Bring Your Family Together with Citizenship of Dominica

Recently the Commonwealth of Dominica introduced some changes to better accommodate families in its prominent Citizenship by Investment (CBI) Programme. The country’s expansion of “dependants” under its CBI Programme means that more family members can remain unified and enjoy the benefits of a second citizenship.

LEarn more about Dominica’s CBI Programme

On August 31st, Gulf News and CS Global Partners spoke to the Prime Minister of Dominica, Dr Roosevelt Skerrit, and the Head of the Citizenship by Investment Unit, Ambassador Emmanuel Nanthan, about the island’s new family reunification regulations. In the webinar titled “Bring Your Family Together with Citizenship of Dominica,” Prime Minister Skerrit described the new policy as “groundbreaking”.

CBI is a path many chose to attain second citizenship. In Dominica, an investor can contribute to a government fund or purchase pre-approved real estate to gain citizenship. The money from the former is used to develop the island’s many socio-economic initiatives like education, healthcare, and infrastructure. Currently, 14 jurisdictions in the world offer this Programme, however, Dominica has been crowned world’s best for the past three years by the PWM, a publication backed by the Financial Times.

“The family is at the centre of the Dominican society,” said the Prime Minister. “We understand the importance of family; we understand the importance of keeping families together; we understand the need for family members to continue looking out for each other.”

Prime Minister Skerrit also laid out the five significant regulation changes:

1. Any dependant can be related to either the main applicant or the main applicant’s spouse
2. No age limitations on parents and grandparents
3. For all adult dependants, other than a spouse, there need only be a showing of substantial support on the part of the main applicant or the spouse of the main applicant (full support was required to be shown previously)
4. Allowance of siblings up to the age of 25, and for siblings under the age of 18 – the parents must grant consent
5. Allowance of spouses of qualifying parents and grandparents to also be included in the CBI application, so long as there is a showing that they are substantially supported by the main applicant or the main applicant’s spouse.

When asked if Dominica was an appropriate destination for a family’s relocation, the Prime Minister highlighted Dominica’s minimal crime rate, a sound education system, and robust healthcare. “Dominica is well suited to receiving our friends and families,” he added.

Dominica’s primary healthcare is free for those under 18 and over 60. Education is also free for citizens of Dominica up until the age of 16, with the country’s literacy rate at 98 per cent.

His Excellency Emmanuel Nanthan, Head of the Citizenship by Investment Unit, also spoke with Gulf News and reiterated the country’s policy in keeping families together through the CBI Programme. “[The CBI] Programme is where we make our contribution to humanity because we listen to our citizens, to our investors, and we’ll make changes. The family is the key to who we are as a people,” he said.

He also shed light on the country’s rigorous due diligence protocols for potential citizens. He said, “if efficiency, if experience, if longevity is the heart and soul, the lifeblood, the main aspect of our Programme is actually the due diligence – that is the heart.”

The webinar host concluded that Dominica’s commitment to understanding the concerns of people and their families is the reason its CBI Programme is consistently number one.