Caribbean

EU Pressures Lead to Major Overhaul of Caribbean Citizenship Programs

Four member countries of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) have agreed to raise the price of entry into their respective Citizenship by Investment Programs (CBIPs), following years of increasing pressure and scrutiny mainly by the European Union. On March 20, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, and St. Kitts & Nevis – which operate four of the five CBI programs in the OECS – signed a memorandum of understanding to harmonize their CIP programs. At a recent press conference in Dominica, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit said that the agreement allows the four to work together to address EU concerns about the security of the CBI programs in each of these countries, and to hopefully preserve visa-free access to the Schengen zone.  The ability for Caribbean passport holders to travel to Europe without needing visas has come under threat in recent years, as the EU has become increasingly concerned about the potential use of CBI programs for trans-national criminals to ...