Following a cooling in demand off the back of the Covid-19 pandemic, St Kitts and Nevis becomes the fifth Caribbean country to make adjustments to its Citizenship By Investment Program. Following a circular announcement by the St Kitts Citizenship By Investment Unit released on 3 July, the program contribution for a family of 4 is being lowered from $195,000 to only $150,000, the same as the contribution charged for a single applicant.

Find out more about the changes below, or contact us now for more information.

The 2020 Program changes at a glance

Before the announced pricing changes, individual applicants were required to make a minimum contribution of $150,000 to the Sustainable Growth Fund of the twin-island nation, while families of up to 4 were required to donate $195,000. Given that the St Kitts and Nevis Citizenship Program is one of the Caribbean market-leading products, the single applicant requirement will not be temporarily discounted so as to avoid corroding the program’s positioning. Funding raised from the program will be employed to help the island nation’s tourism and related sectors in recovering from the devastating effects of Covid-19.

While most of the Caribbean CIPs have stated their commitment to avoiding an outright price war and a race to the bottom, the recent drastic reduction in demand for Caribbean investment passports has seen the respective governments relaxing program requirements in terms of dependent applicant age, and by reducing the fees associated with large family applications.

Dominica recently significantly expanded their citizenship program’s definition of “qualifying dependents”, while St Lucia reacted by launching a Covid-19 Relief Bond. Similarly, Antigua and Barbuda opted to make it both simpler and more affordable to add new dependent members to already approved investment citizenship applications, while also reducing the associated costs for larger families on some of their investment options.

The changes to the St Kitts CIP mirrors the latter “added value” approach employed by the other Caribbean CBIUs, and it is expected that the Grenada Citizenship Program may soon follow suit.

The CBIU’s circular, which can be viewed here, states that the price reduction will be valid for a limited time only. The changes were announced off the back of “the significant global economic fallout caused by the corona virus pandemic and efforts by the country to find creative ways to stabilize the economy and put it on a path to consolidate growth enjoyed over the last five years before Covid-19.”

The St Kitts economic citizenship program has long been popular among high net worth foreigners given its powerful passport, offering visa-free access or a visa upon arrival for 156 countries, combined with its streamlined application process and respected due diligence process.

To find out more, visit our St Kitts Citizenship By Investment Program page now.