Author: Niu Ltd

Seven countries that either have or are considering a citizenship by investment program will go to the polls in 2020. In some nations, citizenship by investment looms as a key election issue while, for others, it takes a backseat to the common hot button issues of job creation and the delivery of social services. But for politicians, voters, and international observers alike, an understanding of how CIPs are going to influence elections is key to identifying national and global trends that will impact the CIP industry as a whole.

Guyana
Guyana’s promising future is amongst the biggest stories in the Caribbean and, indeed, the wider world. The recent discovery of substantial oil reserves in Guyanese waters forecasts the nation’s future as one of considerable wealth, especially as oil production is now officially underway with production beginning late last month.

Given the nation’s uptick in wealth, renewed interest in the country and its economic opportunities will follow. It is, therefore, no surprise that new supporters of a Guyanese CIP are emerging.

This issue is likely to show up in the election campaign in March. Due to a political crisis, and delay in the election date, the Guyanese are going to the polls focusing chiefly on the failure of office and not the potential for new citizens via a CIP.

St. Kitts and St. Nevis
The cradle of CIPs is set to vote this year as well, although a specific date has not been called. Given CBI’s outsize role in the country’s economy, it would take a brave politician to question its right to life. Yet, if the CIP arises as a political issue, the opposition will likely cause scandal by pointing to government incompetence in its management of the program, warranted or not. As it stands, this is exactly what opposition leader Dr. Denzil L. Douglas is doing.

In the lead-up to this year’s election, the prospect of a Douglas victory is sure to make new CIP citizens nervous due to his promises of a plan to revoke for all passports obtained via fraudulent means. On the other hand, Douglas was prime minister in 2014 when another scandal swept through the nation’s CIP, and his presence in that glass house may discourage him from throwing too many political stones.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines 
St. Vincent and the Grenadines is a tinderbox of present CIP debates within the Caribbean, showing a substantial contrast between the government and opposition’s position. Opposition leader, Godwin L. Friday, has promised a CIP if his New Democratic Party wins office in this year’s election.

Friday’s previous remarks reveal his CIP vision is one that primarily funds capital works and does not pay for governance costs such as public servants’ salaries – something Friday feels would make the nation’s economy too dependent upon the CIP. This pledge contrasts with the longstanding position of Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, who has firmly dismissed the notion that a CIP could commence under the incumbent government. The election will take place no later than December 2020.

Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago’s CIP flirtation has never turned into tangible plans despite several years of debate. According to many authoritative observers, Trinidad and Tobago remains among the most likely Caribbean countries to introduce a CIP.

As a growing number of countries around the world continue to develop their own CIPs, there is pressure on Trinidad & Tobago to move sooner rather than later. Elections are expected in the second half of 2020.

Europe and the Pacific
Beyond the Caribbean, CIP-countries Vanuatu, Moldova, and Montenegro will each hold elections this year.

 

Source: imidaily.com
Published: 20 January 2020

There has been an explosion in the investment migration market in recent years, with as many as 100 countries now offering either citizenship or residency by investment programmes. It is important that applicants gain value from their second citizenship, whether that is achieved through returns on investment or the benefits of visa-free travel.

Antigua and Barbuda’s Citizenship by Investment Programme (CIP) has been in operation since 2013. During that time, the Citizenship by Investment Unit has received in excess of 2,200 applications from more than 80 countries, with a five percent rejection rate. We believe inventive approaches to modernisation are the engine of economic development and, as such, have continued to modify our programme to best serve the national interest and respond to global investment trends.

Freedom to choose
Under the programme, and as regulated by law, any person above the age of 18 who meets our requirements may apply for citizenship by investment. They may also apply on behalf of their dependants, including their spouse, children (up to the age of 28), and parents or grandparents above the age of 58 who are fully supported by the applicant.

The CIP offers four distinct investment opportunities, which is more than most other citizenship and residency investment programmes. Applicants can choose to either make a donation, invest in an approved real estate project, contribute to a local business venture or invest in the Antigua campus of the University of the West Indies.

