FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

The answers of the most frequently asked questions related to St.Kitts investment and real estate are given below. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you need any further information.

Where is St.Kitts and Nevis?

St Kitts and Nevis is a beautiful twin island federation  in the Caribbean located some 2,000 km to the southeast of Miami. The country is well connected by flights from US, Europe. It is one of the smallest, wealthiest caribbean islands with just a population of 55,000. St Kitts is the 8th smallest country in the world in terms of land mass.

What is the currency of St.Kitts and Nevis?

The currency of St.Kitts and Nevis is Eastern Caribbean Dollar (XCD). Roughly 1 USD will buy you 2.7 Eastern Caribbean dollars.

What is this Citizenship-by-Investment program ?

The Citizenship-by-Investment Program of St. Christopher (St. Kitts) and Nevis was established in 1984, making it the longest established program of this kind in the world. The Government of St. Kitts and Nevis utilizes this program to attract investors of good character to make a substantial contribution to the development of the Federation.

Obtaining Citizenship and passport in another country by “legal” means are getting very difficult nowdays, and Governments are making sure that such programs are only available for wealthy or high net worth investors who are capable to making a substantial contribution to economy of the country and who are able to support themselves financially.

What is the minimum investment needed?

As of 2023, the St.Kitts government has introduced the minimum investment amount to USD 250,000 under SISC donation to state fund and USD 400,000 under real estate for single applicant.

A non refundable charity donation of minimum US$ 250,000 to the Sustainable Growth Fund (SGF) for single person + payment of DD processing fees ($10,000).  The total investment amount (including all charges) comes approx around USD 260,000 for single applicant plus additional lawyer fees apply (average $6,000 per file) depending on accompanying family members

Please check government offering Limited time discount offers from time to time.

(or)

2. Designated recoverable Real Estate Investment with a value of at least US$ 400,000 plus payment of various registration and other fees . Additional charges include Govt processing fee, DD and application fees.

Additional costs apply including for any family dependents. You can include a spouse and children below 18 yrs of age in the citizenship application.

Please see the fee schedules.

What is the time frame to process the application?

The application process time after receiving the complete application forms and documents (as well as paying the funds) is currently 4 months – regardless if a client chooses the SGF option or the real-estate program.

What is main difference between SGF and Real Estate option?

SGF option (replaces SIDF)  is a public charity and the investment amount is donated to the sugar industry foundation (charity). is non refundable by the Govt. With real estate option it is bit expensive, but investment is recoverable (real estate can be sold after 5yrs).

The real estate investment is a recoverable investment, because you can sell it after 7 years.

We highly recommend real-estate program, because having a “second home” in St.Kitts is a very good reason for getting a St.Kitts citizenship and passport. This would help even you are questioned at border controls.

As you can see, the real estate option is expensive but the real estate option is a recoverable investment however, you can only sell your property after 5 years. It also qualify the next buyer for citizenship.

Both real estate and SIDF takes the same approval time.

Are there any fee for children aged over 18 years of age to be included in the Citizenship application?

Yes. Children who are aged between 18 – 25 years pay additional Government fees. Siblings also possible.

What are the rules for adding family members and dependents?

There are no limits to add permitted dependents. Permitted dependents rules are:

  • A spouse of the main applicant;
  • A child under the age of 18 of the main applicant or his or her spouse;
  • The child of the main applicant or his or her spouse between 18 and 30 years who is in full time attendance at a recognised institution of higher learning after his/her 18th birthday and/or fully supported by the main applicant;
  • Parents or grandparents of the main applicant or his/her spouse above the age of 55 years living with and fully supported by the main applicant or;
  • A child of the main applicant or spouse of the main applicant who is above the age of 18 years and physically or mentally challenged.

Note: Children/siblings above 30 years cannot apply

Where to get application forms?

This is only available with authorized agents at cost of $250. It is not free.

Are children exempt from paying due diligence fee?

