DID IRELAND IMPOSE VISA RESTRICTIONS ON ST. KITTS & ST. LUCIA TO KEEP UK-BOUND MONEY LAUNDERERS FROM EXPLOITING THE COMMON TRAVEL AREA LOOPHOLE?

We recently reported that IRELAND REQUIRES VISAS FOR ALL SAINT KITTS & NEVIS AND SAINT LUCIA PASSPORT HOLDERS, INCLUDING DIPLOMATIC AND SPECIAL PASSPORTS https://lnkd.in/e5w34amd and have a hunch that there is far more to that story than meets the eye.

Follow my reasoning: Ireland conveniently sits inside what the UK has labeled the COMMON TRAVEL AREA (CTA), which comprises Great Britain, Ireland, and the Crown Dependencies, which include the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islands. Being inside the CTA means being able to travel amongst all these jurisdictions, without having to clear either customs or immigration controls, as such travel is considered internal, not international, transit. I first noted this decades ago, when traveling to IOM to lecture there on my money laundering adventures, back in the mythical "Miami Vice" era of the 1980s.

If this old money launderer was still in that dark profession, and I wanted to move illicit financial instruments inside the City, and was aware of the recent UK Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) border controls, which I must avoid, then I take my trusty SKN or SLC CBI passport, and enter Ireland. Thereafter I find my way to IOM, make a brief delay in my travels, and enter the UK without any immigration inspection, which I have just evaded, thanks to the CTA.

So my thought is that UK law enforcement officials may have brought the situation, let's call it the Laundryman's Loophole, to the attention of Irish authorities, and resulted in the new, and very focused, visa restrictions. Perhaps a few arrested money launderers, taken into custody in the City, had evidence of recent Irish travel on them when arrested.

Of course, we are hoping that late this year, or next year, given the grace period, the EU version of ETA, ETIAS, kicks in, which I sincerely hope will close all the dysfunctional gaps, but considering that money launderers are inveterate chess players, they may still gain entry anonymously. Trust me; I've been there.