By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Nigerians are acquiring golden visas in the Caribbean to travel visa-free to the United States and European Union (EU) countries, facilitated by international brokers such as Henley & Partners in London and Range Developments in Grenada.
There are an estimated 40,000 Nigerian millionaires. In 2020, more than 1,000 of them enquired about the citizenship of another country through Henley & Partners, one of the world’s largest citizenship advisory firms.
Applications by Nigerians at Henley & Partners alone rose 185 per cent during the eight months to September 2020, according to investigation by AlJazeera.
Range Developments pitches “exciting perks” of obtaining Grenadian citizenship through Citizenship-by-Investment.
It cites many benefits to having dual citizenship, including greater global mobility, economic opportunities, better quality of life and improved personal security.
From the Caribbean to the EU
Bimpe, a wealthy Nigerian who does not wish to give her full name, has three passports. One Nigerian, which she says she never uses, and two from the Caribbean nations of Grenada and St Kitts and Nevis, she tells AlJazeera.
The St Kitts and Nevis passport, which cost her $400,000 via a real estate investment programme, was useful when she travelled between London and New York on business as it allows for visa-free travel to the United Kingdom and Europe.
But now that she has retired in Abuja, Bimpe, whose husband has passed away, wants her three adult sons to have the same opportunities to travel and live abroad.
“My kids were interested in visa-free travel. They are young graduates, wanting to explore the world. So that was the reason for my investment,” she explains.
Her investment to gain a Grenada passport for herself and her sons took the form of a $300,000 stake in the Six Senses La Sagesse hotel on the Caribbean island, which she bought in 2015 through Range Developments, a property development group.
Like most countries offering their citizenship for sale, Grenada allows real estate investments to qualify for a passport.
Bimpe’s family has lived overseas before – spending nine years in the UK between 2006 and 2015.
Of her three sons, she says: “One, for sure now, is never going to leave Nigeria. He loves it here. The second one lives in England. He’s been in England long enough to get British residency.
“My youngest – for him, living abroad is a very, very attractive option. He’s not very happy [in Nigeria]. He went to England very young – at age 12 – and he’s had a problem adjusting since. He’s been back in Nigeria five years and he’s still not settled.”
Now aged 26, Bimpe’s youngest son is looking at settling in the UK or in the US where, thanks to his Grenada citizenship, he qualifies for an E-2 visa, something not available to his fellow Nigerians until Joe Biden recently reversed Donald Trump’s ban on immigrant visa applications in February.
Bimpe believes his career opportunities in acting – he studied drama in the UK – are better abroad, and therefore considers the Grenada citizenship to be a worthwhile investment.
Neither Bimpe nor her sons have ever been to Grenada even though their investment allows them to stay on the Caribbean island, once known as The Spice Island.
“I intend to go. I would like to go,” she says. “Just when I did [the investment], it was soon after my husband died and I wasn’t in the mood for travel and then I got my passport but there was no good reason for travel due to the pandemic.”
The Six Senses La Sagesse is being constructed by Range Developments, whose founder and managing director, Mohammed Asaria, says it is not unusual for investors never to visit.
Nigeria a big market with 40,000 millionaires
In fact, since there is no obligation for citizenship investors to visit Grenada, interest in the scheme has ballooned among Nigerians, according to AlJazeera.
“We have between high single figures and low double-digit sales of hotel units on a monthly basis to Nigerians. The average investment is just under $300,000,” says Asaria.
“It’s a big market for us. And it’s going to get bigger. There are 300 million people [in Nigeria].”
Of these, more than 40,000 are millionaires and, therefore, potential customers for golden visas, according to the Knight Frank Wealth Report.
It is a similar story across the Caribbean.
Arton Capital, a citizenship advisory group, says demand from Nigerian families for Antigua and Barbuda citizenship was up 15 per cent in 2020 compared with 2019.
St Lucia also saw a record number of Nigerians applying in 2020. “It’s more than it’s ever been over the past four years,” says Nestor Alfred, CEO of the St Lucia Citizenship-by-Investment Unit.
The citizenship market is not exclusive to the Caribbean, but these are the cheapest and they maintain that all-important visa-free access to Europe that their clients are hankering after.
Tax incentives
“I’m rich but I’m not a Donald Trump. I wasn’t looking for a tax escape,” says Bimpe.
Investing in a foreign citizenship is not illegal for Nigerians, but the issue of wealthy citizens moving their assets overseas is a thorny one in Nigeria, where about $15 billion is lost to tax evasion every year, according to the country’s Federal Inland Revenue Service.
Much of that money finds its way to the Caribbean, as was highlighted in the leaked documents that formed part of the Panama Papers in 2016.
The tax benefits of an overseas citizenship are undoubtedly attractive. Citizens can become tax residents of countries like Dominica, where there is no wealth or inheritance tax, or Grenada which offers “corporate tax incentives”.
