Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa Real Estate Investor Magazine - November 2017 | Page 13

Your options for offshore
investments and citizenship
Greece offers many opportunities for investors, with an
entrance fee of €250 000 into property. This grants the pur-
chaser and family residency, leading to citizenship after 7
years. Permanent residency offers you free movement within
the Schengen zone. If you’re looking to invest in Ireland,
you’ll need €2 million invested in Irish real estate trusts.
Residency in Ireland leads to citizenship after 5 years. Since
Ireland is not part of the Schengen zone, your residency
won’t lead to visa-free access.
In a report published by CS Global Partners in May 2017,
titled The Second Citizenship Survey it was found that only
11% of the respondents - 500 people living in the UK be-
tween the ages of 18 and 50 - possessed a second passport,
while 89% said that they would like to. The report high-
lights the desire of people worldwide to set up what could
be called a backup plan. In the report, four main reasons
for wanting a second passport were highlighted: increased
freedom and human rights (28.57%), travel opportunities
(28.57), business/career opportunities (16.48%), and life-
style benefits (12.09%). It was found that more than 80%
of respondents were willing to donate or invest 5% of their
annual salary for a second citizenship. To put this in con-
text, this is more than most had been willing to spend on
monthly rent. Nearly 15% of respondents would give 50% of
their salary. The countries highlighted by the report as firm
WHY SOUTH AFRICANS WANT
DUAL CITIZENSHIP
You wouldn’t have to open too many newspa-
pers, or venture too far, to realise that many
South Africans feel uneasy given our current
economic climate. While we’ve managed to
crawl out of our technical recession earlier
this year, fears surrounding corruption and
mismanagement continue to plague the local
economy.
Residency or citizenship in another country
offers South Africans a “way out”. It’s been seen
in the mass-exodus of South Africans to Austra-
lia and the UK. No matter your patriotism, the
fact remains that a second citizenship offers
you - and your loved ones - a safety net. While
no investment is ever guaranteed to be safe,
investing in offshore real estate diversifies your
portfolio and, as a result, minimises your risk.
Citizenship that offers visa-free travel to
countries like the USA or Schengen zone are
particularly popular, since this offers the holder
easier access to study and work opportunities.
SA Real Estate Investor Magazine NOVEMBER 2017
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