Posing as Billy Lee and Angie, Al Jazeera’s reporters went undercover, pretending to represent a Chinese businessman interested in acquiring a Cypriot passport. After Monday’s revelations, the European Commission said in a statement it had watched the revelations in disbelief. The Cyprus Investment Programme can be obtained within just 6 months. NICOSIA, CYPRUS -- Cyprus on Tuesday scrapped a lucrative program granting citizenship to wealthy investors amid new allegations that a top state … The process was, for us, like having them as partners. If we had to go through this again, we wouldn’t move without Bukh and Associates as our guides.. No other European golden visaprogram guarantees such assured results offering an EU second passpo… The mystery businessman had been convicted for money laundering, which should have disqualified him as an applicant under Cyprus’ rules. The Cyprus Citizenship by Investment program offers the fastest and most assured route to gaining a European passport through investment in real estate. Overview One of only two CIP programmes in Europe with official EU approval, the Cyprus Investment Programme (citizenship by investment) is authorised by the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Cyprus. Birth certificate 4. Furthermore, applicants are not required to reside in the country at all. As perhaps the only person who covers the second citizenship scene to have actually been through three CBI processes personally (St. Lucia, Dominica – which I aborted, and Comoros), I’m uniquely qualified to speak on this subject. It offers the quickest method of obtaining EU citizenship, taking just six to eight months for application approval. And I believe we have the experience,” Giovani said. Holds a valid Schengen Visa 4. While it admitted mistakes in recent years, it said tightening laws and checking applicants’ backgrounds were sufficient to stopping criminals getting passports. 2. Being the most prestigious Citizenship By Investment program in Europe, Cyprus provides lots of reasons for you to join. Cyprus is a member of the World Trade Organization, the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund. Another biggest threat is leaks, which happened recently with Cyprus, where name of investors were leaked to media and the list included high profile wealthy families. We can check the finished application and pre-approve it to make sure … However, time and again they were told that the sentence would not be a problem as long as enough money was invested – the implication being that the more their client invested above te $2.5m threshold, the easier he would find it to avoid restrictions. This investment can be made in construction, in a building, in a company, or in investment funds. Ever lay awake at night wondering what you’ve done? It is usually required that you do not hold a criminal record and that your funds are acquired from a legal source. On Monday, Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit released The Cyprus Papers Undercover, which showed the willingness of parliament speaker, Demetris Syllouris, and member of parliament, Christakis Giovanis (also known as Giovani in Cyprus), to aid and abet convicted criminals to obtain a passport through the Citizenship Investment Programme (CIP). The move comes after an Al Jazeera investigation showed that politicians were willing to help criminals acquire passports. From the inception of the Cyprus CBI program in 2013 to 2019, there have been 4,000 people naturalized in Cyprus via CBI, … Path it now!! Cyprus passport holders have the freedom to hold dual citizenship and travel visa-free to 171 nations. To give an idea of the process involved, here are the necessary steps: Step 1: Speak to us at CBI to ask any questions and begin the application process. “The Commission has frequently raised its serious concerns about investor citizenship schemes, also directly with the Cypriot authorities. This will open the countless doors of better work, education and health facilities for you. Cyprus Citizenship by Investment program was established in 2002. But I can promise, we shall do the best. Cyprus offers most up-to-date Citizenship by Investment program available today — anywhere. Minimum Investment: USD 100,000 Time Frame: 3-6 months Official Government Website: cip.gov.ag Travel Perks: Visa-Free to 151 countries. Investment Programme (The program has been abolished since 1 November 2020) Naturalization scheme based on years of residence (type M127) Application for Cyprus citizenship can be submitted by foreigners, who have completed a total of 7 years of legal residence in Cyprus (2555 days of staying in Cyprus) before the application date. Citizenship by Investment Cyprus Cyprus offers the quickest, most assured route to citizenship of a European country through the Cypriot citizenship by investment programme. Her colleague Sven Giegold said: “It is key that the EU takes over and that this means that the resident programme and the investment programme have to be ended. Α.1 Investment in real estate, land development, and infrastructure projects. However, in an internal audit released late September, the country’s audit office found several weaknesses in the scheme. Passport Legacy provides a range of custom solutions for migration and can help you attain a Cyprus citizenship from Dubai. First, the failure of their recently cancelled program was one of implementation. Although the application process for citizenship in Cyprus is rigorous, the team at Citizenship by Investment are on hand to help make everything as simple as possible. To further facilitate the growth of the economy and invite more foreign nationals to take up the citizenship of Cyprus, the government of Cyprus started its citizenship by investment scheme from 2011. In addition, Cypriot Attorney General George Savvidis said an investigation into possible criminal offences would be launched. Under the scheme, anyone who could afford to invest at least $2.5m in the Cypriot economy, usually through real estate, was able to obtain a Cypriot passport. The idea of potentially giving up yo… They handled the entire process and made it easier than we could have imagined. Move follows Al Jazeera investigation that implicated Christakis Giovanis, who is also a major real estate developer. Such a policy allows the island to attract substantial investments from abroad annually, which contributes to the development of the country’s economy. Cyprus has announced it will abolish a controversial passport scheme following an investigation by Al Jazeera that revealed how high-ranking politicians were willing to issue passports to convicted criminals. Cyprus abolishes citizenship through investment programme. It is the only direct citizenship program in Europe offering such a simple way of obtaining dual citizenship without residency requirements, with an investment minimum of €2,200,000. How I exposed the politicians willing to sell passports in Cyprus, Cyprus MP quits in wake of passports-for-sale scandal, Cyprus officials implicated in plan to sell passport to criminals, The Cyprus Papers: These individuals paid $2.5m for EU passports, Washington, DC mayor wants tighter security at Biden inauguration, ‘Toothless tiger’: Impeachment could bar Trump from future office, Turkey: Erdogan’s media office quits WhatsApp over privacy change, Amazon to suspend Parler after deadly Capitol Hill riot, Far-right groups celebrating Capitol riot as ‘revolution’: Expert, Trump must ‘go away as soon as possible’, says Republican senator, Families, friends of Indonesia plane crash passengers await news, Beyond Capitol riot, Trump voter fraud claims leave their mark, Al Jazeera Centre for Public Liberties & Human Rights. Best Way To Get Cyprus Citizenship By Investment In 2016, the Cyprus Council of Ministers approved the amendments to the Scheme for Naturalizations of Investors in Cyprus by Exception. This program gives them an opportunity to procure Cyprus citizenship with an investment of 2,150,000 €. We had visited the island nation several times, but with Bukh and Associates working with us, we feel as though we truly have a home — and caring friends who continue to be there for us when we have questions. Many people feel that the number of countries a passport allows you to visit defines the quality of that passport. Antigua and Barbuda Photo by Greg Gallaher on Unsplash. The ‘Cyprus Citizenship by Investment Program’ is one of the fastest and simplest investor citizenship programs in Europe and it is regulated by the Civil Registry Laws 2002-2015, particularly the Scheme for Naturalization of Investors in Cyprus by Exception. Cyprus has become the most popular citizenship scheme for HNW investors in Europe. The programme has undergone various changes since … They also said their dealings with our undercover journalists were intended to gather information to support a report to the authorities without “tipping them off”. Think of citizenship by investment as your shortcut to a second passport. Cyprus’s Citizenship by Investment Program There is no denying that the program is aimed at high-net-worth and ultra-high net worth individuals. Second, the Cypriot program was enormously valuable by providing much needed foreign investment for the economy. Anyone wishing to establish Cypriot citizenship will find an panoply of possibilities. 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