Smartly off Britons step up citizenship hunting to thwart Brexit

By Sinead Cruise

LONDON (Reuters) – The need of British entrepreneurs having a detect to “remove” citizenship from countries providing visa-free access to the European Union has risen sharply, investment migration companies advise, as possibilities of a submit-Brexit trade deal between Britain and the bloc darken.

Investment immigration company Astons acknowledged it had seen a 50% and 30% Three hundred and sixty five days-on-Three hundred and sixty five days amplify in passion from possibilities hunting for Cypriot or Greek citizenship respectively this quarter, no longer up to four months before UK passport-holders are at possibility of lose their rights to freedom of circulation at some stage within the EU.

Henley & Companions also reported a upward thrust in requests for advice on investment migration capabilities to Malta, Portugal, Austria and plenty of Caribbean islands, which provide a unfold of residency rights, visa-free trip to the EU and citizenship to investors in native trade or property.

Voters of determined Caribbean sovereign states alongside side St Lucia and St Kitts & Nevis also luxuriate in most traditional access to the EU, thanks to conclude ties with EU contributors as a results of historic, diplomatic and contemporary trade agreements.

“That is no longer about vacationers. Right here’s the UK excessive earn worth community that hold a continuing desire to trip to and exercise fundamental time within the EU,” acknowledged Henley & Companions director Paddy Blewer.

“Right here’s investment migration as a volatility hedge and a element in a excessive earn worth portfolio charge defence strategy,” he acknowledged, adding that volumes of client engagement hold been greater now than without extend after the 2016 Brexit vote.

Passion in additional citizenships is rising even because the European Fee examines that you just can maybe additionally imagine steps to curb EU states promoting passports and visas to prosperous foreigners, as a consequence of considerations it’ll attend organised crime groups.

Cypriot residency could well maybe well also additionally be secured in two months with a 300,000 euro ($351,870) property purchase. Securing citizenship takes six months and requires a minimal property investment of 2 million euros.

In December, Reuters reported that Cyprus executive paperwork showed plenty of donors to Britain’s ruling Conservative Event donors had sought citizenship of the island for the reason that 2016 Brexit referendum.

“Each and every Cypriot and Caribbean investments are proving very standard … essentially pushed by excessive-earn-worth participants (HNWIs) from the UK who hold an undercover agent on the future and existence after Brexit,” acknowledged Astons spokesman Konstantin Kaminskiy.

CARIBBEAN DREAM

Henley & Companions acknowledged its volume of engagement with possibilities hunting for change citizenship or space by investment climbed 40% within the first quarter of 2020 versus Q1 2019, before knocking down at some stage within the COVID-19 lockdown in Q2.

But passion has rallied since July 1, with a 15% Three hundred and sixty five days-on-Three hundred and sixty five days amplify in engagement to Sept. 10, because the tip of the Brexit transition share nears.

Henley & Companions’ Blewer acknowledged possibilities hold been an increasing variety of drawn to Caribbean citizenship capabilities – which is at possibility of provide them greater trip access to the EU than Britain – nonetheless which hold a lower minimal investment and a faster approval project.

Saint Lucia citizenship, providing visa-free trip to 146 countries, could well maybe well also additionally be obtained in around four months for a minimal investment of 76,152 kilos, knowledge supplied by Astons showed.

For no longer up to 40,000 kilos extra, investors can atomize citizenship of St. Kitts & Nevis – and visa-free trip to 156 countries – in around 60 days.

In distinction, Malta provides citizenship in trade for around 1 million kilos of investment, nonetheless the project takes up to 14 months.

Portugal, within the meantime, in most cases processes investment migration capabilities in three months nonetheless handiest grants EU residency to investors and visa-charge trip to good 26 countries.

  “With HNWIs, time is on the whole extra fundamental than what is truly a exiguous fluctuation in charge and loads are having a detect to safe additional citizenship as instant as that you just can maybe additionally imagine within the pandemic landscape,” Arthur Sarkisian, managing director of Astons, acknowledged.

EU authorities are below power to clamp down on investment migration programmes by member states.

Sven Giegold, a member of the European Parliament from Germany’s Green fetch collectively, acknowledged these roughly citizenship gross sales “posed a serious possibility to EU security and the fight towards corruption” within the bloc.

“EU passports and visas are no longer a commodity. Money must no longer be the criterion for citizenship and space rights within the EU,” he acknowledged.

($1 = 0.8526 euros)

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