Second Passports
Whilst there are many methods to gain second citizenship, they usually require some form of naturalization that can take years, or having to prove that your great grandfather came from some long ago backwater. Other options include marriage or dependants, but let’s face it you can’t go around getting married, pregnant or getting somebody pregnant every 5 minutes unless you’re from Utah. If you can afford it, Economic Citizenship Programs offer quick, easy, if expensive, second citizenship to countries seeking economic investors of good character. Vetting requirements are strict to ensure there’s no criminal background but on granting of your citizenship you can apply for a second passport. In the end, they’re probably a lot cheaper than the marriage option!
There are currently only three countries in the world offering Economic Citizenship Programs following the suspension of the Grenada government program. These countries are St Kitts and Nevis, Dominica and Austria. These programs offer almost instant citizenship in return for direct investment or donations within the countries. Having dual citizenship or second citizenship and a second passport can give you more freedom of movement, allow you to travel and live more safely within certain world zones, but more importantly it’s going to allow you to protect your assets from higher taxation regimes and offer you a lot more personal privacy.
The most expensive and difficult to acquire of the three options is the Economic Citizenship Program of Austria. Politically unpopular, the Austrians haven’t been too keen to promote their program and don’t issue more than a handful each year. It’s also the only one in which you have to invest before you apply for second citizenship, you need to invest around US$4,000,000 (£2,750,000) in order to have a chance and if they decide not to grant citizenship you won’t get your money back.
Gaining dual nationality and a second passport with the Dominica Government Economic Citizenship Program costs US$75,000 (£52,000) for a single applicant or US$100,000 (£69,000) for a family with up to 2 dependant children. Legal, due diligence and processing fees add an additional US$30,000 (£20,500). The country has a very good economic image and a second passport from Dominica offers visa free travel to around 90 countries. The government also won’t inform your current country of residence that you’ve obtained dual nationality.
The Federation of St Kitts and Nevis offer citizenship with an investment of US$350,000 (£241,000) in an approved real estate development project. There’s a further registration fee of US$35,000 (£24,000) for the main applicant and US$15,000 (£10,300) for each spouse and dependant child under 18. Another option is to make a contribution to the Sugar Industry Diversification Foundation. A single applicant needs to contribute US$200,000 (£138,000) and an applicant with up to 3 dependants US$250,000 (£172,000) there’s no registration fee and legal costs will run to an additional US$10,000 (£7,000). A second passport from St Kitts and Nevis offers visa free travel to over 90 countries.
One thing you need to bear in mind if you are looking for second citizenship is that both countries need to recognize dual nationality, if one country doesn’t, you’re going to have to renounce your previous citizenship. Whilst the US Government recognizes dual nationality a person applying for a second citizenship may lose their US citizenship.
