Citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis at a Discount: the Offer Expires in a Few Days

The opportunity to acquire citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis at a discount is going to become unavailable after June 30, 2023. The limited-time offer was made on January 1, 2023. The discount is available both to single applicants and to family applicants for citizenship of the country who are prepared to make non-returnable donations. Please read on to find out about the details of the special offer.

The Federation of St Kitts and Nevis administers the longest-standing citizenship-by-investment program of all such programs available in the Caribbean and other parts of the world. The program was launched in 1984 and it has been functional ever since. The stability of the program contributes to the strengthening of its reputation as one of the most reliable citizenship-by-investment programs on the globe.

However, as the number of such programs is becoming larger, the countries have to compete for the customer. St Kitts has periodically offered special deals to immigrant investors trying to make the opportunity even more attractive. The local Government offered discounts to family applicants making donations to the state fund in 2018 and then in 2021.

The latest discount offer has been in force since January 2023. The authorities of St Kitts and Nevis informed the public that the discount was going to be available for six months only (until June 30, 2023). When the expiration dates approached, they said that they had no plans to extend the offer. This means that you have only a few days remaining if you would like to ‘buy’ citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis at a discount.

The essence of the special offer

If you make a non-returnable donation to the local Sustainable Growth Fund (SGF) before the said date, you can save US$ 25,000. In addition, the Accelerated Application Processing fee will be waived. It is also possible to acquire citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis by making a returnable investment into real property in the country but no discount is available to those who choose this route to second citizenship.

A donation to the SGF is the simplest way of acquiring the ‘golden passport’ of St Kitts and Nevis. All you have to do is make the donation and wait until your application for citizenship is processed. You do not have to spend time choosing the piece of property to buy and going through the process of finalizing the purchase deal.  

The money that the SGF accumulates is used by the local authorities to accelerate the social and economic development of the country. In particular, social housing projects, the education and healthcare systems, the transportation network, the energy infrastructure as well as the tourist sector are financed by the Fund.  

Accelerated application processing

An important benefit of the special offer is the free access to the Accelerated Application Processing (AAP) opportunity. The AAP allows the applicant to obtain the results of the application analysis (approval, rejection, or request of additional documents) within 60 days instead of 90 days. In normal cases, the AAP entails additional costs. You have to pay the following additional fees if you would like to use the AAP opportunity under normal circumstances:

• Main applicant – US$ 42,500;
• Main applicant’s spouse – US$ 32,500;
• Underage dependent family member – US$ 22,500;
• Adult child or any other adult dependent family member – US$ 37,500.

The Citizenship by Investment Unit informs the applicants via their licensed immigration agents about the stages of the application processing. Because some new requirements have been added to the citizenship-by-investment programs administered in the Caribbean, the applicant for citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis may have to have a personal interview with a Government official. The interview can be held in St Kitts or at any diplomatic mission of the country in a foreign state (an embassy or consulate).

Limited-time offer: the discounts are available between January 1 and June 30, 2023

You can make donations in the following amounts (depending on the number of applicants) if you apply for citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis until the special offer expires:

• A single applicant – US$ 125,000;
• Main applicant and the spouse — US$ 150,000;
• Main applicant, spouse, and two dependents – US$ 170,000;
• Every extra dependent family member below the age of 18 – US$ 10,000;
• Every extra dependent family member above the age of 18 – US$ 25,000.

The following due diligence fees are also payable:

• Main applicant — US$ 7,500;
• Every dependent family member above the age of 16 — US $4,000.

Standard conditions (to return on July 1, 2023)

When the special offer expires after June 30, 2023, the required amounts of donations to the SGF are going to be as follows:

• Main applicant — US$ 150,000;
• Main applicant and the spouse — US$ 175,000;
• Main applicant and up to three dependent family members — US$ 195,000;
• Every extra dependent family member below the age of 18 — US$ 10,000;
• Every extra dependent family member above the age of 18 — US$ 25,000;

Persons not entitled to apply for citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis by investment

Please note that citizens of sanctioned countries (Russia, Iran, Afghanistan, Cuba, North Korea, and Belarus) are not eligible to apply for citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis by investment.

In addition to that, the person who has been denied a visa to one of the countries that have visa-free travel arrangements with St Kitts and Nevis (for example, the Schengen zone countries, Great Britain, and so on) are ineligible to apply for citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis. The ban will be lifted when a subsequent application for a visa is approved.  

