ANTIGUA DELAYS IMPLEMENTATION OF MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT, WHILE DESPERATELY ADVERTISING FOR NEW CBI INVESTORS; BAD FAITH?

Tomorrow, 30 June, Is the deadline imposed by the jointly-signed MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT that imposed strict conditions upon the East Caribbean states that sell Citizenship by Investment (CBI/CIP) economic passport sales schemes. This week, the Government of Antigua & Barbuda, one of the signatories to that Agreement, announced that it will require an additional thirty (30) days to implement the new conditions, which include a Standardized Minimum Investment of USD$200,000, citing the need for Parliamentary (legislative) approval, in due course, under procedural rules.

We wish to point out that the Agreement was signed by Antigua, and three other EC states, on March 20, more than 90 days ago, and we are just now, immediately prior to the Effective Date, hearing that Antigua needs more time, for what is represented as purely normal legal reasons. Given that the country's government has had several months to prepare for June 30, but has ignored the upcoming deadline, it appears that, for purely unacceptable financial reasons, it has intentionally delayed implementing the relevant legislation. Why wasn't the law changed earlier?

We will now explain why we consider that Antigua's actions were undertaken in Bad Faith. CBI vendors of Antigua's passport sales schemes are openly, and our opinion desperately, advertising that "Prices are Doubling on July 30," the date when the country has promised it will abide by the Agreement. These vendors are telling consumers that they can now "Save $150,000" acting now to apply to an Antiguan CBI citizenship & passport program. Note that Antigua could, if it quickly passed legislation through its Parliament, conform to the next program requirements as early as next week, but it says it needs thirty days. Now you know why.

If this is an indication of how Antigua intends to abide by the terms of the Memorandum of Agreement it signed, after the US & UK demanded that the region raise standards, or face sanctions, such as the loss of visa-free admission to the UK & EU, and US tourist visa eligibility, we wonder which other requirements the country will choose to evade, or totally disregard in the future. Let's put Antigua's CIP program under close observation, please.