“We’ve Never Seen Demand Like We See Now”: Investment Migration People in the News This Week

Investment migration people in the news this week included:

• Jen Barnett of Expatsi
• Mohr-Elzeki and Dominic Volek of Henley & Partners
• Artur Saraiva of Global Citizen Solutions
• Marco Permunian of Permunian Law
• David Lesperance of Lesperance and Associates
• Armand Arton of Arton Capital
• Max Reed of Polaris Tax
• Sam Bayat of Bayat Group
• Hossam Zakaria of HZ Legal
• Poorvi Aswani Bhardwaj of CMI & Co
• Philippe Martinez of MSR Media
• Bruno L’ecuyer of the IMC
• Prof. Dimitry Kochenov

Bloomberg – Looking to Move Abroad From the US? Here’s How

“After the debate with Biden and Trump, our traffic shot up 900%,” says Jen Barnett, founder of Expatsi, a company that helps Americans figure out how they can realistically leave the country. “In the past couple of weeks, as poll numbers flip-flop, demand has absolutely exploded.”

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“The primary driver for US citizens looking outside the country is political uncertainty,” says Basil Mohr-Elzeki, managing director at Henley & Partners. He says clients generally won’t spend more than 10% of their net worth on residency and citizenship programs, which can vary in cost from around $100,000 to $8 million. More than 40 countries have these type of residency-by-investment programs, what are known as “golden visas,” including the US itself. (It costs a minimum of $800,000 to buy US residency.)

[…]

Global Citizen Solutions, which helps facilitate citizenship and residency, is seeing similar upticks in demand.

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“We’re speaking to a lot of Americans at the moment,” says Artur Saraiva, the company’s co-founder. He says the election has played a big role, and he’s seen demand from both registered Democrats and Republicans.

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Italian attorney Marco Permunian says over the past few years, he’s noticed a continuous growth in applications from foreigners (especially US citizens), who wish to apply for Italian citizenship by descent. He had around 480 monthly inquiries last year, and in May, as the election kicked into full gear, he registered just shy of 1,000.

CNBC – Record numbers of wealthy Americans are making plans to leave the U.S. after the election

“We’ve never seen demand like we see now,” said Dominic Volek, group head of private clients at Henley & Partners, which advises the wealthy on international migration.

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Volek said that for the first time, wealthy Americans are far and away the company’s largest client base, accounting for 20% of its business, or more than any other nationality. He said the number of Americans making plans to move abroad is up at least 30% over last year.

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David Lesperance, managing partner of Lesperance and Associates, the international tax and immigration firm, said the number of Americans hiring him for possible moves overseas has roughly tripled over last year.

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“The love affair between Americans and Europe has been going on for very long time,” said Armand Arton, of Arton Capital. “It comes with a price, and they are totally fine investing couple hundred thousand dollars or a half million into a property or a fund.”

Fortune – More Americans are renouncing their citizenship: Here’s who is leaving and why

But it does happen, says David Lesperance, an attorney who helps wealthy Americans give up their U.S. tax status. Lesperance previously told Fortune that many of the richest citizens are seeking a “backup plan” owing to the perception of increasing political and social instability in the U.S. Some fear the rise of anti-Semitic, anti-LGBTQ, and anti-minority sentiment in some parts of the country.

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“While tax benefits are not the biggest driver of interest, these benefits do play a role, and the United States’ double taxation policy adds an extra layer of complexity for U.S. nationals,” says Armand Arton, president of Arton Capital, a global citizenship financial advisory services firm. For many Americans living abroad, “the United States will always be home, [but] a double taxation policy pushes many to consider renouncing their American citizenship in favor of better deals found abroad.”

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More likely, though, is the renunciation by accidental Americans like Lehagre, says Max Reed, a cross-border tax lawyer based in Canada.

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“It’s not like there’s this tidal wave of people moving out of the U.S. and giving up their citizenship,” says Reed. “The vast, vast majority of those are long-standing non-U.S. residents.”

Express – Nightmare on Downing Street: Rachel Reeves tipped to leave wealthy scrambling for the exit

However, David Lesperance, whose company, Lesperance and Associates, provides clients with expert immigration and taxation advice to help them plan their future financial security, says the immediate result will be an exodus of cash.

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“The result will be a mad rush to the exits before April Fools Day as HNW UK taxpayers flee The Nightmare from #11 Downing Street.”

City AM – Scrapping non-dom regime branded ‘monumentally stupid’ by tax advisors

Meanwhile David Lesperance, a founding partner at Lesperance and Associates, branded the Budget a “Nightmare from Number 11 Downing Street” for his clients, adding he’d spoken to five clients about how to respond within 24 hours of Rachel Reeves’ speech.

Newsweek – America’s Young Millionaires Seek ‘Golden Visas’ Due to Election Concerns

A recent survey by Arton Capital found 53 percent of American millionaires say they’re more likely to leave the U.S. after the election, regardless of outcome. The trend is particularly pronounced among younger millionaires, with 64 percent of those between 18 and 29 “very interested” in residency-by-investment programs.

Khaleej Times – Some UAE expats lose savings, get travel ban after falling for immigration scams

Sam Bayat, a seasoned attorney and founder of the Dubai-based Bayat Group, a law firm established in 1993, shared a case where an immigration consultant in Karama printed fake bank statements for clients. “Many of these firms target underqualified applicants just to profit from application fees,” he explained.

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“What they lack in morals, they make up for with toner,” Bayat remarked. “Due diligence is essential. Falling for these traps can have devastating consequences,” he warned.

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Even more alarming are cases in which immigration companies vanish without a trace, leaving clients with no legal recourse and substantial financial losses. Hossam Zakaria of HZ Legal, a Dubai-based consultancy, says he is inundated with cases of fraudsters taking advantage of vulnerable individuals. “Canada, with its attractive immigration programmes like the Express Entry System and Provincial Nominee Programmes (PNP), has become a major target.”

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Poorvi Aswani Bhardwaj, principal associate at CMI & Co. also stresses the importance of vigilance. “Always seek information directly from the immigration authorities of the country you’re considering instead of relying on unverified service providers,” she advises. “In many cases, legal remedies are difficult because the burden of proof often falls on the applicant.”

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The situation escalated with a recent lawsuit filed by MSR Media under the US Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organisations (RICO) Act, accusing Caribbean CBI stakeholders of fraud, kickbacks, and money laundering. Philippe Martinez, CEO of MSR Media, alleges that over $13 million in payments were made to a US company owned by Les Khan, the former head of St. Kitts and Nevis’ CBI programme.

Malta Today – Golden passports: Brussels’s genuine link argument risks falling apart

“It is worth noting that opinions are sometimes cited more than cases,” IMC chief executive officer Bruno L’ecuyer told MaltaToday. “We acknowledge the media interest surrounding the EU v. Malta case. While we respect the court’s eventual decision, regardless of the outcome, the AG’s opinion is a very strong message to the court.”

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There can be a thin line between the alleged perils from naturalised citizens based on blood criteria; and those who acquire a golden passport without any profound affinity to a destination country – what Prof. Dmitry Kochenov, a past consultant for CBI supremos Henley, dubbed as “fetishising blood as the paragon for building a just human society.”