LONDON, United Kingdom (CMC) — A British-based Citizenship by Investment (CBI) researcher says that St Kitts and Nevis’s CBI Programme has been very successful.

James McKay, the founder of McKay Research, who developed the CBI Index, a yearly report published by the Financial Times’ Professional Wealth Management ( PWM) magazine, told the newest episode of Plan B, a weekly podcast by London-headquartered government advisory CS Global Partners, that St Kitts and Nevis has scored top points in the CBI Index due to “diligence, citizenship timeline, and mandatory travel and residence”.

“Caribbean countries such as St Kitts and Nevis have over 30 years in the industry,” he said. “These are not fickle programmes,” said McKay.

He added that the twin-island federation’s experience in the investment immigration industry gave it the benefit of knowing “what works and what doesn’t work,” according to CS Global partners, a London-based, international, industry-leading legal consultancy firm specialising in citizenship and residency solutions.

McKay, according to CS Global partners, also spoke about other advantages that Caribbean countries like St Kitts and Nevis have.

“[They] also tend to be the most cost-effective,” he said.

“That is always going to be an important factor in any decision-making process.

“A lot of these countries have many, many jurisdictions they can access visa-free,” McKay added. “In addition to that, they also tend to offer quicker processing times. The Caribbean lifestyle is a huge plus for many people as well.”

St Kitts and Nevis’ CBI Programme, which was established in 1984, requires applicants who have passed rigorous due diligence checks to make an economic contribution to the country, said CS Global partners in a statement.

“In exchange, the applicant and their family, should they apply jointly, can obtain citizenship for life,” it said.

Acquiring citizenship under the fund option requires an applicant to make a one-off contribution to the Sustainable Growth Fund, CS Global partners said.

It said there is an offer for a limited time that allows families of up to four to obtain citizenship for US$150,000, instead of US$195,000.

Introduced in 2018 by Prime Minister Timothy Harris, CS Global partners said the fund option “remains the fastest route to second citizenship.

“In return, the fund supports socio-economic development across the islands,” CS Global partners said.