Mark F. Says:
I have lived overseas in Grand Cayman for five years. However, I don’t think I can acquire citizenship there.
Would you point me to any countries that may have easier entry requirements?
Global Diversification Expert Ted Baumann Says:
Hi Mark,
You are correct. The Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory. Although it has control over its residency procedures, it cannot offer citizenship, since that is a prerogative of the British crown.
If I interpret your question correctly, it seems as though you’d like to continue living in the Caymans, but you’d like to acquire a second passport as well. And you’d prefer not to spend too much time in the country that offers that passport to get it.
What you’re looking for is called Citizenship by Investment or CBI. This differs from naturalization in that you get immediate citizenship and eligibility for a passport because of an investment in or donation to the country in question.
There are usually two avenues: you can either donate a fixed sum to a government fund or charity, or you can invest a minimum amount in a real estate or other economic project.
Generally, the real estate investment route is overpriced, and you may find it difficult to liquidate your investment once you’re allowed to do so, which is typically five years after getting citizenship. But making the donation means you won’t see that money again, albeit you will have a second citizenship.
Currently, most countries that offer CBI are in the Caribbean basin. They include Dominica, St Lucia, St Kitts and Nevis, Grenada, and Antigua and Barbuda. CBI through these programs ranges from $100,000 in Dominica to over $450,000 in St Lucia.
Another island country that offers CBI is Vanuatu, an island in the Pacific Ocean. But I would strongly recommend against that one, because it is widely associated with corruption and doesn’t give you much in the way of visa free travel.
In and around Europe, countries that offer CBI or CBI adjacent programs include Turkey, Malta, and Jordan.
The Turkish program is becoming more expensive every year and is currently at around $750,000.
The Maltese program is similar in price but doesn’t result in immediate citizenship. Plus, it requires lengthy residence for the first two years before you’re eligible for a passport. The advantage is that you are then a citizen of an EU country and can live and work anywhere in the Union.
Jordan’s program is also around $750,000, but its passport is also not as widely accepted.
Given that you are already living and working in the Caribbean, I’d suggest you have a look at one of the island programs. But do it soon… These countries are under pressure from the European Union to make their programs more expensive and difficult to access, in order to reduce the threat of undesirable people using their passports to get into the European Union.
You’ll find breakdowns of the various programs in the book written by my father, former Congressman Bob Bauman: The Passport Book.
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