Citizenship / Passport Programs
Overseas property investment can be combined with a strategy to secure citizenship and a passport in the jurisdiction in which you make your investment. Innes & Gunn can provide full support services to take you through the relevant processes quickly and efficiently, using the right level of professional services to ensure that you obtain high quality advice and value for money.
Making the Right Decision
Innes & Gunn can assist you in making informed and profitable decisions on how to integrate these opportunities with your overseas investment strategy. We work only with the most efficient and fully approved service providers in this sector.
United Kingdom
Basic principles: unless you are setting up business in the United Kingdom as an entrepreneur, you need to invest a minimum of £1million and live in the UK for at least 6 months each year for a defined period before you can obtain a passport. It will take a minimum three years to obtain a passport.
The process involves the continued investment of qualifying amounts in qualifying investments in the United Kingdom. Investment entitles the investor to reside in the UK under an extended visa, then to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) and finally to apply for a United Kingdom Passport (in the majority of cases one year after the grant of ILR).
Unless you intend to be resident in the UK and involved in the day to day running of a business, the qualifying investment thresholds are:
Sum Invested 2 Years 3 Years 4 Years 5 Years 6 Years
£ 10 million ILR Passport
£ 5 million ILR Passport
£ 1 million ILR Passport
Broadly, the investment must be made either by way of the purchase of UK Government Bonds or share capital or a debt instrument issued by a UK trading company.
When setting up a UK immigration plan, a husband and wife need to decide who should be the Main Applicant. The two key requirements are:
- All investments made for the purposes of qualifying as a tier 1 investor must be in the name of, and under the control, of the Main Applicant.
- The Main Applicant must be resident in the UK for at least 6 months each year.
Provided that the Main Applicant continues to meet these requirements, their spouse may enter / leave the United Kingdom as he/she pleases under an extended visa.
Dominica
Basic principles: you need to invest a minimum of US$75,000 and do not need to live in Dominica in order to obtain a passport. A passport can be obtained within several months.
Family Option - Cash Investment
Under this option the investor-applicant pays US$100,000 which qualifies the investor, spouse and two (2) children under eighteen for economic citizenship. An additional US$15,000 per child is required for children who have turned 18 years but are less than 21 years old (that is the child has yet to become 21 years old). Also, a cash contribution of US$25,000 will be required for any additional child under twenty-one (21).
Single Option - Cash Investment
A Single Option application is defined as one where the investor (whether single or married) is the sole applicant for economic citizenship. Under this option the "Single" investor would be required to make cash investment of US$75,000 which would be directed towards public sector financing.
St Kitts & Nevis
Basic principles: you need to invest a minimum of US$200,000, but do not need to live in St Kitts & Vincent in order to obtain a passport. A passport can be obtained within several months.
The process involves either:
- the purchase of a property in an approved development project for a minimum US$350,000 plus costs; or
- an investment of US$200,000 (for a single applicant) or US$250,000 for an applicant, spouse and up to two children) in a public charity, the Sugar Industry Diversification Fund
For further information, please contact us