Most applicants choose to donate to the National Development Fund. This requires a one-time contribution of $100,000 (€90,763) – or $125,000 (€112,546) for families of five or more – to the government-managed investment fund, which finances crucial socioeconomic initiatives on our twin-island nation. The other three options offer a return on investment and a unique opportunity to integrate with the residents of Antigua and Barbuda.

Applicants who opt for the real estate option must invest at least $400,000 (€363,052) and are required to pay any government processing and due diligence fees. They can choose from more than 30 types of property, including high-end beachfront condominiums, hotel rooms and luxury homes. Applicants may also qualify through joint ownership, provided that each applicant contributes a minimum investment of $200,000 (€181,526) to the purchase.

Ownership must be maintained for at least five years following the purchase unless the buyer acquires an alternative approved property in Antigua and Barbuda. As most properties are covered by management agreements and are returned to a rental pool once purchased, investors can earn income on the property during the period of ownership.

The greater good
Through its investment in business option, the CIP accommodates applicants who wish to use their capital to establish commercial operations in a new market. A single investor may make an investment of at least $1.5m (€1.36m) in an approved business. Alternatively, where two or more individuals propose to make a joint investment, the minimum investment must total at least $5m (€4.54m) and each investor must contribute at least
$400,000 (€363,052) to the business.

There are no restrictions on the type of business that may be operated, so long as it falls within all legal sectors and activities. However, we are keen to diversify areas of economic activity on the islands and would warmly welcome small and medium-sized enterprises, particularly in the areas of green energy, tourism, IT, business process outsourcing, agriculture and food processing.

The most recently launched investment option, the University of the West Indies fund, epitomises the principles upon which the CIP was built. Antigua and Barbuda believes it is essential that this programme improves life for all residents – old and new. By encouraging investment in the University of the West Indies, the programme facilitates the country’s development. In September 2018, the Cabinet of Antigua and Barbuda agreed to the creation of this fourth method of investment; in September 2019, the Five Islands Campus of the University of the West Indies opened its doors.

This investment option has been uniquely designed to foster integration and cultural engagement. Applicants who proceed in this way are required to make a $150,000 (€136,144) investment (if they are supporting a family of four or more), which entitles one member of the family to a year’s tuition-only scholarship at the University of the West Indies. In this way, the applicant and their dependants are afforded an opportunity to enhance their global mobility. In 2019, the University of the West Indies was listed among the top 600 institutions in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings. This means the university ranks among the top five percent of universities worldwide. It is the only Caribbean institution on the global list.

Earning respect
Antigua and Barbuda’s citizenship programme has a robust and multi-tiered due diligence process that ensures it is globally trusted and respected. What’s more, it grants those on the programme visa-free travel to more than 150 countries, including the UK, the Schengen Area, Hong Kong and Singapore.

The programme does not consider applicants from the seven countries – Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen – on its ‘restricted countries’ list, unless they left their country of nationality before reaching the age of majority, continue to maintain no economic ties with the country and have permanent residency status in either Canada, the UK, the US, Australia, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia or the UAE. We welcome only the most deserving applicants and their dependants, and remain committed to managing a programme of the highest repute.

 

Source: europeanceo.com
Published: 15 January 2020

Japan has the world’s strongest passport; Afghanistan, at rank 107, the weakest. The Indian passport is closer to the bottom, ranked 84th in the world, according to the latest edition of the Henley Passport Index, widely acknowledged to be the most reliable of such rankings.

According to Henley & Partners, the residence and citizenship planning firm that publishes the ranking, the Index lists the world’s passports “according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa”. The ranking is based on data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), a trade association of some 290 airlines, including all major carriers.

The index includes 199 different passports and 227 different travel destinations, the publisher of the rankings said in a press release last week. The data are updated in real time as and when visa policy changes come into effect, the release said.

Japan has been topping the Index for three straight years; according to the 2020 index, its citizens are able to access 191 destinations without having to obtain a visa in advance.