Besides, persons whose applications for citizenship of other Caribbean countries have been rejected are also ineligible to apply for citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis. The country exchanges the information about the rejected applications with the following four countries in the region that also administer citizenship-by-investment programs:

• Grenada;
• Antigua and Barbuda;
• Dominica;
• St Lucia.

The due diligence procedures take between 2 and 3 months on average. Among other factors, the sources of the investment capital are scrutinized. If the foreign applicant has successfully passed all the due diligence checks, he or she obtains a passport of St Kitts and Nevis.

No more special offers?

Immigration agents, international promoters of citizenship-by-investment programs, and independent experts agree that the current special offer made by St Kitts and Nevis is not going to be the last such offer. ‘Price wars’ are going to continue in the Caribbean region until the local Governments create some sort of a cartel.

Understandably, the Governments of the Caribbean countries ‘selling’ their passports to foreigners are reluctant to lower the prices. However, the market conditions often leave them no other choice: if the neighboring country reduces the prices, what else could we do to retain the customers?

According to the experts, special offers will be made less often in the Caribbean when the five countries that administer citizenship-by-investment programs in the region start to efficiently coordinate their efforts. They have already launched the coordination process by establishing an Investment Migration Council in particular.

Moreover, the process is going to be accelerated after the meeting held between the representatives of the five Caribbean countries and the Government officials from the United States of America. The meeting was held on February 25, 2023 and the following 6 new principles of granting citizenship to foreign nationals were agreed upon:

• The five Caribbean countries are going to exchange the information about the applications for citizenship that each of them has rejected;
• The candidates for Caribbean citizenship are going to be interviewed (a personal visit to the host country may be required or the interview may be held online otherwise);
• International financial monitoring agencies are going to be involved in the due diligence procedures;
• The economic citizenship programs are going to be audited on a regular basis in accordance with the international standards;
• Retrieval of annulled passports of economic citizens is going to become a legal practice;
• Citizens of Russia and Belarus are not eligible to apply for Caribbean citizenship beginning March 31, 2023.

Reasons to invest in citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis

If you do not procrastinate, you can ‘purchase’ citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis at a discount. Having a second passport can bring you numerous advantages of various kinds. The main benefits of second citizenship in the Caribbean and St Kitts and Nevis in particular include the following ones:

• Relaxed requirements to candidates for citizenship: There is no need to take any language tests. There is no need to visit the host country to acquire its citizenship by investment. You may never have to visit the Caribbean country whose passport you hold. Confidentiality of second citizenship acquisition is guaranteed. The process seldom takes more than 6 months.
• An alternative citizenship: When you hold a second passport, you can renounce your home country’s citizenship if you wish without becoming a stateless person. This will probably help you save on taxes. You will have Caribbean citizenship for life. Moreover, your descendants will also be Caribbean citizens.
• Advance travel opportunities: Citizens of the Caribbean countries administering citizenship-by-investment programs can visit around 150 countries and territories without visas or on electronic visas. The visa-free destinations include most European states and almost all South and Central American states.
• Political and economic stability: St Kitts and Nevis is a politically stable country with a developing economy. It offers multiple business opportunities to new citizens of the country.
• Opportunity to live and work in an English-speaking country: English is the official language of St Kitts and Nevis (as well as the other four countries). The two islands were among the first Caribbean islands colonized by Great Britain. English is also the official business language in the world, which makes engaging in international business operations from St Kitts and Nevis an attractive opportunity.
• Local lifestyle: Breathtaking landscapes, tropical flora, and magnificent beaches have made the country famous throughout the world. There you can find a combination of calm atmosphere, advanced infrastructure, and luxurious real estate.
• Favorable tax conditions: Many taxes traditionally charged in other countries are not charged in St Kitts and Nevis. These include the tax on foreign income, the inheritance tax, and the gift tax.

Expert assistance in applying for economic citizenship of a foreign country

If you can acquire economic citizenship of a foreign country at a discount, you certainly should make full use of the opportunity. You have to make sure, however, that what you are looking at is an official offer indeed and not a scam scheme. Beware of fraudsters if you are investigating the opportunities to acquire foreign citizenship by investment. The world is not perfect.

Without doubt, you need professional support when choosing the citizenship-by-investment program and when applying for citizenship of a foreign country. The International Wealth team will be happy to put you through to the most reliable licensed immigration agents in St Kitts and Nevis or any other country that offers citizenship-by-investment opportunities. Please request a free consultation with us and we will give you the contacts.