An IMGlobalWealth.com News Report
The cost of acquiring a second citizenship by investment has risen sharply since 2021, as governments tighten rules, raise minimum thresholds and respond to pressure from larger international partners. What was once a relatively affordable Plan B for globally mobile families has become more expensive, more scrutinised and, in some markets, less available.
The clearest shift has taken place in the Caribbean. In 2021, several citizenship-by-investment programmes still offered minimum contribution routes at comparatively low levels. Dominica and Saint Lucia had entry points of US$100,000, while Grenada and St Kitts and Nevis stood at US$150,000. Antigua and Barbuda’s National Development Fund route was also commonly marketed at US$100,000, although the effective cost could rise once government and processing fees were included.
Today, those figures have changed substantially. Dominica’s Economic Diversification Fund route now starts at US$200,000, while Antigua and Barbuda’s Citizenship by Investment Unit lists the National Development Fund contribution at US$230,000. Grenada’s Investment Migration Agency states a minimum contribution of US$235,000, and St Kitts and Nevis lists its Sustainable Island State Contribution from US$250,000. Saint Lucia’s National Economic Fund route now starts at US$240,000.
The increases are not uniform, but the direction is unmistakable. Dominica has doubled its minimum contribution threshold. Saint Lucia has more than doubled. Antigua and Barbuda has risen sharply. Grenada and St Kitts and Nevis have not doubled when measured against their earlier US$150,000 contribution routes, but both have still recorded significant increases.
This is not merely a question of pricing. In June 2024, the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States said participating countries had agreed that, from 1 July 2024, the minimum price for any citizenship-by-investment option would be US$200,000. The agreement formed part of a wider push towards cooperation, information sharing, common standards and regulatory oversight.
Beyond the Caribbean, the same tightening is visible. Türkiye’s property route to citizenship now requires an investment of US$400,000, compared with the earlier US$250,000 threshold. Ireland closed its Immigrant Investor Programme to new applications in 2023. Spain has moved away from its golden visa model, and Montenegro’s investor citizenship programme ended in 2022.
For affluent families seeking mobility, optionality and geopolitical insurance, second citizenship remains available. But the age of cheaper, lighter-touch investment migration is fading. The market is becoming costlier, more regulated and increasingly shaped by international scrutiny.
