In the modern world, having citizenship of several countries at once is no longer a luxury, but rather a necessity that opens up unlimited opportunities for business and development. But how to choose which country’s citizenship is beneficial for you? And then how do you get this citizenship? We will figure it out with the expert of APEX Capital Partners Julia Gotskaya, who works with the most popular emigration trends and their features.

«Such an investment can be safely called a contribution to the future of your family»

With 30 years of experience in second-citizenship planning, APEX Capital Partners expert Julia Gotskaya can boldly analyze emigration trends. Now getting a second passport has ceased to be something amazing or out of the ordinary. Over the last two years all of the world has changed dramatically, and I believe that many of these changes have become a real breakthrough, a development, and an opening up of new opportunities in all areas of life. At the same time, a second citizenship has become a tool for obtaining these opportunities.

In order not to make unfounded claims, I will tell you what exactly a second citizenship gives an investor (during a pandemic and not only):

  1. Freedom of movement and an up-to-date anti-quarantine solution. An investor with dual citizenship can leave at any time, for example, from Russia and go to the country of their second citizenship. You can even say that this is free access to the sun, vitamin D, especially if we are talking about a second citizenship in the Caribbean or Montenegro, for example.
  2. Visa-free travel. The investor will not have to obtain additional visas if they have a second citizenship. For example, holders of Caribbean citizenship will not need a visa to the UK, since these countries are part of the Commonwealth of Nations, so, say, with a passport of Saint Kitts and Nevis, you can fly to London and stay in the United Kingdom for 180 days annually (even continuously) without applying for any visas. Citizens of Grenada (Caribbean) and Montenegro can apply for an E2 nonimmigrant visa to the United States, since these countries (and not only them) have a trade agreement with the United States. With a Montenegrin or Caribbean passport, you can travel within the EU (90 days every six months) without a visa. And also, for the holder of a Caribbean passport, it is simple enough to get a tourist visa to the United States for 10 years.
  3. The ability to transcend constraints and circumstances. This point, in my opinion, is especially important right now, during a pandemic. With a second citizenship a «second airfield» opens up to the person, and this applies not only to business issues, but also to health and safety in general.
  4. Family package. You can apply for dual citizenship not only for yourself, but also for your entire family. A separate and big topic is the enormous opportunities that are opened by the presence of a second passport for children. Here you will find the widest selection of the most prestigious universities around the world, and endless travel opportunities at any time, and even the absence of boundaries in consciousness (because this person knows from childhood that there no boundaries for them, but there are special advantages). At the same time, some programs (for example, Caribbean) allow you to apply for citizenship for several generations, including elderly parents, grandparents, and even brothers and sisters of the applicant.
  5. An investment in a status that can be inherited. And now the most pleasant bonus — when applying for citizenship, you no longer have to renew anything. You won’t have to, again, spend your time and money collecting documents (as opposed to a residence permit, for example, which must be renewed). Citizenship is issued once and for life.

And right now, during the pandemic, is the best time to start applying for citizenship. While the whole world is on pause, you are already starting to act, which means that when the investment race starts again, you can be several steps ahead.

There are only eight main emigration trends now, but the program of one country has already been closed

As of recently, only eight emigration trends can be distinguished, which I will designate as the countries whose citizenship investors want to obtain: Canada, Montenegro, Malta, Great Britain, Cyprus, Greece, Portugal, and the Caribbean. The Cypriot Citizenship Program closed on November 1, 2020, and you can read about Montenegro and Canada in detail in our previous articles:

Let’s talk in more detail about the European citizenship of the UK and Malta. It is most convenient to provide information in the table:

  Великобритания Мальта
Total Investments from £ 2,000,000 from € 850,000
Timeframe from 5 years from 16 months
Investment type Securities contribution to the state fund + beneficial
Return on investment Refundable, except for duties            irrevocable 
Visa-free entry to Schengen Included Included
Visa-free countries 174 countries 183 countries including the USA, UK and EU countries   
Living and working in other EU countries Included Included
Necessity of residence Yes No
 Family Spouses, children under 18, civil marriage Spouses, children under 29 years old, parents, grandparents   
 Is double citizenship
 allowed? 		 Yes Yes

Caribbean citizenship — the opportunity to get multipas at the lowest cost

However, one of the most popular requests right now is Caribbean citizenship, and that is what I want to tell you more about. This option has both its advantages and its difficulties, so each investor must clearly understand what opportunities Caribbean citizenship provides and what is needed to obtain it.

