The five countries in the Eastern Caribbean that offer Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programs are nearing the establishment of a regional regulatory authority to manage their programs, according to a statement from the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). This development follows the third meeting between the United States and Caribbean nations regarding CBI programs, which took place in Grenada on August 29, 2024. The OECS described the meeting as fruitful, noting significant progress in implementing the six principles of CBI programs agreed upon in February 2023.
Timothy Antoine, the Governor of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank, who co-chaired the meeting with Warren Ryan, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Treasury, stated, “The region will soon announce the appointment of a temporary regulatory committee tasked with establishing the regional regulatory body.”
The main objectives of the regulatory body will be to organize and oversee CBI programs for Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Saint Lucia, and it will also have the authority to implement corrective measures when necessary.
Delegates at the meeting praised the “joint regional efforts toward the full implementation of the MOA cooperation agreement” that had been previously adopted. The five Caribbean nations have fully implemented four of the six principles, including:
The Caribbean nations have fully implemented four of the six provisions agreed upon after signing the Caribbean Memorandum of Understanding (MOA), including:
1- How to handle rejected citizenship applications, whereby applicants whose files have been rejected by one Caribbean program can no longer apply to another Caribbean program.
2- Mandatory interviews for all applicants as part of security measures to enhance due diligence.
3- Additional verification with the Financial Intelligence Unit in each country.
4- Suspension of processing applications for citizens of Russia and Belarus.
The remaining principles, which focus on due diligence and the recovery of revoked passports, are “moving toward full implementation” in the coming period.
These efforts align with the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signed by the five Caribbean nations in March 2024. The American delegations welcomed “the progress made by the region in establishing an independent regional regulatory authority, as outlined in the MOA.”
It is worth noting that all Caribbean countries offering CBI programs have increased the minimum investment threshold starting from July 2024 in response to the MOA provisions.
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