Government-run Caribbean citizenship programs offer investors to put money into real estate or make a non-refundable contribution to a government fund. Since 2018, investors have been increasingly choosing real estate.
Purchase of apartments, villas, and shares in resort complexes for $200,000 or more will help with getting a Caribbean passport in at least two months without staying on the islands. For comparison, a Portugal Golden Visa Program participant can apply for citizenship if they purchase real estate for at least €500,000.
What Caribbean countries offer citizenship by investment?
Grenada, Dominica, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Antigua and Barbuda — these Caribbean countries have government programs where it is allowed to get second citizenship in exchange for investments.
The Caribbean economy depends on tourism, so governments work on attracting investors to the industry. One of the citizenship program options stimulates investment in tourist-accommodating real estate, like hotels and resort complexes. As a result, in addition to the Caribbean passport, investors receive a liquid asset and the opportunity to return the invested money in a few years. After the property is sold, the investor's citizenship status will remain.
Benefits of a Caribbean citizenship
Applicants choose Caribbean citizenship for several reasons:
- possibility to travel visa-free to more than 140 countries of the world. A passport from one of the five Caribbean countries is sometimes called a "permanent Schengen visa";
- entry and stay for up to 180 days a year in the UK and up to 90 days within six months in the European Union;
- obtainment of a long-term US tourist and business visa;
- opening European banks accounts in foreign currency;
- optimisation of taxes as a Caribbean country resident;
- option for investors to add their close relatives to the passport application: spouses, parents, grandparents, siblings, or children under 30;
- remote process: coming to the island to submit documents is not necessary since Due Diligence checks and passport registration are carried out remotely;
- no need to take a language proficiency test or live in the country to get and maintain citizenship;
- investors' first names and first citizenship countries are not disclosed.
Cosmopolitans choose Caribbean citizenship primarily for the opportunity to move around the world freely and without a visa.
What real estate is eligible for obtaining Caribbean citizenship
Properties that can be purchased under Caribbean citizenship programs should be pre-approved by the government. Usually, these are hotel shares, apartments, villas, and even yacht marinas.
Investors prefer real estate built by legitimate developers with a positive reputation.
Investment properties for sale in the Caribbean
Expenses and ownership terms of real estate in the Caribbean
To become a Caribbean country citizen, an investor purchases a government-approved property and does not resell it for a certain period of time, which is set by the chosen program.
Minimum ownership period. Real estate resale under the Dominica program is allowed after three years of citizenship. An important note: the new property owner will be able to participate in the citizenship program if the previous owner kept the property for at least 5 years. This moment affects the property's liquidity. Therefore, Dominica real estate investors remain owners for 5 years, not 3 years.
Saint Kitts and Nevis program allows reselling a property in 5 years if it's worth at least $400,000 and in 7 years if it's worth at least $200,000.
Other Caribbean programs prescribe owning a property for at least 5 years.
Real estate investment conditions under Caribbean citizenship programs
Country | Investment amount | Ownership period |
Antigua and Barbuda | $200,000+ | 5 years |
Dominica | $200,000+ | 3—5 years |
St Kitts and Nevis | $200,000+ | 5 years |
$400,000+ | 7 years | |
Grenada | $220,000+ | 5 years |
Saint Lucia | $200,000+ | 5 years |
Subsequent resale. Properties can participate in investment programs twice. This means that the first investor can sell the property to the next participant of the program 5 years after obtaining citizenship. This approach ensures a high real estate demand.
The exception is Saint Lucia: real estate can participate in the program only once under its program.
How to choose real estate under Caribbean citizenship by investment program
Investors choose real estate to minimise the risk of investment loss, as well as to get rental income and live in a purchased house during vacations. Let's go over the tasks that investors set when choosing real estate, and give examples of eligible properties.
Minimise the loss of investment risk to zero. In this case, investors buy finished properties, like shares, apartments, or villas in already operating hotels.
Antigua and Barbuda, for example, has a plethora of properties like that, including luxury beachfront real estate. Investors can buy a hotel share for $200,000.
Investment properties for sale in Antigua and Barbuda
Get the maximum return on investment. To do this, investors purchase properties under construction, such as hotel apartments or villas.
With some projects, it's possible to purchase half of the property. When the property is put into operation, its cost will increase. On average, the value of Caribbean real estate is growing by 3—5% per year. Investors will also be able to earn income from renting their property out.
When buying a property under construction, it is important to consider the developer's reputation. Investors prefer world-renowned hotel companies like Hilton, Marriott, or Kempinski. Titles like that can be found among the investment properties on the Dominica cost, including under-construction projects.
Investment properties for sale in Dominica
Buy luxury vacation homes for rent. Luxury villas with a private beach or even an ocean pier are eligible for this.
Grenada offers many premium properties: for instance, villa prices here vary from 2.5 to 7 million dollars. Renting premium real estate in Grenada brings their owners an annual profit of 3—5%.
Investment properties for sale in Grenada
Process of buying real estate property in Caribbean countries
Step 1: choosing a suitable property. A Caribbean country's government must approve a real estate property for a citizenship program. Investors can save time on the title search and consult licensed agents of Caribbean government programs. They arrange remote consultations, property viewings, and sales and purchase agreement draw-ups.
Step 2: reserving the property. The investor transfers a deposit to the real estate developer. The deposit amount is usually 10—15% of the total transaction amount. Thus the property won't be bought by anyone else while Caribbean authorities process the investor's citizenship application.
