The Citizenship by Investment (CBI) industry has seen a number of dramatic changes to investment migration and citizenship programs during the year 2017 and 2018. The Citizenship by investment programs (CIPs) are seeing a swift growth year by year and the demand for second (citizenships) passports just keeps on increasing.
 
On May 21 2018 , the council of Cyprus ministers approved some changes to the citizenship-through-investment program , which has already attracted over €4.8 billion of direct investment into the Cypriot economy — up until 2016.

"The Cyprus government has tightened vetting procedures in a program that grants Cypriot citizenship to investors", the Minister of Finance - Harris Georgiades - said yesterday (May 22 2018).

Amendments : What has changed about citizenship by investment program of Cyprus ?

 The changes include the following:

• To limit the number of applications for naturalizations of investors to 700 a year, starting this year. This figure is less than 30% of the total Cypriot naturalization!

• Applicants, who will foot the bill for the enhanced due diligence process, will have to wait up to six months for their applications to be examined. “For example, in addition to the checks carried out to date, a thorough, exhaustive, due diligence check by specialized foreign firms will be carried out on a case-by-case basis ,” Georgiades added .
• The prohibition of the advertising of the CIP in public places (including the internet) and particularly in relation to the image of the Cypriot passport ;
• The obligation of the Applicant and of the Registered Service Provider to submit a signed declaration confirming their compliance with the Code of Conduct and practices and that they are fully informed in relation to the procedures of the program.

“We do not accept the claim that the Cypriot passport is up for sale. The Cyprus passport — like any state passport — is given on the basis of specific criteria” Georgiades said.

• The citizenship-by-investment program will be renamed the “Cypriot Investment Scheme” ;
• While investors have to remain owners of their investment for a minimum three-year period, in the case of buyers of real estate, the period now begins with the issue of a town planning permit.

  About Cyprus Citizenship by Investment Program (CIP)

The Cyprus citizenship by investment program introduced in the current form in 2014 and amended on a number of occasions thereafter, allows investors to receive Cypriot citizenship for an investment of as little as €2 million when the total of the investments are in real estate (provided that a property of minimum €500,000 will be purchased as a life-long residential one for the main applicant).
 
€2, 5 million, if the investor chooses to add some investments in companies of investment funds or securities, so an additional €500, 000 as a residential property must be added in the investment.
 
The program was introduced to raise much needed cash after the country nearly went bankrupt in 2013 and needed a multi-billion dollar bailout from international lenders.

Main advantages

The citizenship-through-investment program's main advantages include the following:

• A qualified applicant can be granted Cypriot citizenship within six months;
• The application is straightforward;
• Main applicants can obtain citizenship for Spouse , children and dependent parents;
• The program provides successful applicants with visa-free travel to 157 countries, including all EU countries, Canada and Australia, among others;
• The application process has no history or language proficiency tests

 
Final thoughts
 
Cyprus offers investors a secure and firm environment which is ideal for families. At the intersection of the Middle East, Europe, Asia, and Africa, Cyprus is the ideal setting for global travel. The Cyprus Citizenship by Investment Program is perfect for family, business and investment purposes recognizing several investment opportunities for investors.
 
At QICMS we assist our clients in choosing the most appropriate Citizenship by Investment Program ensuring mobility for our clients and their family’s members.  

For more information on Cyprus’ Citizenship by Investment Program, please click here.
 
To see our Malta & Cyprus Citizenship Programs Compared table, please click here .
 
For the Citizenship by Investment Programs comparison table, please click here.

To see our Citizenship and Residency Programs by Investment in Real Estate comparison table, please click here.  

To see our Caribbean citizenship by investment comparison table, please click here.

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