Grenada delays implementing new CBI pricing structure
Grenada has extended the deadline for applicants to its Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programme who were affected by the passage of Hurricane Beryl.
Under the CBI programme, foreign investors are granted citizenship of the island in return for making a significant contribution to the country’s socio-economic development.
A statement issued by the Investment Migration Agency (IMA), which manages the CBI programme, noted that as of July, 1, 2024, a revised pricing structure was scheduled to go into effect.
However, Grenada was among the countries affected by the category 4 storm that left a trail of death and destruction as it made its way across the Windward Island last Monday, the same day the new pricing structure was due to go into effect.
“Acknowledging the unforeseen challenges faced by our valued partners during this period, the Agency has decided to extend the application submission deadline to July 12, 2024. This extension aims to provide agents and the bank adequate time to effectively manage their responsibilities considering recent events, thereby ensuring the smooth processing of applications under the updated pricing framework,” the IMA said.
“We recognise that the passage of Hurricane Beryl impacted the ability of agents and the Grenada Co-operative Bank to meet the original application submission deadline, as it necessitated time for preparation, recovery, and subsequent operational adjustments,” it added.
Grenada joined the other countries within the sub-regional Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States, namely, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, St Kitts and Nevis and St Lucia, with a CBI programme in signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that among other things establish the minimum investment threshold of US$200,000 with the starting date of July 1, 2024.
Grenada’s revised pricing structure was published in an extraordinary publication of the government gazette on June 26.
The threshold for a single applicant under the National Transformation Fund is US$235,000 while investing in an approved project will be US$270,000 for a single applicant or a family of up to four.
The release said that only duly completed applications submitted to Grenada Cooperative Bank Limited up to and including June 30, 2024, with all the required documents as per the Bank’s guidelines issued to local agents, will be accepted under the old price structure.
“Note further those applications submitted to Grenada Co-operative Bank on/or before June 30, 2024, that are incomplete, not having all required documents will, when remedied, be accepted and processed under the new price structure,” said the release which explained that duly completed files that are merely pending bank clearance, will be accepted under the old price structure.
“Notwithstanding the acceptance of the application as previously described, where the bank requires clarity regarding those applications, resolution of all matters must be concluded to the bank’s satisfaction and funds received and cleared for submission of the application to IMA no later than July 31, 2024,” the IMA said.