Singapore, in second place (same as in 2019), has a visa-free/visa-on-arrival score of 190. Germany is No. 3 (same position as in 2019), with access to 189 destinations; it shares this position with South Korea, which dropped from the second place it held a year ago, the release said.

The US and the UK have been falling consistently over successive Indices. Both countries are in eighth place in 2020; a significant decline from the No. 1 spot they jointly held in 2015.

“The Index’s historic success story remains the steady ascent of the UAE, which has climbed a remarkable 47 places over the past 10 years and now sits in 18th place, with a visa-free/visa-on-arrival score of 171,” the release said.

Since the index began in 2006, the Indian passport has ranked in a band of 71st to 88th. (The number of passports ranked has, however, varied from year to year.) The Indian passport’s 2020 ranking of 84th translates into visa-free access to 58 destinations, including 33 which give Indians visas on arrival. The Indian passport ranked higher in both 2019 (82, with visa-free access to 59 destinations) and 2018 (81, with visa-free access to 60 destinations).

Twenty of the 58 visa-free access destinations in the 2020 list are in Africa, and 11 each in Asia and the Caribbean. Serbia is the only European country to which Indian passport holders can travel visa-free. There is no major or developed country to which Indian passport holders have visa-free access.

The top 10 most powerful passports this year are ranked in this order: Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Germany, Italy, Finland, Spain, Luxembourg and Denmark.

 

Source: indianexpress.com
Published: 16 January 2020

When Boris Johnson brought back his Brexit bill to this new majority-Conservative parliament, the debate shifted from whether the UK would leave the European Union to what kind of country we will become when we do.

No longer having to court the votes of moderate MPs, Johnson is now trying to strip away the commitments he made. Gone are the pledges not to water down workers’ rights and environmental standards. Gone is the commitment to reunite unaccompanied refugee children with their families. Gone is Johnson’s promise to automatically guarantee in law the rights of EU citizens living in the UK.

Each of those U-turns by Johnson and his Conservative Party show that their vision for our country is mean and heartless. It couldn’t be more different from the Liberal Democrat vision of a United Kingdom that is open, compassionate and fair.

That’s why Liberal Democrat MPs fought hard to restore those protections in the House of Commons, and Liberal Democrat peers are continuing that fight now the Withdrawal Agreement Bill is passing through the House of Lords. And in the House of Lords we can win.

Take child refugees. They have been forced to flee their homes and separated from their families. They are some of the most vulnerable people in the world, and we must do all we can to protect them. The UK has a proud history of providing sanctuary to those in need, but now the Conservative government is turning its back on child refugees and failing to live up to our obligations to them.

Liberal Democrats have been fighting for these rights for years. Along with the principled and tireless peer Lord Dubs, who came to the UK as a refugee himself in 1939, we have tabled an amendment that would protect the rights of lone refugee children to be reunited with their family members after Brexit.

We have also tabled a separate amendment to guarantee the rights of the 3.6 million EU citizens living in the UK.

These are our friends and our families, our carers and our colleagues, and Johnson made them a promise – both during the 2016 referendum campaign and when he moved into Downing Street last summer. He promised that their rights to continue living and working in the UK after Brexit would be automatically guaranteed in law.

But Johnson has broken that promise. Instead, the Tory government is forcing EU citizens to apply for “settled status” by the end of June 2021. Those who don’t get it by that arbitrary deadline will be left effectively undocumented and exposed to the Conservatives’ “hostile environment”.

This means tens or even hundreds of thousands of EU citizens will be at risk of eviction, detention or even deportation – despite recent government denials. It runs the risk of another Windrush scandal waiting to happen, but on an even bigger scale.

That is why Liberal Democrats have tabled an amendment to stand up for EU citizens and hold Johnson to account to what he promised: to guarantee their rights automatically in law. Again, with cross-party support we can win.

Liberal Democrats have always taken our role of scrutinising government legislation very seriously, working hard to protect individual rights and freedoms and standing firm for the values we believe in. Even with the limited time available, our approach to the Withdrawal Agreement Bill is no different.

 

Source: independent.co.uk
Publication: 20 January 2020

 

The world’s population is on the move, and not necessarily by choice.

