Caribbean Islands that give you a passport when you buy a house

Scroll the homes for sale on the Eastern Caribbean, and this is no longer just enchanted beaches, but a permanent lifestyle is advertised by Woo buyers.

More and more real estate lists are also offered a passport – both political and social volatility in the US is said to raise interest.

Five countries of the region are Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kits and Nevis and Saint -Lussia – offer such citizenship (CBI) of $ 200,000 (145,000 pounds).

Buy a house as well as you receive a passport that provides a visa to the owner of up to 150 countries, including the Schengen district of the UK and Europe.

For wealthy, lack of taxes in the islands such as capital gain and heritage, and in some cases, another major draw. And all five schemes of the region allow buyers to maintain their existing citizenship.

In Antigua, real estate agents seek to keep up with demand, says Nadia Dyson, the owner of luxury places. “Up to 70% of all buyers now want citizenship, and the vast majority are from the US,” she says the BBC.

“We do not talk to them politics, but the unstable political landscape (in the USA) is definitely a factor.

“This time last year, these were all lifestyles and a few CBI. Now they all say,” I want a home with citizenship. “We’ve never sold so much before.”

Despite the Antigua program, which has no habitation, some buyers seek to relocate full -time, says Ms. Dyson, adding: “Moved somewhat.”

US citizens take into account the bulk of CBI apps on the Caribbean over the past year, according to Henley & Partners Migration.

Ukraine, Turkey, Nigeria and China are some of the most common countries’ origin, says a British firm that has offices around the world.

This adds that general applications for CBI Caribbean programs have increased by 12% from the fourth quarter of 2024.

According to Dominic Volek, everything from violence with weapons to anti -Semitism puts Americans on Tenterhooks.

“About 10-15% are actually relocated. For most, this is an insurance policy against what they are concerned. The presence of a second nationality-good backup plan,” he explains.

Mr. Volek says that the simplicity of the trip in favor that the Caribbean’s passports are given to businessmen and can also provide security assistance. “Some customers in the US prefer to travel on a more political and bright passport.”

Before the Covid pandemic, the United States was not even in the “radar” Henley, Mr. Volek continues.

Movement restrictions were “quite shock” for wealthy people who were freely traveled by private planes, which caused the first splash in the CBI statement. Interest rose again after the elections to the US 2020 and 2024.

“There are democrats who do not like Trump, but also Republicans who do not like Democrats,” says Mr. Volek.

“Over the past two years, we have moved from zero offices in the US to eight in all major cities, two more opening in the coming months.”

Robert Taylor from Halifax in Canada has acquired real estate at Antigua, where he plans to retire this year.

It has invested $ 200,000 before the real estate threshold up to $ 300,000 was raised last summer.

Being a citizen, not only avoids restrictions on the length of stay, but also gives him freedom to take advantage of business, he explains. “I chose Antigua because she has beautiful water, I believe that people are very friendly, and it also means great weather for the next part of my life.”

However, such programs are not without controversy. When the Antiguan government was first conditioned by the passport as a way to propose a sick economy in 2012, some considered the ethics a little bit.

The participants of the rally took to the streets, recalls the former Speaker of the House of Representatives Giseel Isaac. “There was a sense of nationalism; people felt that we were selling their identity, so to speak, people who knew nothing about us,” she says.

Leaders of some other Caribbean countries who do not offer CBI were also quickly criticized, including St. Vincent and Prime Minister Granadinov Ralph Gonsalve. He said earlier that citizenship should not be a “commodity for sale”.

Among the international community there is concerns that unhappy control can help criminals pass their borders.

The European Union threatened to withdraw its desired access for the Caribbeas CBI countries, while the US has previously caused concern about the potential of such schemes that would be used as a means of tax evasion and financial crime.

A press secretary of the European Commission tells the BBC that the “monitoring” of five Caribbean schemes and is negotiating with its authorities since 2022.

According to her, the constant assessment seeks to justify when the citizenship of investment is “abuse of the regime without a visa that these countries enjoyed in the EU and whether it can lead to safety risks for the EU.”

The commission recognized the reforms carried out in the islands, which, she said, will affect his assessment.

For their part, five Caribbean countries responded with anger to claim that they do not do enough to study the applicants.

Prime Minister Dominic Roosevelt Skerrit described the CBI program as “sound and transparent”, adding that the authorities worked to ensure its integrity.

The government says passport sales have raised more than $ 1 billion since the initiative was created in 1993, paying for vital infrastructure, including a modern hospital.

In Saint -Lucia Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre says the island adheres to the highest security standards to make sure his CBI does not accidentally help illegal activities.

The need to reassure world superpowers with increasing revenue is a delicate balancing act for small Caribbean countries with miserable resources dependent on tourism.

In April, the CBI programs were marked by a rescue circle at the regional industry summit, and the funds used for everything: from cleaning after natural disasters to the involvement of national pension schemes. Antigua Prime Minister Gaston Brown said that the money raised had returned their country from the bankruptcy border over the last decade.

In addition to the purchase of property, other routes to the Caribbean Citizenship through investments usually include a single donation to the National Development Fund or the like. They vary from $ 200,000 in Dominica for one applicant, up to $ 250,000 for the main applicant and up to three qualifying dependents in Dominica and Saint Kits. In Antigua, investors also have the opportunity to donate $ 260,000 University -Indies.

Under the international pressure of the island, new measures to strengthen supervision, including the creation of a regional regulator to establish standards, control over activities and ensure the fulfillment of requirements, took over.

In addition, six principles agreed with the United States include increased care, regular checks, mandatory interviews with all applicants and removal of the breakthrough, which previously allowed the applicant, refused one country to apply for another.

These days, passport sales are 10-30% of the islands.

Andre Hui, a journalist in St. Kits, says that as a result, the CBI scheme “is usually well supported.” “The public understands the value of its economy and evaluates what the government could do with the money.”