Montenegro opened a brand new citizenship by investment program (CIP) in 2018 and applications are currently accepted for real estate investments above €250,000
First of all, know that two words Monte plus Negro means “Black mountain”
Montenegro is a very beautiful country, and you should not think even for a moment to buy a holiday property in this country. Budva, Kotor, Sveti stefan and there are ski-resorts that offer stunning beauty.
Montenegro declared independence on 3 June 2006 becoming parliamentary republic, following the referendum on 21 May 2006 on dissolving the former state union of Serbia and Montenegro.
But what makes Montenegro CIP so unique and why it is so different from other countries?
1. Extradition treaty
Montenegro is one of those few countries in the world that has no extradition treaty with many countries.
Montenegro has signed extradition treaty with Serbia, Italy, Macedonia, Croatia and Bosnia. Criminal legislation do apply to citizens who commit a crime after becoming citizens and do not absolve the crimes committed abroad.
Here is the list of countries Montenegro has extradition treaty
- United Kingdom – YES
- United States – YES
- China – NO
- Russia – NO
- India – NO
- Canada – NO
2. OECD list
Montenegro currently not included in the OECD list of countries offering CBI/RBI schemes. All other CBI countries are included in the list except Moldova, Montenegro and Turkey.
OECD may update the list in the future including all countries that offer CBI schemes. This list is for banks to determine tax residency of clients presenting CBI passports.
3. Automatic Tax Exchange
Montenegro has not signed OECD automatic exchange of tax information under Common Reporting Standard (CRS). This means banks in Montenegro do not report bank account holders who are citizens of other countries.
Currently there are over 150 countries worldwide that exchange tax information between each other.
This could change in the future.
4. EU membership candidate
Montenegro expressed its interest to join European Union and Schengen area by 2025. Before becoming EU member state, Montenegro may well be pressured by EU to tighten all policy measures.
A European Union (EU) candidate country, Montenegro applied for EU membership in 2008 and opened accession negotiations on 29 June 2012.
5. Russian interest
Montenegro CIP could be very interesting for Russians, considering Russia remained Montenegro’s single most important partner, accounting for 30 per cent of tourism stays and 25 per cent of foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows—mostly real estate.
6. E-1 and E-2 Visas
Montenegrin citizens qualify for E-1 (treaty trader) and E-2 (treaty investor) visas to enter United States. These are non-immigrant US visas, unlike EB-5, these visas require low investments and fastest visa processing times.
This is one other advantage applying for Montenegro citizenship by investment program
7. Non-Commonwealth
Montenegro is NOT a member of commonwealth countries. This is one of the reasons why Montenegro does not have visa free access to United Kingdom and its territories.
Infact, Montenegro, Moldova and Turkey are the ONLY three countries that offer citizenship by investment schemes are do not participate in Commonwealth.
8. NATO membership
Montenegro is a NATO member country along with 29 other countries, which constitutes a system of collective defence whereby its independent member states agree to mutual defence in response to an attack by any external party. The combined military spending of all NATO members constitutes over 70% of the global total.
NATO promotes peace within Europe and deters major US adversaries from launching large-scale conventional wars.
9. Dual citizenship
Montenegro allows dual nationality unrestricted for international investors under Citizenship by investment scheme
Keep in mind, things change quite quickly with Globalisation and the above information may be outdated in the future.
10. Cheapest Real Estate
Montenegro has the rock bottom cheapest real estate prices in the entire Europe in terms of per square meter. The prices are expected to soar when the country joins European Union on or after 2025.
11. Lowest Corporate Taxes
Montenegro is only a few countries in the world that has lowest 9% corporate taxes making it a tax haven for companies. Resident companies are taxed on income from sources within and outside the country while non-resident corporations are only taxed for income derived from sources within.
12. Euro
In 1999, Montenegro unilaterally adopted the Euro and since then the country uses euro as defacto currency for everyday transactions. Montenegro is not part of Eurozone.
Note: This information is general purpose only. We do not encourage criminals or people with felony to apply for CBI schemes as applications are turned down in such cases. If later found to be a wanted person, CBI countries have a legislation to revoke passports.
