Henley & Partners welcomes new Citizenship-by-Investment Program in Montenegro

Dubai, UAE, September 23, 2018:  Henley & Partners, the leading global investment migration firm, has announced that it will be launching a Montenegro citizenship-by-investment program in October in collaboration with the Government of Montenegro. It follows the recent decision by another European nation, Moldova, to award Henley & Partners the mandate to design, implement, and promote its new Moldova Citizenship-by-Investment (MCBI) program. 

Commenting on the citizenship-by-investment programme launched by the Government of Montenegro, Marco Gantenbein, a member of Henley & Partners’ Global Executive Committee and Managing Partner of Henley & Partners Dubai  said, “Montenegro is aiming to develop a sustainable economic model by offering investment opportunities across various trade and investment sectors and we believe this latest citizenship-by-investment programme is a step in the right direction. We foresee significant interest from expats in the UAE seeking citizenship by investment opportunities in jurisdictions such as Montenegro.”

In October 2017, the UAE and Montenegro extended their mutual visa exemption deal to ordinary passport holders. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Montenegro, Prof. Dr. Srdjan Darmanovic, signed a protocol to amend the mutual visa exemption agreement between the UAE and Montenegro for holders of diplomatic and private (service) passports, to include the ordinary passports. Following this announcement, Montenegro citizens currently have visa free access to 123 countries including the UAE.

Henley & Partners has accumulated over 20 years of experience working with governments in North America, the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia on the design, set-up, operation, and promotion of some of the world’s most successful residence and citizenship programs, raising more than USD 7 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI). The firm has been advising the Government of Montenegro for more than eight years on the possible introduction of an investment migration program, and is very pleased to see that it has now been launched. 

The Montenegro Citizenship-by-Investment Program will be limited to just 2000 applicants and will offer individuals several options in terms of investment, including a EUR 450,000 investment in projects in developed areas or a EUR 250,000 investment in projects in less developed areas. The government will, in addition, charge a fee of EUR 100,000 per application. The compensation will be directed to a special fund for the development of underdeveloped areas.

Dr. Juerg Steffen, Chief Operating Officer at Henley & Partners, says investment migration provides an additional source of investment liquidity that can create a healthy fiscal and economic environment in which the citizens and country can thrive. “There is fundamentally no difference between citizenship-by-investment, foreign direct investment (FDI), or investment in government securities such as sovereign bonds. In participating in these programs, individuals are able to make an exceptional economic contribution to often smaller nations that require foreign direct investment in order to remain competitive and sustainable in the long-term. It is a mutually beneficial exchange, and it is also very much the direction in which the world is heading, as globalization becomes an undeniable feature of modern life.”

“Henley & Partners is looking forward to working with the Government of Montenegro to make this program a success story for the country. With Moldova and Montenegro, these two new attractive European programs will significantly diversify and expand the global citizenship-by-investment market which our firm is proud to lead," adds Dr. Steffen.