There are more than 35.9 million refugees worldwide, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Cornell’s Einaudi Center for International Studies has responded to this global trend by launching a migration studies minor.

“Bringing this issue [of migration] to the forefront of how the Einaudi Center helps to lead global research and engagement on campus has been one of our primary goals over the past few years,” said Dr. Jason Hecht Ph.D. ’14, the center’s associate director for academic programming.

Prof. Debra Castillo, comparative literature, called the migration studies minor — which aims to create a structure in which undergraduates can study migration — “very timely.” However, few universities offer such a program, despite the current global context.

“We are proud to be on the cutting edge in this area, and look forward to growing the minor in partnership with the first cohorts of students who elect to take it as a course of study,” Hecht said.

To complete the minor, a student must register during or before their sixth semester, attend five migration-related campus events, take the introductory course — ILR 2810: Migration: Histories, Controversies, and Perspectives —  and four elective courses. Over 50 classes are offered for minor credit, from three of Cornell’s colleges and from over 15 departments.

Unlike many humanities and social science minors, the migration studies minor does not require students to focus on any particular region, ethnic group, country or religion — a feature that is intentional. Instead, the minor aims to “draw students outside of their major fields and to extend their knowledge beyond a single country,” according to the program website.

The minor is structured to encourage engagement beyond the classroom, including community-based research and collaboration with local partner organizations. Some of the classes that count for minor credit, for example, teach research methods and collaborate with the Cornell Farmworker Program.

 

Source: cornellsun.com
Published: 21 January 2020

“I have put migration data at the centre of my vision for IOM, and have committed to strengthening the Organization’s engagement in this area over the next years,” IOM Director General António Vitorino told the second International Forum on Migration Statistics (IFMS) during opening ceremonies here this past weekend.

Organized jointly by the International Organization for Migration, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) brought over 700 delegates from more than 90 countries to its unique space for dialogue, information-sharing and networking for a broad range of actors hosted by the Egyptian Government, which currently chairs the African Union (AU).

Added DG Vitorino: “We as experts, practitioners and decision-makers have a collective responsibility to ensure that reliable facts and robust evidence are not only produced but also used appropriately and intelligently to steer policy and programmes and to combat an often-pervasive misinformation about migration.”

Delegates representing national and regional authorities, NGOs, international agencies and the private sector have gathered in Cairo with the aim of building and strengthening migration data capacities around the world. The three-day event at the InterContinental Citystars Hotel in Cairo concludes Tuesday (21/01).

Mr. Sameh Shoukry, Egyptian Foreign Minister, stated: “Owning and relying on data in policy making is a key guarantee of proper international cooperation in the management and governance of human migration, and to enhance the contribution of migrants to development on a basis that respects their rights, legal frameworks and meets the needs of the international labour market, in addition to supporting the efforts of the international community to address some of the root causes of migration such as conflict, economic and social crises and environmental change.”

The Forum is organized around six thematic areas including measuring progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and other global commitments as well as data innovation. Several sessions will explore the potential of using “big data” to compliment the analysis of human mobility and migration flows as well as ways to address internal displacement through innovative monitoring tools.

“This conference comes at an important and significant time,” noted Egyptian General Khairat Barakat, Head of the Central Authority for Public Mobilization and Statistics. “Migration data constitutes a key segment of human resources, manpower information and cross-border groups. It also establishes controls for coordination between migration data producers to enable them to make the most of the data.”

IOM’s Global Migration Data Analysis Centre (GMDAC) Director Frank Laczko, will speak at the closing plenary session on the next steps after the Forum. Other IOM representatives speaking at the Forum include Michele Klein Solomon, IOM Director of the Policy Hub and Marina Manke, IOM Head of Labour Mobility and Human Development Division.

The inaugural IFMS took place in January 2018 at the OECD Headquarters in Paris. IFMS aims to foster continuous discussion on global processes and enhance exchange between producers and users of migration data. The event is supported by partner organizations including ILO, UNHCR, UNODC, European Commission, UNFPA, and UNECE.

