence, no English test — turned a moribund category into one of the world's fastest-moving investor visas: 730 applications and NZ$1.69 billion committed by May 2026.
The context
Against 115 applications in the previous framework's entire life, the reformed Active Investor Plus drew 730 applications for 2,390 people by 20 May 2026, with 288 approvals, NZ$1.69 billion committed, and approval-in-principle averaging around 36 working days. Principal applicants come chiefly from the United States, China and Hong Kong; most capital flows to Invest New Zealand-approved managed funds and bonds.Programme mechanicsTwo tracks. Growth: NZ$5 million (≈US$3m) for 36 months in higher-risk assets — approved managed funds and direct business stakes — with a presence requirement of just 21 days across three years and permanent residence at year three.
Balanced: NZ$10 million over 60 months across a wider menu including bonds, listed equities and compliant property developments, with 105 days' presence (reducible by up to 42 days through additional Growth-type investment) and permanent residence at year five. Funds must be invested within six months of approval in principle (one six-month extension available); evidence questionnaires fall due at 24 months and at term.
PROGRAMME AT A GLANCE — JULY 2026
GROWTH : NZ$5m / 3 yrs / 21 days
BALANCED : NZ$10m / 5 yrs / 105 days
UPTAKE (MAY 2026) : 730 apps, NZ$1.69bn
NEW RIGHT : One NZ$5m+ home
Strategic analysis
The refinements keep coming: December 2025 removed discretionary investment-management services from the Growth menu and — via an Overseas Investment Act amendment — allowed AIP holders to buy or build one residential property above NZ$5 million despite the foreign-buyer ban; from 1 June 2026, Growth applicants may direct up to 20% of the investment to approved philanthropy (registered Tier 1–3 charities with donee status and five compliant years, or listed Department of Conservation projects, with conflicts of interest disclosable). The terminus is a top-ten passport (183 destinations) in one of the world's most trusted jurisdictions.
Startup & Entrepreneur Route
The business tier was rebuilt in parallel. The Entrepreneur Work Visa — in place since 1999, notorious for decline rates — closed to new applications, replaced from 24 November 2025 by the Business Investor Work Visa: NZ$1 million into an established New Zealand business (outright purchase or at least 25% ownership) for a three-year work-to-residence pathway, or NZ$2 million for a twelve-month fast track, applicants aged 55 or under with business experience, reserve funds, and accountant-and-lawyer-certified due diligence; passive investments, fast-food franchises, drop-shipping and adult entertainment are excluded. The policy's explicit second purpose is SME succession — matching migrant capital to retiring owners.For genuine startups, Immigration Minister Erica Stanford has confirmed a dedicated startup-entrepreneur visa for scalable, innovative ventures is under development to complete the suite; until it lands, the accelerator-linked Global Impact Visa (Edmund Hillary Fellowship) legacy and the reformed Skilled Migrant Category (overhauled from 24 August 2026) carry founder traffic.
INVESTOR CASES — ANONYMISED COMPOSITE PROFILES
The Bay Area post-exit couple, 48 and 46
Filed in the reform's first wave: NZ$5.2m across two Invest NZ-approved growth funds, approval in principle in 31 working days, and 21 days of presence satisfied across two southern-hemisphere summers. The December 2025 property amendment changed their plans materially — a NZ$6m Queenstown build is now consented — and from June 2026 they redirected NZ$1m of the commitment to a conservation philanthropy project, inside the new 20% allowance.
The Ho Chi Minh City manufacturing family, principal 58
Chose Balanced deliberately: NZ$10m weighted toward bonds and a compliant industrial-property development, accepting 105 days' presence as the price of lower volatility. The removed English requirement was decisive — the principal's daughter, who runs the family's export book, manages the Invest NZ compliance questionnaires at the 24- and 60-month marks, and the family treats the five-year clock as the runway to a New Zealand-educated third generation.
