Australia’s New Home Minister Hints She May Close Significant Investor Visa Program
“It is a visa program that I think isn’t adding value to the country,” said the Home Affairs Minister in a recent press conference.
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Asia-Pacific
In Astonishing Claim, Malaysian Govt. Says Premium Visa Program Got 20,000 Applications on First Day
Industry insiders, however, are not buying the figure, calling it “misinformation” and a practical impossibility.
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Malaysia’s Surprise Introduction of “Premium Visa Program” for “Tycoons” Raises Eyebrows
While similar to MM2H in most respects, the new program is less restrictive and also considerably more expensive.
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Vanuatu CBI Revenue Falls 48.7% Short of Budget in First Half of 2022
Q2 was the lowest-grossing quarter in four years for citizenship by investment in Vanuatu. And it’s likely to get considerably worse.
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Australia Cuts New Intake for Business Innovation and Investor Program by 88%
Hoping to reduce 30-month processing times for business investor visas, Australia’s government is drastically restricting new applications.
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Thailand’s Low-Tax “Long Term Resident” Visa Opens Next Month: How Does it Compare to Elite Residence?
HNWIs under 50 will have to make a careful cost-benefit analysis when choosing between the Long Term Resident and Elite Residence visas.
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New Zealand Issues Sweeping Changes to Investor Visas: Minimums of NZ$5-15 Million
Minimum investment requirements and minimum stay requirements both increase as New Zealand aims for investors who play a more active role.
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Cambodia Launches $100,000 Golden Visa With 5-Year Path to Citizenship
Cambodia enters the Southeast Asian golden visa market: A $100,000 property investment and eligibility for citizenship in five years.
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New Zealand Investor Visa Revenue Back With a Post-Pandemic Vengeance in FY2022
2021-22 results brought the program’s performance from nadir to zenith within a year in which it raised NZ$1 billion from just 100 investors.
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South Korea Investor Visa Approvals Hit 16-Year High in 2021: Applications from India up 75%
The program’s applicant nationality profile is decidedly Western: Among the top 10 source countries are the US, Germany, France, and the UK.
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EU Tells Vanuatu to Get its CBI House in Order by February 2023 or See Visa-Waiver Suspension Extended
The visa-waiver suspension will last until at least February next year, at which point the EU will re-assess the country’s CBI programs.
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Sri Lanka Cabinet Approves Plans for $75,000 Golden Visa
Sri Lanka is sorely in need of foreign currency to pay for food and energy imports. Now, the government hopes a golden visa can bring cash.
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New Zealand Investor Visa Sees Strong Rebound in 2022: NZ$ Half Billion Raised in First Three Quarters of FY
After two years of falling approvals and investments, all arrows finally point in the right direction for New Zealand’s investor visas.
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Vanuatu Establishes Task Force in Hopes of Overturning EU Decision on Visa-Waiver Suspension
In a “Hail Mary” effort to ward off the suspension, Vanuatu is establishing a national task force to review and improve its CBI procedures.
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Vanuatu Citizenship Program Without Schengen-Access: What Happens Next?
“I do not see any way to please the EU other than stopping the whole program,” says St-Hilaire, while Harris thinks it’s not over yet.
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European Council Suspends Vanuatu’s Visa-Free Travel to Schengen for Post-2015 Passport Holders
Vanuatu’s worst-case scenario becomes a reality as the European Council decides to revoke visa-free travel to the EU.
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How Losing Schengen-Access Would Affect Vanuatu Citizenship by Investment
Philippe May and Martin St-Hilaire ask: Would it be the end of CBI in Vanuatu? Would a price cut be in order? Where would demand come from?
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Vanuatu Officials Split Over CS Global’s $10,000-per-Application CBI Contract
The Attorney General and the FIU objected to the contract. Lack of unified messaging undermines the program, indicates Micha-Rose Emmett.
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4 Ways in Which Brussels Is Unfairly Harming Vanuatu’s Citizenship by Investment Program
Martin St-Hilaire points to red herrings, straw man arguments, and other deliberate fallacies the European Commission uses against Vanuatu.
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Vanuatu Appoints CS Global, FACT as International Partners, Plans Retroactive DD on All Applicants Since 2015
Vanuatu appoints international partners and promises retroactive due diligence. Industry observers offer reactions to the EU’s announcement.
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