Nigerians invest in business to obtain citizenship and golden visas
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Nationals from Nigeria, India, China, and others are investing $200,000 in business in Caribbean countries to obtain citizenship that provides golden visas to major countries of the world, with sights particularly set on America, Canada, and Europe.
The entire process – of investment, citizenship, passport, golden visas – is completed within six months, even without an applicant setting foot on an adopted country.
Nigerians spent more than $1 billion on Caribbeancitizenship by investment (CBI) schemes in 2020 alone, facilitated by advisory firms based in Europe, the United States, and in the Caribbean.
The allure is highlighted in sleek marketing by Range Developments (RD) founded in 2011 as an investment and hospitality firm operating across the East Caribbean.
RD is approved by the government as a developer of luxury hotels under CBI programmes.
With world economies opening up and showing signs of recovery, Caribbean citizenship programmes are experiencing a sharp increase in applications from the wealthy all over the world and the numbers are rising, RD says in a document.
Schemes like Grenada’s citizenship by investment in particular has taken one of the leading positions among second citizenship seekers.
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Golden passports
These passports, typically obtained through CBI programmes, allow their holders to manage their assets strategically and also provide a sense of security for their families in case of political or other volatility in their home country, per the document, as reported by Nairametrics.
“Obtaining citizenship by investment offers a hedge against political, social and economic anxieties – especially for investors residing in emerging markets such as Nigeria,” says Range Developments Managing Director Mohammed Asaria.
“The number of high-net-worth Indian clients approaching us has risen exponentially in recent months as individuals grow increasing interested in providing better opportunities for their families in times of pandemic.”
Cost efficient, fast process
For an investment of $220,000 plus government fees, Nigerians and other nationals can obtain a share in Six Senses development by RD as well as citizenship of Grenada.
RD says “it’s not just cost that’s efficient – the entire process can be done within four and five months, without the investor even setting foot in the country.”
Grenada is a signatory to the US E-2 treaty, which means holding a Grenada citizenship allows easier access to the US where a citizen can establish or buy business and reside in the country for as long as an E-2 business operates.
“Whether or not it’s exercised, the ability for an investor, or their family, to migrate to the US is of critical importance to high-net-worth individuals.
“This, combined with Grenada’s visa-free travel access to the UK, Schengen countries, Russia and, what’s notable, China, means Grenadians have access to a number of the largest global economies.”
RD operates across St. Kitts and Nevis, Dominica, and Grenada.
It says it has since its inception assisted over 4,200 individuals with their second citizenship journey and completed two five-star luxury resorts – the Park Hyatt St. Kitts and Cabrits Resort & Spa Kempinski in Dominica.
Another resort, the Six Senses La Sagesse in Grenada, is set for completion in 2022.
“We are the only developer that takes an execution-first approach and we have earned the trust of citizenship by investment community whether this is the Caribbean governments, prospective CBI applicants or indeed the world’s leading hotel operators for one simple reason: ‘Range Delivers,’” says Asaria.