Features of Caribbean Citizenship:

  • The Caribbean will never enter the EU, while international agreements allow movement within the EU with Caribbean citizenship.
  • The people of the Caribbean do not speak Russian and often have not even heard of Russia.
  • Caribbean citizenship can be obtained completely remotely, including obtaining a passport. An important fact: such a passport is essentially a «multipas» (EU and UK).

Caribbean citizenship includes citizenship of countries such as Antigua, Saint Lucia, Dominica, Saint Kitts, Barbuda, and Grenada. The citizenship of each of these countries has a number of differences:

  Saint Kitts and Nevis Grenada Dominica Saint Lucia Antigua and Barbuda
Year of establishment of the program 1984 2013 1993 2016 2013
Minimum investment in the state fund $150,000 $150,000  $100,000 $100,000 $100,000
Possibility to purchase returnable government bonds - - - 250,000$ -
Real estate investment (minimum) $200,000 $220,000 $200,000 $300,000 $200,000
Mandatory possession time of real estate 7 years 5 years 5 years 5 years 5 years
Visa-free travel to EU countries and Great Britain + + + + +
Number of countries for visa-free travel 156 143 135 144 147
Accommodation and attendance requirements - - - - +
Visa-free entry to the Russian Federation + + + - +
Availability of a university with an international certification + + - + +
Visa-free travel to China - + - - -
Possibility to get a visa to the USA for 10 years + + + + +
E-2 Visa Agreement with the United States - + - - -
Ability to fit siblings into statement + + + - +
Possibility to enter parents and children dependent on the investor + + + + +
Ability to add grandparents into the application + + + - +
Transfer of citizenship by inheritance to children + + + + +

There are several programs for obtaining citizenship in Saint Lucia. Under the first program, the investment is $ 250,000, and we are talking about returnable investments. The return on investment directly depends on the number of people in the application. For one investor it is 5 years; for two — 6 years; for four people — 7 years. For the second program, the fee for the state fund ranges from $ 100,000 to $ 150,000, depending on the number of applicants. But this is a sunk investment.

Citizenship of Saint Lucia allows visa-free travel to more than 120 countries, including Great Britain and Hong Kong. In addition, citizens of Saint Lucia are eligible for a US visa for 10 years. At the same time, the application can include not only the investor’s spouse, but also brothers, sisters, parents, and children under 30 years old.

Dominica citizenship can also be obtained through two programs. For the first the investment program is $ 175,000 for a family package for 4 people, taking into account it is a sunk investment. If you are interested in the option of returnable investment, then you can consider the second program, where the minimum investment is $ 200,000.

Dominica citizenship enables visa-free travel to more than 128 countries, including Great Britain, Singapore, and the Russian Federation. In addition, citizens of Dominica are eligible for a US visa for 10 years. At the same time, the application can include not only the investor’s spouse, but also brothers, sisters, parents, and children under 30 years old. The period for consideration of an application is on average 6 months.

Another citizenship of the Caribbean «package» is the citizenship of Saint Kitts and Nevis. There are also two programs here: one contribution to the stable growth fund will be $ 150,000 per applicant and $ 195,000 for a family of four, and the second are real estate investments from $ 200,000. Returnable investments are also possible here only in only one case — in the second program.

Citizenship of Saint Kitts and Nevis allows visa-free travel to more than 126 countries,including Great Britain, the Russian Federation, the countries of the Schengen zone, and the European Union. In addition, citizens of Dominica are eligible for a US visa for 10 years. At the same time, the application can include not only the investor’s spouse, but also brothers, sisters, parents, and children under 28 years old. The period for consideration of the application is on average 6 months, but here it is possible to speed up the consideration of the application by 2 times.

We also remind you that only until the end of the year there is a program for obtaining Montenegrin citizenship by investment and all the details can be found here.           

The most complete consultation on the most complex issues of obtaining citizenship through investments can be obtained from the specialists of APEX Capital Partners. Trust us, we know every secret to obtaining citizenship by investment in different countries of the world.

More information about obtaining citizenship by investment can be found in our materials: