There are three things - an annual quota, a certain net worth per applicant, and an escrow account in Saint Lucia. That was reversed by the last administration,” explained Prime Minister Pierre on the changes that will be made to the CIP.

The decision that Saint Lucia will sign the OECS CIP Memorandum will see the country implement measures that were once part of the island’s CIP agenda.

The Memorandum mandates that the minimum investment by an applicant should be USD 200,000 and that tighter due diligence measures be enforced. 

Incidentally, when Saint Lucia first joined the CIP arena in 2015, applicants required a net worth of USD 3,000,000 to qualify and Saint Lucia had set an initial limit of 500 applications per annum.

As recorded in Statutory Instrument #1 of 2017, the Chastanet-led government lowered the minimum investment sum to USD 100,000 per applicant.

At the time, when questioned by the press, Chastanet denied allegations that his Administration was cheapening the CIP package.

“I heard this idea that we are selling ourselves cheap, but the fact is, when people are buying a citizenship programme, they are buying it because it has a value. And unfortunately, we don’t necessarily like to hear that, but the value is not necessarily the country, the value is what access the citizenship gives you,” he explained.