Foreign buyers that don't participate in any Caribbean citizenship by investment program are required to purchase an Alien Landholding Licence (ALL). Investors who apply for a Caribbean citizenship program don't have to buy this licence.
Step 3: drawing up the sales and purchase agreement. The buyer transfers the remaining transaction funds to the developer. If the buyer participates in a Caribbean citizenship by investment program, they transfer the funds after receiving citizenship application approval.
A property sales and purchase agreement in the Caribbean can be signed either in a notary’s presence or remotely by the investor’s representative with a power of attorney.
After the drawing up, the property’s new ownership is recorded in the country’s public register.
Additional expenses for buying a Caribbean property
Real estate purchase is the largest part of all the expenses that a citizenship program participant makes. In addition to the investment cost, applicants will have government fees, legal fees, mandatory Due Diligence checks, bank fees, passport processing fees, and document transfer costs.
It is with noting that the minimum real estate investment amount remains fixed regardless of the number of family members in the application. Only additional fees increase.
Government fees and other expenses for buying Caribbean real estate under a citizenship program
Country | Government fees | Due Diligence fee | Other fees and commissions |
Antigua and Barbuda | $30,000 for a family of up to four people +$15,000 per applicant, starting with the fifth one | $7,500 for a single investor $7,500 for a spouse $2,000 per family member aged 12—17 $4,000 per family member over 18 | $600+ per applicant |
Grenada | $50,000 for a family of up to four people +$25,000 per the investor’s child or parent over 55 if added to a family of more than four people +$50,000 per the investor’s parent under 55 +$75,000 per the investor’s sibling | $5,000 for a single investor $5,000 for a spouse $5,000 per applicant over 17 | $3,000+ per applicant |
Dominica | $25,000 for a single investor +$10,000 for a spouse or a family of no more than four people +$25,000 for a family of five or more +$25,000 per applicant, starting with the seventh | $7,500 for a single investor $4,000 for a spouse $4,000 per applicant over 16 | $800+ per applicant +$1,000 for family information processing |
St Kitts and Nevis | $35,050 for a single investor +$20,050 for a spouse +$10,050 per child or parent +$40,000 per sibling | $7,500 for a single investor $4,000 for a spouse $4,000 per applicant over 16 | $800+ per applicant |
Saint Lucia | $30,000 for a single investor +$15,000 for a spouse +$5,000 per applicant under 18 +$10,000 per applicant over 18 or per applicant under 18 if added to a family of more than four people | $7,500 for a single investor $5,000 for a spouse $5,000 per applicant over 16 | $1,000+ per applicant +$2,000 for application processing |
Caribbean real estate management and investor's income
If an investor buys an apartment or villa, then the management company can take care of the property maintenance and rental. In this case, the management company will keep part of the rental income, usually half of it.
The rental rate varies from 3 to 5% per annum. In winter, during the high tourist season, it can rise from one and a half to two times.
Assistance with applying for Caribbean citizenship from Immigrants Invest
Immigrant Invest is a licensed agent of Caribbean government programs. The company's specialists will help you choose a profitable program and reduce the risks of citizenship denial.
Since 2006, Immigrant Invest has helped obtain citizenship by real estate investment for more than 1,500 investors and their families.
Frequently Asked Questions
Choose the islands where you can receive Caribbean citizenship in exchange for buying real estate: Grenada, Dominica, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, or Antigua and Barbuda.
If you invest in real estate in Dominica, you can resell the property and return the investment in 3 years. To compare, the citizenship programs of the other four islands allow returning the investment in 5—7 years. Dominica also has one of the best minimum price terms among the other Caribbean programs: you can purchase real estate for $200,000.
Yes. Caribbean real estate properties are liquid assets: they grow in price by 2—3% annually. Owners who rent their property out can receive an annual income of 2—6%.
Investors who buy government-approved real estate for at least $200,000 can participate in a Caribbean citizenship by investment program.
Yes, but they will also have additional expenses — such as purchasing an Alien Landholding Licence (ALL). Investors participating in a Caribbean citizenship by investment program don’t have to buy this licence.
In Grenada, Dominica, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Antigua and Barbuda, there are no taxes on global income, wealth, inheritance, gifts, and capital gains.
For renting out, investors are more likely to choose Caribbean properties with two or three bedrooms. Furnished villas close to the beach are popular. The rental rate is 3—5% per year. It is more profitable to rent out housing during the high tourist season: in winter, rental rates rise 1,5—2 times.
In most cases, real estate participates in Caribbean citizenship by investment programs twice. This means that both the first and second owners of the property will be able to apply for citizenship for investment in the country’s economy. For example, a wide selection of investment properties under the Antigua and Barbuda citizenship program.
Stricter conditions apply in Saint Lucia, where a real estate property can only participate in a citizenship program once.
We recommend Saint Kitts and Nevis citizenship by investment program. Here, investors can speed up the citizenship obtainment procedure for up to 60 days. In general, it is possible to complete the Caribbean citizenship obtainment process in a 3 to 6-month period.
Grenada citizenship will allow you to apply for an E-2 business visa to the US with the right to live and work in the country for 5 years. Moreover, the entire investor’s family can join them. Also, a Grenada passport will allow you to enter China for up to 30 days without a visa.
Cosmopolitans often choose shares in large luxury resorts or residential complexes as Grenada investment properties.
Pay attention to Antigua and Barbuda or Saint Kitts and Nevis: the islands with a mild tropical climate combined with a developed tourist infrastructure attract yachters, divers, and surfers from all over the world.