In Europe, Malta has long been courting hedge funds with its light-touch regulations.
Being a citizen of a country with a more stable currency is also appealing to the wealthy. “Second citizenship helps with capital mobility. Pull up a graph of the Naira. If you look at the Naira for the last 10 years it’s been a horrible journey,” Asaria tells Aljazeera.
Better, therefore, in the minds of the wealthy, to own assets in euros or even East Caribbean dollars which are pegged to the US dollar.
“Businesses are struggling, inflation on the rise, insecurity, and a host of other issues.
“These issues have prompted an increase in citizenship or residency-by-investment from wealthy Nigerians in a bid to secure a better future for their families in developed countries,” says Evans Ahanaonu, a Lagos-based representative for High Net Worth Immigration, a citizenship advisory firm.
Grenada and Turkey are popular for clients wanting quick access to Europe, he adds, while some go straight for the UK Innovator Visa which means setting up a business in the UK.
Given the number of applications processed by the citizenship advisory firms interviewed just for this article, a conservative estimate would put the amount invested by Nigerians into citizenship schemes at more than $1 billion in 2020 alone.
Citizenship acquisition lengthy process
However, acquiring a second citizenship can be a lengthy process as residence in Grenada is usually a requirement, according to a document released by Range Developments published by Nairametrics.
Range Development says business owners and private investors looking to gain an alternative nationality often turn to investment migration because it is quick and generally hassle-free.
Citizenship by Investment programs offers an exciting opportunity to invest in real estate in return for citizenship.
Real estate investments into government-approved projects in certain countries in the Caribbean have recently become a very popular choice among High-net-worth (HNW) individuals and their families as they allow the investors to apply for second citizenship and obtain one within approximately 90-120 days, the documents adds.
This leads to a range of benefits the citizens of these countries enjoy, including visa-free travel globally, tax benefits and in some citizenship jurisdiction such as, for example, Grenada – an opportunity to apply for an E2 investor visa of the US.
Explanation of ‘citizenship through investment’
Range explains that citizenship through investment involves foreigners’ investment of a specific amount of money in a particular foreign country, which in the end will let them get citizenship of the host country and the passport of its jurisdiction.
The amount of investment funds starts from $220,000. There are other charges for processing and due diligence costs for those who would like to get second citizenship.
Some countries’ citizenship, like Grenada, is extremely attractive as it offers visa-free entry to more than 140 countries, including the UK, Schengen countries, Russia, China and many others.
A major draw is that Grenada offers access to the US E2 treaty investor visa for its citizens providing an investor and his family the ability to invest and reside in the USA.
The E2 visa is so coveted because it provides great opportunities and benefits to the investor, their spouse and dependent children under 21. Under the E2 visa, spouses can work anywhere in the US, and children under 21 have access to attend the top schools in the country at reduced rates (same as US citizens).
Moreover, if an investor is not present in the US for 122 days in a calendar year, they are not taxed on their worldwide income.
Grenada citizenship most coveted
According to Range Developments, the citizenship program of Grenada was restructured and re-launched in 2013 and it has become one of the most sought-after citizenship programs among willing investors.
By participating in the Citizenship-by-Investment project in Grenada, investors enjoy global benefits and a secure investment in one of the world’s most renowned hospitality brands.
The government approved citizenship by investment project, the luxury five-star hotel Six Senses La Sagesse, Grenada, is currently under construction and will open in late 2022.
The hotel is developed by Range Developments which has assisted over 4,000 individuals with their second citizenship applications and in the past decade is the only developer that has completed projects and delivered on its promises in this sector.
Range Developments opened the world-renowned Park Hyatt St Kitts in 2017 (to reviews of the best hotel in the Caribbean from CNN) and the Kempinski Dominica in 2019 (named by Forbes as the most anticipated new Caribbean hotels for 2019 and beyond).
Some other perks of obtaining Grenadian citizenship through Citizenship-by-Investment with Range Developments include:
· Visa-free travel and visa-on-arrival to over 140 countries worldwide, including Schengen member States, the UK, China, Russia and many more.
· Access to the US Investor E-2 visa which provides an investor and his family the ability to invest and reside in the US. It also provides huge opportunities and benefits to the investor, their spouse and dependent children under 21.
· Under the E2 visa spouses can work anywhere in the US, and children under 21 have access to attend the top schools in the country at reduced rates (same as US citizens).
· If an investor is not present in the US for 122 days in a calendar year, they are not taxed on their worldwide income.
· Eligibility of family members (siblings, children and parents) for Grenadian citizenship.
· Right to hold dual citizenship.
· Citizenship for life in Grenada with the right to live and work in the country.
· Tax benefits and incentives (such as no foreign income, wealth, gift, inheritance or capital gains tax, et cetera).