Yes, note only children below 16 years are exempted from paying $4000 due diligence fee.

Are there any restrictions on who can apply?

We do not accept clients from Iran, Iraq, Russia, Belarus, North Korea, Cuba Afghanistan irrespective of where they live

Please keep in mind citizenship granted under this citizenship-by-investment program is at discretion  by the Government.

Obtaining a Second citizenship or passport by “legal” means are involves a lot of formalities nowdays and Governments are making sure that such programs are only available for wealthy or high net worth investors who are capable to making a substantial contribution to economy of the country and who are able to support themselves financially.

What are the most important documents required?

  • Medical report indicating HIV test results (test results must not be older than three months upon submission of an application; children under the age of 12 are exempt);
  • Police certificate “Certificate of No Criminal Record” or “Police Clearance Certificate” from country of citizenship and any country where the applicant has lived for more than one year over the past 10 years (children under the age of 16 are exempt) and;

What are the benefits of St. Kitts and Nevis Passport?

  • Visa free travel for over 150+ countries including all EU countries, Switzerland, Canada, United Kingdom and Ireland.
  • No residence requirements.
  • Free to live and work in St.Kitts as a citizen
  • No income or wealth tax.
  • Second citizenship for your family members.
  • International Tax planning

Are there any residency requirements to acquire passport?

No, there is no residency requirement unlike Europe. You can directly qualify for citizenship.

Do i need to visit St Kitts for passport?

No personal trips, travel or visit required. We know any sort of trips is impossible during Covid and government has eased the restrictions.

What countries i can travel visa free with St.Kitts & Nevis passport?

To know more about list of countries for visa free travel with st kitts passport, please see this page

Are there any taxes?

St. Kitts & Nevis has no personal income tax, no wealth tax, and no inheritance taxes.

How long is the validity of passport?

The passport issued carries 10 year validity and after that it can be renewed.

On what grounds could my citizenship application be refused?

If applicant has a criminal record, a tainted reputation or unable to pass the due diligence clearance, the Government may reject the citizenship application.  Sometimes, in very rare cases, the Govt refuse citing national security or false information presented in the citizenship application.

If you have had  visa denial to any one of the countries, where St.Kitts and Nevis have visa free travel agreements, you cannot apply for the citizenship-by-investment program. You must have successfully obtained visa from the same country which denied your visa, inorder to apply for citizenship program.

Please note that granting citizenship is at the sole discretion of the St.Kitts and Nevis Government. We cannot therefore guarantee that any applications will be approved. We carefully evaluate each applicant’s individual situation prior to accepting a citizenship applications and only if we are satisfied with applicants eligibility we will submit to Government. We do not use any intermediaries and we serve to protect confidentiality of our wealthy clients.

What documents are needed?

We highly recommend our clients to arrange the following important documents, before applying  for  citizenship program. Normally it takes 1-2 months to arrange for these documents in your home country. There are several other documents needed at a later stage, and we will assist you accordingly.

1. Police clearance certificate. If you have lived in any other country in the past 10 years, you have to obtain, “certificate of no criminal record” in all the countries you have lived in the past 10 years. If you are in US, you will need to obtain police clearance from county and FBI.

Please note that, police certificates must be less than six months old at the time you lodge your citizenship application.

2. Two Original birth certificates per person.

3. Documents which are not in English, must be officially translated.

4. Medical certificate with HIV clearance (not older than 3 months)

5. Certified copy of Marriage certificate.

6.  Two Reference letters from Bankers, Lawyers, Chartered Accountant (not older than 3 months).

All the above documents must be certified and authenticated by Apostille. For more information on apostille, please see https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/specialised-sections/apostille. We can help you with arranging your documents in our office, for a fee.

I have 2 children of 16 years of age and 18 years of age? Will the due diligence to be carried out?

yes, due diligence will be carried out for children with 16 years or above. Further children above 18 years of age, need to provide evidence of college enrollment.