 

Source: reliefweb.int
Published: 20 January 2020

Ron Klasko, Managing Partner of the eponymous internationally recognized immigration law firm, believes we have still only seen the contours of the fallout from recent rule changes to the EB-5 program.

In a blog-post on his firm’s website, he lists 16 specific ramifications – some favorable, others decidedly unwelcome – that we can expect following what he calls “the most significant changes in over 10 years – maybe ever”.

1. Fewer investors/fewer applications
2. Increased difficulties with Source of Funds
3. Currency export problems
4. Higher percentage of direct EB-5s
5. Greater returns on regional center investments
6. Fewer regional centers
7. Litigation arising out of regional center terminations
8. Restructuring EB-5 projects
9. Increased use of E-2 visas
10. More rural investments
11. More projects will have problems
12. More Mandamus complaints
13. More redeployment (and concomitant litigation)
14. Growing need for revisions of Private Placement Memoranda
15. The rise of new investor markets
16. Legislative changes to the program

Below, we’ve distilled some of Klasko’s key points. To see the detailed description of all 16 predictions, please see the original post.

Implications for investors and investments
Because of a persistent struggle with retrogression and a redefining of Targeted Employment Areas (TEAS), Klasko writes “it is hard to foresee anything other than a precipitous decline in the number of EB-5 investors.” Higher investment amounts, in turn, he indicates, will make proving the origin of the money – not to mention moving it out of countries like China – a much greater challenge than previously.

Source: imidaily.com
Published: 11 January 2020

 

The UK’s Upper Tribunal has put an end to a business model that lent money to Tier 1 applicants on the condition they invest in a company controlled by the same individuals.

When the UK Home Office denied the applications for extension and Indefinite Leave to Remain for two investors in the UK’s Tier 1 Investor Visa program over the applicants’ failures to meet the program’s investment requirements, the investors took the Home Office to court.

The case, which dates back to the pre-2015 period, when the required investment amount was half of what it is today and financing of the same was permissible, sets a precedent that effectively puts an end to a practice that had raised more than GBP100 million.

The applicants, said the Home Office, had not complied with the program rules because they had invested the one million pounds in Eclectic Capital, a company owned by the wife of the owner of the firm from which they had borrowed the money, Maxwell Holding, on the condition that the money be invested in Eclectic Capital. This violated rules stipulating that the investment must be under the applicant’s control.

“The money that was lent to you is not under your control because it is evident that you are not able to invest the money anywhere other than in Eclectic,” said the Home Office about its decision to deny the applications.

The applicants, meanwhile, filed for a judicial review, arguing that the Home Office could not reasonably expect investors to have complete and unfettered control of the funds at all times and that, in any case, they had “effective and ultimate control” of the money. The investors added that they had the legal right to channel the Maxwell loan into any company they saw fit, as well as the right to redeem their shares in Eclectic after six years.

In December, however, the Upper Tribunal ruled in favor of the Home Office and determined that the word “control” should be interpreted to mean that the investor had the ability to “manage and/or direct the use of the money, asset or investment” in real life, including an element of “choice and use”.

On the applicants’ counterargument claiming the decision to invest with Eclectic was a business decision, the Upper Tribunal retorted that the returns were so poor (upfront interest payments were greater than the promised return six years hence) that it “cannot possibly have been for good commercial reasons”.

The Upper Tribunal listed a further violation to definitely fell the applicants’ case: Shares in Eclectic, it said, were not qualifying investments to begin with because of paragraph 65(b) of Appendix A of the Immigration Rules. That clause holds that investments in companies that simply pool the money and invest it in other firms, rather than using it to run their own business, do not qualify. More than a hundred investors have reportedly used the service.

In a separate case against wealth management firm Dolfin, the Financial Conduct Authority has ordered the Mayfair-based company not to sell “restricted bonds” to its UK Tier 1 investor clients after it was discovered to have channeled client funds toward businesses related to Dolfin directors.

A company statement indicated it would “‘cease to be involved in structuring, promoting, issuing or distributing bonds and loan notes issued by companies in which Dolfin or its directors have an interest.’

