Citizenship By Investment is a part of the citizenship category whereby the investor contributes a particular amount of money towards the country's economy to get permanent residence and citizenship of that country. Citizenship is the status that allows people to vote, work and live in the country. Several countries worldwide have recognized the importance of foreign Investment in a nation's economy, which is why they have come up with many measures to motivate foreign nationals to invest in their country. Some of these measures are relaxations in tax reporting and offering the investors' families the opportunities to live, study and work in the country.Citizenship By Investment is by far the most preferred option to get citizenship of a particular country by investing some money in that country's economic growth.
CITIZENSHIP BY INVESTMENT REGULATIONS
One thing you must understand is that every country has its own set of regulations when it comes to qualifying for citizenship by Investment. For Example, some countries may require the foreign national to live in the country and oversee the Investment, while others don't have such requirements. Just to provide a general overview, here are common requirements of every nation's citizenship by investment programs.
MINIMUM AMOUNT REQUIRED FOR INVESTMENT:
In almost every citizenship by investment program, the investor must (or promise) to invest a minimum amount of USD $200,000 into the country's economy. The amount can go as high as USD $500,000. Moreover, many countries have a condition that the money should be invested in government-approved projects only. The most popular industries for foreign investment are real estate and hotel development. Of course, there are many other industries and projects you can invest your money into according to your discretion.
EVIDENCE OF THE INVESTOR'S PREVIOUS ENTREPRENEURIAL OR BUSINESS EXPERIENCE
Several countries require that foreign investors should possess certain expertise in managing the business or project. Additionally, some countries also have a requirement that foreign investors should have managerial experience in commercial enterprises.
PROOF OF THE LAWFUL SOURCE OF THE INVESTMENT FUNDS
Almost all countries require that the foreign investors prove that they have procured their funds for investment via a lawful source such as savings, salary, mortgage, sale of real estate etc. It is an important aspect of foreign investment application and must contain sufficient evidence to show the legitimacy of the investor's funds. As a matter of fact, the majority of foreign nationals who go unapproved by United States investment-based immigration programs are not approved by anyone else as well. Once the investor's application is approved by the country's immigration authorities, he is likely to become a permanent resident of that country. After being a permanent resident for a specific period, the investor gets eligible to apply for citizenship through a legal process called naturalization. With citizenship, he can enjoy the right to live, study, conduct business and vote. One thing to remember here is that most countries condemn dual citizenship. Therefore, in such cases, you need to renounce your previous nationality to get approval for your citizenship in the other country.
BENEFITS OF CITIZENSHIP BY INVESTMENT
Citizenship by investment programs offer numerous benefits that attract millions of people worldwide. They permit the investor to bring the spouse and children along to secure them a better future. Most countries also offer significant tax advantages such as exemptions from income tax, property tax and gift tax. They get immediate permanent residency which is a prerequisite to obtaining citizenship in that country.
RESTRICTIONS OF CITIZENSHIP BY INVESTMENT
Not all glitter is gold! There are potential disadvantages of citizenship by investment programs as well, which could make a foreign national opt for any other program or even forgo participating in any such program altogether. For Example, certain countries only grant temporary residence, which can be revoked if the foreign investor fails to meet certain requirements. One such condition is creating and maintaining full-time job positions for the citizens of the country. If the investment fails to meet this condition, the foreign nationals won't be able to become a citizen and even lose the investment funds.
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