How do i start and how do i apply?

First you need to tell us how many people including family members and children, would be applying for the citizenship program. Initially we ask our clients to pay $10,000 due diligence fee plus 50% of lawyer fee to file the application. You will pay the rest of investment ONLY after receiving Letter of Approval from Citizenship Investment Unit St Kitts.

Do I have to live in  St. Kitts and Nevis after acquiring citizenship?

No. You are not required to live in St. Kitts and Nevis but as a citizen you have every right to live and work in St.Kitts, whenever you want.

Is a personal visit required in St.Kitts to acquire passport?

No, not required as most of the work is taken care by us. But, if you prefer you can come to St.Kitts and get to know more on the investments here like real estate etc.

We do encourage our clients to come visit St.Kitts for investing in real estate and have a personal discussion with our lawyers and estate planning specialists.

How do i come to St.Kitts? Do i need to apply for visa to enter St.Kitts?

Citizens of certain countries, do need to apply for visa for arrival in St.Kitts. For more information on this, please see this St.Kitts Ministry of Foreign Affairs Website

How do i get to St.Kitts and Nevis and what are the flight routes?

For flight schedules, please refer to St.Kitts Tourism page: http://www.stkittstourism.kn

Do you provide any other citizenship programs in Europe, other than St.Kitts?

yes, we assist our clients with residence programs in Caribbean and Europe. For more information about these programs, please visit our sister website: http://best-citizenships.com

Is Dual Citizenship Allowed?

The St Kitts & Nevis government has no restrictions on “dual citizenship” and does not report citizenship information to other countries. While, most countries prohibit dual citizenship, it depends on where you live and sometimes as per laws of your home country, you may need to give up one citizenship to acquire other.

http://www.immihelp.com/citizenship/dual-citizenship-recognize-countries.html
http://www.sgwiki.com/wiki/Dual_citizenship
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiple_citizenship

For professional advice, please consult a embassy or lawyer in your home country on immigration and citizenships with respect to dual nationality.

What are the costs and fee structure?

The costs and applicable fee are clearly mentioned in the homepage of our website. If you have any other specific questions, please contact us..

Can 2 or more persons buy real estate and apply for citizenship together?

yes, it is possible, but provided each has contributed $400,000 for real estate. Remember you buy real estate for $400,000 with limited share (hold for 5 years) and $400,000 full title properties and $800,000 private home (hold for 7 years). Note the luxury private homes starts from $800,000 $1.5 million or more in the twin islands.

Do siblings qualify?

Yes you can add brother or sister of principal applicant (or spouse) on a condition that are less than 30 years, unmarried and childless.

What is your refund policy, should the citizenship application be denied?

yes, refunds are possible minus application and other service charges , should your application be denied by the government. Your investment amount is kept in a safe escrow account, until you get the citizenship approval from the Govt. Our lawyers draft clear agreements on applicable fees and refund policy with our clients.

We are expecting a new baby and is it possible the new born baby get citizenship?

If husband and wife are both citizens of St.Kitts and Nevis, then the new born baby will automatically inherit the citizenship.

Can i add family members post obtaining my citizenship?

Yes, you can add spouse, children and siblings by paying addition government processing fee plus DD fee. Please contact us for more information.

Can stateless people apply for St Kitts citizenship through investment?

No stateless people are not accepted.

Can i buy residential homes?

Yes, provided the private property is $800,000 or more and you must hold for 5 years.

Do you require birth certificate?

Yes we need original birth certificate only at the time of applying for passport (will be returned to you in few days)

Do you have any Caribbean programs cheaper than St Kitts?

Yes, please see Saint Lucia and Antigua and Barbuda with the minimum investment of US$100,000 onwards

Where can i find embassies and consulates of St Kitts abroad?

St Kitts has diplomatic missions in United States, United Kingdom, UAE and other countries. The full list is available here: https://www.foreign.gov.kn/embassies-overseas/