CARICOM Chairman: Potential danger on the horizon!

Last October the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development published a list of 21 countries it believed operated Citizenship by Investment and Residency by Investment (CBI/RBI) programmes that “potentially pose a high risk”. The inter-governmental organisation explained that potentially high-risk programmes are those that give access to a low personal income tax rate on offshore financial assets and do not require an individual to spend significant time in the specific location. Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Lucia, Grenada, Dominica and St Kitts & Nevis each operate CBI programmes and all made the list. The Bahamas, Montserrat and Barbados offer residency programmes and joined them.

From all indications, the region has settled on a unified approach to handle CBI/RBI-related concerns. At the closing ceremony of the CARICOM Heads of Government Meeting on 5 July, Prime Minister Allen Chastanet, the current CARICOM Chairman, was asked whether CBI/RBI was discussed during the two-day meeting. He said there weren’t any specific discussions, other than to note that Europe’s code of conduct group had indicated that they will be reviewing the region’s CBI and RBI programmes.  He said CARICOM members felt they should not wait for possible fall-out but, instead. should anticipate it.

“So there was a proposal put forward to jointly sponsor a review of our options and our strategy moving forward,” said the chairman, “and there were certainly agreements on a lobbying campaign both in Europe and the United States of America. So nothing specific to CIP, other than recognising that there is a potential danger on the horizon and we should try to anticipate that.”

On June 18, the 67th meeting of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Authority was held, and Citizenship by Investment took centre stage. In a subsequently released communiqué, the OECS announced that the Authority recommended that the Joint Regional Communications Centre (JRCC), the Commission and the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank serve as an oversight committee to audit the operations of member states and make recommendations for improvements in the respective programmes. “Heads also noted the need to intensify efforts towards the standardisation of due diligence arrangements, application protocols and the sharing of information across countries, noting the consideration of a hybrid framework to allow flexibility amongst Member States,” said the OECS press release.