“The Caribbean has done its part.” Daisy Joseph Andall discusses political pressure on Caribbean CBI programs, calls for a narrative shift.
Caribbean Citizenship by Investment Programs (CIPs) have become indispensable economic engines for the region’s small island economies, yet face escalating scrutiny from Western powers applying standards that experts describe as inconsistent and ever-changing.
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The CIPs now operate under constant pressure from the European Union and the United States despite implementing comprehensive reforms. Caribbean governments have responded with enhanced due diligence measures, information sharing protocols, and post-citizenship monitoring. But that has seemingly not been enough to curtail the scrutiny.
At IMI Connect Athens, Daisy Joseph Andall, Partner at Joseph Rowe and a licensed agent in Grenada and St. Kitts, stressed the enduring value of these programs while highlighting how the Eastern Caribbean’s governments have responded to constant political pressure.
Schengen visa-free access under threat
Despite their resilience, the potential revocation of the Caribbean states’ visa-free travel to the Schengen Area is a looming threat that makes Andall “very concerned.” She cautioned against sudden policy shifts that would impact the program’s “transformative” impact on the economies of the small Caribbean islands and their pursuit to be “self-sustaining”.
She notes that over the last decade, the CIPs have “supported progress in education, infrastructure, and economic diversification.”
She warns that if the EU revokes visa-free travel, it would send a damaging message to the market. However, she maintains that the CIPs will live on, since “even without [Schengen] visa-free access, the value of the citizenship programs stands on its own.”
Appeal of Caribbean CIPs beyond mobility
Andall argued that while visa-free travel is certainly an “attractive feature,” it’s not the only reason clients pursue Caribbean citizenship. She revealed that many of her clients look for “safety, stability, and quality of life offered by the islands,” not global mobility.
She said that more of her recent clients have come from countries where their current passports already provide greater mobility than Caribbean ones. She notes that for these individuals, the appeal lies in having a safe place for themselves and their families amid global geopolitical instability.
Another “big draw,” according to Andall, is Caribbean real estate, as she points to the Caribbean property market’s “history of appreciating in value.”
Andall said that program marketers need to play a bigger role in shifting the negative perceptions of the programs by making “mobility less central to the narrative.”
Are EU and US demands ever-moving goalposts?
The EU and US have intensified demands, concerns, and interference in the Caribbean CIPs in recent years, calling for stronger measures like information sharing, common vetting standards, and applicant interviews. Caribbean nations have implemented these reforms and introduced stringent due diligence processes.
Yet, the EU and US remain skeptical, which Andall called “unfair,” saying that regional CIPs have gone “above and beyond” to address these concerns, but the demands keep changing. “It’s like chasing a moving target.”
Andall also said that the safeguards already in place should quiet some concerns of international partners, mentioning the “ongoing due diligence” unit which Saint Kitts & Nevis launched last year to monitor CBI citizens, “not just during the application process, but after they’ve been granted citizenship too.”
The Caribbean, Andall added, “has done its part. It’s time for our international partners to acknowledge this.”
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Moustafa Daly is the Head of Digital at IMI, based in Cairo.
