The CBI Index is an annual report which comprehensively compares citizenship by investment programmes by ranking their performances based on their efficiency and is expected to be released within a few weeks. The index provides ranking to programmes via nine pillars of excellence which analyze the overall ability.
The PWM Magazine of Financial Times releases the report every year. The CBI Index rating system utilizes a wide range of indicators to estimate how well worldwide citizenship by investment (CBI) programmes work for their investors. The objective of this annual report is to provide a rigid and strict measure to evaluate programmes and to make it easier for HNWIs (high net worth individuals) to make a correct decision regarding economic citizenship which they don’t regret later on.
The CBI Index of last year featured 14 nations from around the world, with five of these from the Caribbean region, which was:
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Dominica
- Grenada
- St Kitts and Nevis
- Saint Lucia
The rest nine countries were featured from Africa, Europe and the Middle East, including:
- Austria
- Bulgaria
- Cambodia
- Egypt
- Jordan
- Malta
- Montenegro
- Turkey
- Vanuatu
The CBI Index Report is made after a thorough evaluation, which is based on nine pillars:
- Freedom of Movement
- Standard of Living
- Minimum Investment Outlay
- Mandatory Travel or Residence
- Citizenship Timeline
- Ease of Processing
- Due Diligence
- Family
- Certainty of Product
The CBI Index was launched in 2017, with Dominica topping the chart since then and is known as the number one citizenship by investment programme in the world. The Commonwealth of Dominica’s CBI Programme has scored remarkably well in each of the nine pillars. It became the second oldest CBI in the world with its launch in 1993, and the government uses the funds generated from the same to limit the impacts of climate changes and natural disasters.
In the 2021 CBI Index, Dominica got a maximum score of ten in five out of the nine pillars, while in the pillar of citizenship timeline, it got a nine.
The minimum investment outlay, mandatory travel, ease of the process, due diligence, family, and certainty of product pillars showed the performance of Dominica CBI, which scored a total score of 80.
There are several speculations that Dominica will once again emerge as the best CBI Programme for the 6th time consecutively. Lately, Dominica’s government upgraded to a Biometric passport to boost security standards.
Last year, Dominica wasn’t the only country to emerge as the best in the CBI Index, but it shared its position with St Kitts and Nevis. It was the first time the twin-island nation grabbed the first position in the CBI Index. As per the report, it was also the most popular and number one CBI programme.
The programme has broadened its meaning of dependant over the years and has been permitted to include siblings of the main applicant or spouse if aged 30 years or less, unmarried, childless and financially dependent on the main applicant.
The programme also got 80 points during the final results and led in the pillars of citizenship timeline, mandatory travel, due diligence, and family and got a solid nine in the assurance of the product.
On the other hand, the Citizenship by Investment Programme (CIP) of Saint Lucia grabbed the 4th position in the last year’s CBI Index and is now aiming to make its mark in the 2022 Index report. Last year, it got a total score of 74 and ranked in 4th position. The Saint Lucia CIP got a high score in the pillars of minimum investment outlay, mandatory travel, citizenship timeline and ease of the process. It could only get seven in the pillars of due diligence, six in the certainty of product and standard of living, as well as seven in freedom of movement.
With a change in leadership, it is predicted that the programme will surely make in the top three during the 2022 CBI Index Report as the new government has been striving to re-brand the programme. Launched in 2016, it is also the most recent in the Caribbean and is visibly attempting to place itself close to the leading programmes of the world. It became the first nation to score one point higher in the pillar of a standard of living during the 2021 Index Report.
The CBI Index is made after using official sources and publications from several institutions with the highest international standings and specialized information from the citizenship industry experts. The points are awarded by a detailed evaluation of evidence, data as well as the letter of the law.
The researcher of the report, James McKay, acknowledges that CBI Index has established itself as the industry’s resource for a high-level, data-driven, impartial assessment of available CBI programmes that helps investors and their families to remain informed about investment decisions in a rapidly transforming world.
All CBI experts have their eyes on the upcoming CBI Index, which is predicted to be launched in a few weeks. It is being speculated that Dominica’s CBI Programme will again top the chart for the 6th time as it has been growing steadily. The CBI of St Kitts and Nevis has also performed exceptionally well and established a market for its Sustainable Growth Fund option, believed to be the most straightforward investment route. Whereas the Saint Lucia CIP is still making a route for itself to emerge at the top, and it is also expected to come in the top three in the 2022 CBI Index.
In this 21st century, the world is changing fast, and so are the people, which is why people strive to look for better investment opportunities to expand their boundaries in terms of business and in general life. Therefore, citizenship by investment becomes the ideal way for HNMIs to diversify their portfolios. A legitimate applicant gets citizenship for life which can’t be lost as a consequence of where the person decides to live.
St Kitts and Nevis is the pioneer in CBI Industry, launching its programme in 1989 and granting the world its first citizenship by investment programme. Since then, many nations have been launching their programmes.
The topmost priorities of all these countries are extensive due diligence checks. Dominica, St Kitts and Nevis, and Saint Lucia have the most robust due diligence. All investors and their dependants above 16 undergo a multi-layer background check performed by the world’s leading government and private agencies.
The CBI Index report acknowledges the importance of due diligence and assesses programmes based on global safety and security. Recently, family inclusiveness seems to have touched an apex making CBI countries enhance their offerings’ integrity and move closer to harmonized due diligence standards.