Source: imidaily.com
Published: 8 January 2020

This programme grants successful applicants the right to reside in the Bahamas for a period of up to three years and gives them a certificate of tax residence.

To maintain access to these benefits, however, investors must make the Bahamas their home (or main) residence, living in the country for at least 90 days and declaring they will spend less than 183 days in any other single country.

If they fail to abide by these rules, a ‘substantial presence test’ will be conducted to ascertain whether their benefits should be withdrawn.

“The ministry also recognises that the issue of residency is hugely important given global developments in tax transparency. With this in mind, the concept of residency – and, specifically, tax residency – in the Bahamas has been carefully defined,” Elsworth Johnson, Minister of Financial Services, Trade, Industry and Immigration, Bahamas Financial Services Board said in an article published by World Finance.

“This has helped the country’s financial services sector remain progressive, while also keeping up to date with a changing global landscape,” he added.

Most house buyers in the Bahamas come from Britain, western Europe, Canada, the United States and, more recently, Brazil, Argentina, South Africa and Mexico, agents said.

“The Bahamas is no longer just a vacation destination,” said Gavin G. Christie, the managing partner of C.A. Christie Real Estate. “Many international high-net-worth individuals are now choosing to make the Bahamas their primary residence,” Christie told the New York Times.

“We have a lot of foreign investors coming in,” Paul Carey, the founder and a broker at Realty Team Bahamas, added. “They are buying the high-end stuff.”

Many buyers, he said, block off weeks or weekends to use the house and then rent it in between for a “minimum $2,000 a night.”

 

Source: internationalinvestment.net
Published: 7 January 2020

The latest passport power rankings have come out and Asian countries have emerged as the winners. European passports, on the other hand, have shuffled down in the ranking.

Japan and Singapore have firmly established their lead on the passport power ranking, overtaking countries such as Germany and Finland.

The Henley Passport Index measures which passports are the most powerful out there based on the countries its holders can enter without prior visa approval.

For the third consecutive year, Japan hung on to its lead. Japanese citizens can enter 191 countries either without a visa or a visa on arrival. Singapore dropped down to second place with a score of 190.

Meanwhile, South Korea and Germany lost one rank, moving down to third place. Passport holders from those countries don’t need to bother with visas in 189 destinations.

 

Top five passports of 2020

 

1. Japan (191)

2. Singapore (190)

3. South Korea (189)

3. Germany (189)

4. Italy (188)

4. Finland (188)

5. Spain (187)

5. Luxembourg (187)

5. Denmark (187)

 

Which factors determine the power of a passport?

 

The Henley Passport index collects data on how many sovereign states and destinations within those states an individual can go and visit without applying for a visa beforehand.

 

With the rise of Asian passports, are other passports worth less now?

 

One of the main outcomes of the 2020 passport power ranking is the growth in power of Asian passports, particularly Japan, Singapore and South Korea.

Paddy Blewer, Group PR Director at Henley & Partners told Euronews that “passports and regional travel are a representation of positive or negative diplomatic trade and economic relationships and the status of a sovereign state. Therefore the index demonstrates a rising relative influence of Japanese, Singaporean and South Korean importance to global trade, global politics, global economics.”

According to Blewer the Japan, Singapore and South Korea have truly caught up with nations, such as Germany and Finland. However, “if you look at the numbers, over the last 10 years, for instance, some of the G7 members, Germany, US, the UK haven’t actually changed the number of destinations with visa-free travel significantly.”

“This is less a story about one group going down and more a story about one group going up,” he adds. In fact, the Western countries which seem to have fallen in the ranking, don’t usually have less visa-free options. It is just that Japan and Singapore have more.

The UAE has made the biggest journey up in the rankings in the last 10 year because of its economic growth, its growing global importance in the sense of trade and geopolitics. Therefore other countries, are keen to offer its citizens’ visa-free travel. That would be even more so true of the top Asian nations, such as Japan, Singapore and South Korea.

 

Source: euronews.com
Published: 7 January 2020