“Turkey is Hot Right Now”: Investment Migration People in the News This Week

Investment migration people in the news this week included:

• David Lesperance of Lesperance and Associates
• Zaid Al Hindi of Imperial Citizenship
• Anthony Liew of MM2H Consultants Association
• Michael Kosnitzky of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman 
• Teresa Villareal
• Willis Fu Yiu-wai of Goldmax Associates
• Margaret Szeto of Aura Global
• Brennan Sim of EB5 United

The Telegraph – The wealthy ‘golden visa’ British expats oblivious to the inheritance tax threat

David Lesperance, a tax expert who advises wealthy expats, said: “I have spoken to dozens of British expats that moved to Dubai that weren’t aware, or weren’t told beforehand, of this issue.

[…]

“If someone in this circumstance dies, HMRC tells the executors of their estate that their rules state that inheritance tax is applied on domicile status, and the dead person is domiciled in the UK as they still had some connections there, such as family or property or even visits home. 

[…]

“If you are not that well known, the tax office can look through someone’s internet presence and credit and mobile phone records to see where they have been and decide whether they have connections to the UK for inheritance purposes. 

Forbes – The Golden Path To Portugal: Job Creation For Residency By Investment

Zaid Al Hindi, Founder, and CEO of Imperial Citizenship pens an op-ed in Forbes discussing the merits and challenges of the job creation investment category under Portugal’s Golden Visa.

One common question raised by potential investors concerns salary stipulations. Portugal’s Golden Visa program does not prescribe a minimum salary for the jobs created. However, the wages offered must comply with Portugal’s minimum wage laws and be equitable according to industry standards and job roles.

[…]

Navigating Portugal’s labor laws and social security regulations presents a significant challenge. These rules can be intricate and vary significantly from those in other countries. Foreign investors may find it particularly complex to understand all the nuances, leading to potential noncompliance issues, which can jeopardize the Golden Visa application.

[…]

Ensuring that the created jobs fully comply with the Golden Visa program’s criteria is a multifaceted challenge. The jobs must be full time and align with Portugal’s labor laws, meaning that part-time or contractor positions might not qualify. The need to meet these specific criteria can complicate the planning and execution of the job creation component of the investment.

New Straits Times – ‘Stricter MM2H conditions necessary to attract quality applicants’

MM2H Consultants Association president Anthony Liew said Malaysia must conclude the review of the programme’s latest conditions fast or risk losing new applicants, along with economic, revenue and investment opportunities to other countries.

[…]

He said the MM2H programme saw a 90 per cent drop in applicants due to the stricter conditions, and forced foreigners to opt for Thailand, which offered a similar programme called the Thai Elita Visa.

[…]

Liew suggested for a more nuanced approach, such as reconsider the income threshold, as some foreign retirees had passive yet inconsistent income streams.

The Straits Times – ‘Golden passport’: A Plan B for the rich, a rear exit and safe haven for crooks

Mr Michael Kosnitzky, a lawyer at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman who has helped many of his high-net-worth clients obtain second, and even third, citizenships, told the online news site Vox that “Turkey is hot right now”.

[…]

“There is really little incentive for nations to drop their CBI (citizenship-by-investment) programmes and a very low bar to hurdle for those taking advantage of these programmes,” said Ms Teresa Villareal, a lawyer who handles immigration cases in the Philippines.

[…]

She said unless powerful blocs like the EU can come up with a wholesale ban, “any hard-charging action will plug one hole only to open up two more holes”. 

South China Morning Post – Applications for Hong Kong path to UK citizenship show no signs of slowing, British figures show

Willis Fu Yiu-wai, the immigration programme director at Hong Kong-based consultants Goldmax Associates, said the visa requirements were relatively easy to meet and the route accepted a wide range of applicants, such as families with children, which helped account for the scheme’s popularity.

[…]

He predicted the high level of interest in the scheme would continue for another six months to a year, with competition from migration policies in Canada.

[…]

Margaret Szeto, the founder of migration consultation company Aura Global, said the peak of young families moving to the UK had passed.

Financial Express – New US EB-5 visa program rules impacting investors in India

Brennan Sim of EB5 United discusses how EB5 regulation changes in 2022 have affected Indian investors.

Faster processing, the ability to skip the visa backlog, and other new benefits implemented in the previously suffering EB-5 program have brought investor attention back to the United States of America.

[…]

Enter the changes to the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act (RIA) signed on March 15th, 2022. In just a span of 18 months this act has revolutionized the landscape of the program and infused new life into it. Here’s how these shifts have impacted the industry and reshaped the trajectory of the EB-5 program.

[…]

This not only incentivized investors with the prospect of expedited Green Card processing but also sparked a renewed interest in the development of rural America. Communities that once grappled with limited growth avenues suddenly find themselves lifted by an influx of foreign capital and attention.

If you or your firm are mentioned in a major news outlet and you’d like to be part of IMI’s People In The News, send us the article link at aa@imidaily.com.