JOHN’S, Antigua, – The Antigua and Barbuda government says it will deny citizens from Afghanistan, Iraq, North Korea, Somalia, Yemen, and Iran from applying for citizenship under its Citizenship by Investment Programme (CIP).
A government statement said that Cabinet had recently adopted the position that citizens of the six countries “who reside in their country of birth do not qualify|.
But it opened the possibility for those people to gain Antigua and Barbuda citizenship under the CIP if they “reside lawfully in Canada, the USA or in Western Europe, whose status as a “lawful permanent resident” is established…providing they meet the high standards of the due diligence investigation”.
The statement said that the Gaston Browne administration had also agreed that no-one who has changed his or her name shall be allowed to have an Antigua and Barbuda passport, under the CIP programme, issued to that person under any circumstances.
“Deed poll documents shall not serve to allow the issuance of an Antigua and Barbuda passport under the CIP programme,” the statement said noting that government had adopted the new measures “to safeguard the integrity of the CIP programme, and to ensure that only those persons whose past behaviour will not threaten the very well-being of the citizenship programme, can be accepted”
The CIP programme, introduced by the then Baldwin Spencer administration, became operational last year.
“The new Antigua Barbuda Labour Party government has continued the programme, making alterations that are deemed necessary in order to enhance its attractiveness,” the statement added.
It said that the CIP programme has raised more than US$50 million dollars since its inception, “and those funds have gone to paying debts and meeting other obligations of the government, incurred prior to June 12, 2014”.
Antigua and Barbuda grants citizenship to investors under three categories, including US$200,000 donation to National Development fund (NDF); US$400,000 investment in real estate or US$1.5 million in business investment.
The country joins St .Kitts- Nevis and Dominica where the citizenship programmes are in place.
