Brexit surge in ‘passport for sale’ scheme
Chinese lead way in applications as FF calls for major review of visa scheme for the rich
THERE has been a surge in applications for Irish residency visas from wealthy individuals since the UK voted for Brexit.
And a substantial number of the successful applicants are Chinese.
The Immigrant Investor Programme – which in the past has been dubbed a ‘passports for sale’ type scheme – had 329 applications in 2016, according to the latest figures. A massive 273 – or 82% – of these were lodged since July of this year, after the Brexit vote.
The effect is seen in even starker detail when the figures are looked at since the beginning of the scheme in 2012, with total applications from April 2012 up to the present standing at just 450.
This means that since July of this year, 60% of all applications ever made under the scheme have occurred.
The largest full-year total before this was 66 in 2015.
Such is the explosion in applications for the Immigrant Investor Programme (IIP) that Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald has doubled the financial investment requirement for acceptance under the scheme from €500,000 to €1m.
The secretive scheme gives residency to Chinese, Russian and other businessman who invest at least €1m in Ireland.
‘There has been a very significant increase in applications,’ said a spokesman for the Department of Justice.
Successful applicants represent a broad geographical spread including the USA, the Middle East, China and Russia.
The spokesman for the department said: ‘In September, Morgan (consultants) gave us some figures indicating that 70% of approvals were from Chinese nationals.’
However, he added: ‘There is no special arrangement in place for citizenship.’
Nevertheless, senior Government sources have said the scheme will eventually lead to the granting of passports to those who have secured the visas.
The IIP scheme, which only goes to those with a net worth of €2m, grants the investor and his or her ‘nuclear family’ a ‘Stamp 4’ immigrant visa for two years. Then a further three years are granted.
After a certain number of years on a Stamp 4, an individual can apply for Irish citizenship.
Niall Collins, Fianna Fáil frontbench spokesman on Jobs and Enterprise, said it would be obvious that these investors will be favoured when it comes to applying for an Irish passport.
He also said that the Government must now carry out a ‘root and branch’ review of the scheme because of the explosion in applications caused by Brexit.
Mr Collins added that Chinese and Russian investors now saw Ireland as a safer haven than Britain thanks to Ireland’s EU membership.
According to the department’s spokesman, the Government plans a re-evaluation of the programme this year.
The proposed review will examine the status of the projects approved to date; investments made; the number of jobs created or retained; the benefits provided for Ireland; immigration permissions granted and the associated value/costs; and what, if any, changes could be implemented in order to improve the operation of programme.
Applications made under the Immigrant Investor Programme are evaluated by an expert Independent Evaluation Committee, with representatives from the IDA, Enterprise Ireland and several Government departments, including Finance, Foreign Affairs and Trade, Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation and Justice and Equality, which also provides the administrative supports to the committee.
This committee, which comes under the administrative roof of the Department of Justice, recently recommended that there should be an increase in the level of investment required.
‘The Tánaiste plans to carry out a short evaluation of the Programme, commencing in early 2017,’ said Ms Fitzgerald’s spokesman at the Department of Justice.
The programme was introduced in April 2012 to encourage inward investment to create business and employment opportunities in the State.
The requirement for investment in an enterprise in Ireland was originally set at €1m per individual investor.
The programme was reviewed after 12 months and, in recognition of the slow take-up, the investment requirement was reduced to €500,000 in order to make it more attractive to potential investors.
Key to the programme is that the investments made are beneficial for Ireland, generate or sustain employment and are generally in the public interest.
In addition, the funds invested must be legally acquired and owned by the investor.
It is also essential that the applicants be of good character.
A significant number of the applications recently received are in the area of primary healthcare centres, nursing homes and social housing. There is ongoing engagement with the Department of Health, and the HSE in relation to these projects.
70% of approvals were for Chinese nationals ‘The Tánaiste plans to carry out an evaluation’