Investment Migration Council

Last updated
Investment Migration Council
FormationOctober 2014;9 years ago (2014-10)
TypeNonprofit organisation
Legal status Association
PurposeSet global standards in the investment migration field & educate and inform the public
Headquarters Geneva, Switzerland
Region served
Worldwide
Official language
English
Bruno L'ecuyer
Website investmentmigration.org

The Investment Migration Council (IMC), based in Geneva, Switzerland, was founded in 2014 as a not-for-profit organisation. The Council's mission is to set standards in the investment migration industry worldwide. The IMC supports and interacts with other associations, governments and international organisations in the investment migration field. In addition, the Council supports the industry in improving the public understanding on investment migration, which is a new industry and seen by some as controversial, [1] [2] through education and its code of ethics and professional conduct. [3]

Contents

The IMC is the organiser of the annual, Investment Migration Forum. The Forum brings together over 300 participants from representatives of international organisations to government officials, and academics. Attendees from 40 plus countries share their views and their ideas, over a three-day period, through roundtable- and panel-discussions.

Organisation

The Investment Migration Council has its headquarters in Geneva, in the western region of Switzerland. In addition to the headquarters in Geneva, it also has offices in London, New York, Hong Kong, Dubai and Grand Cayman. The IMC is an independent body, the main mission is to set standards, and act as a bridge for stakeholders in other associations, governments and supra-national organisations. An additional goal is to educate the public and improve the public understanding of this industry.

Investment Migration Forum at the Grand Hotel Kempinski in Geneva InvestmentMigrationForum.jpg
Investment Migration Forum at the Grand Hotel Kempinski in Geneva

The first IMC chair was Dimitry Kochenov, a professor for EU Constitutional and Citizenship law overseeing the academic side of the IMC, publishing double peer-reviewed research papers on investment migration. Since the 12th October 2020 the chair is Professor Andres Solimano, a Chilean economist and former world bank executive based in Santiago, Chile. The day-to-day running of the organisation is the responsibility of Bruno L’ecuyer, Co-founder and Chief Executive of the Investment Migration Council. Members of the governing board include Bruno L'ecuyer, Co-founder, Chief Executive, and Secretary of the Board of the Investment Migration Council based in Geneva, Nadine Goldfoot, Partner and Head of Worldwide Private Client Practice at Fragomen LLP in the UK, David Chen, Managing Partner at Visas Consulting Group in China and Canada, Ronald H. Klasko, Managing Partner, Klasko Immigration Law Partners, LLP in the United States, and Dr. Christian Kälin, Chairman at Henley & Partners in London.

The not-for-profit organisation is fully funded by its corporate donors and individual members. The corporate donors include firms across the Residence and Citizenship by Investment industry. As of March 2023, there are over 25 corporate donors and over 450 individuals that contribute to the IMC. [4]

Activities

The foundation states that it is committed to advancing Investor Migration and Citizenship and is impartial and is not tied to any government body, corporate nor political interests.

The IMC organises the annual Investment Migration Forum in Geneva, Switzerland, attended by over 300 participants from across the Residence and Citizenship by Investment industry, government representatives and academics. [5]

The IMC facilitates workshops partnering with governmental institutions such as the Chamber of Economy of Montenegro, Enterprise Greece and the Government of Malta evaluating the state of affairs and latest developments of the Investor Migration Industry. [6]

The IMC collaborates with other institutions such as Transparency International and academics to publish a wide range of papers and reports addressing questions regarding public policy making, due diligence processes, economic impact and others. [7]

In addition, the IMC develops a range of training courses for professionals within the Residence and Citizenship by Investment industry.

Criticism

The Residency and Citizenship by Investment industry has been criticized by the media and getting increased attention by government bodies such as OECD. According to Jon Henley from the Guardian, ”It’s the must-have accessory for every self-respecting 21st-century oligarch, and a good many mere multimillionaires: a second – and sometimes a third or even a fourth – passport”. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Visa policy of Australia</span> Policy on permits required to enter Australia and its external territories

The visa policy of Australia deals with the requirements that a foreign national wishing to enter Australia must meet to obtain a visa, which is a permit to travel, to enter and remain in the country. A visa may also entitle the visa holder to other privileges, such as a right to work, study, etc. and may be subject to conditions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Czech passport</span> Passport of the Czech Republic issued to Czech citizens

The Czech passport is an international travel document issued to nationals of the Czech Republic, and may also serve as proof of Czech citizenship. Besides enabling the bearer to travel internationally and serving as indication of Czech citizenship, the passport facilitates the process of securing assistance from Czech consular officials abroad or other European Union member states in case a Czech consular is absent, if needed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Turkish nationality law</span>

Turkish nationality law is based primarily on the principle of jus sanguinis. Children who are born to a Turkish mother or a Turkish father are Turkish citizens from birth. The intention to renounce Turkish citizenship is submitted in Turkey by a petition to the highest administrative official in the concerned person's place of residence, and when overseas to the Turkish consulate. Documents processed by these authorities are forwarded to the Ministry of Interior (Turkey) for appropriate action.

The Maltese passport is a passport that is issued to citizens of Malta. Every Maltese citizen is also a Commonwealth citizen and citizen of the European Union. The passport, along with the national identity card, allows for free rights of movement and residence in all member states of the European Economic Area, as well as Switzerland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cypriot passport</span> Passports issued to citizens of Cyprus

Cypriot passports are issued to citizens of Cyprus. Every Cypriot citizen is also a Commonwealth citizen and a citizen of the European Union. The Cypriot passport, along with the Cypriot identity card, allows for free right of movement and residence in any of the states of the European Union, European Economic Area, and Switzerland. As of July 2023, Cypriot citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 179 countries and territories, ranking the Cypriot passport 12th in terms of travel freedom according to the Henley Passport Index. Cypriot citizens can live and work in any country within the EU as a result of the right of free movement and residence granted in Article 21 of the EU Treaty. The Republic of Cyprus was formed in 1960. All persons who were citizens of the Republic of Cyprus at this time are entitled to renew their citizenship and passport, whether living on the island or abroad within the diaspora. Their descendants, whether living on the island or abroad, are equally entitled to obtain Cypriot citizenship and passport. These citizens include the Greek and Turkish people, as well as the much smaller communities of Jewish and Armenian heritage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montenegrin passport</span>

The Montenegrin passport is the primary document for international travel issued by Montenegro.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liechtenstein passport</span> Passport of the Principality of Liechtenstein

Liechtenstein passports are issued to nationals of Liechtenstein for the purpose of international travel. Beside serving as proof of Liechtenstein citizenship, they facilitate the process of securing assistance from Liechtenstein consular officials abroad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Austrian passport</span> Passport of the Republic of Austria issued to Austrian citizens

An Austrian passport is an identity document issued to citizens of Austria to facilitate international travel. Every Austrian citizen is also a citizen of the European Union. The passport, along with the national identity card, allows for free rights of movement and residence in any of the states of the European Economic Area and Switzerland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haitian passport</span>

The Haitian passport is issued to citizens of Haiti for international travel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Commonwealth of Dominica passport</span> Passport of the Commonwealth of Dominica issued to Dominican citizens

Commonwealth of Dominica (Dominican) passports are issued to citizens of Dominica for international travel. The passport is a CARICOM passport as Dominica is a member of the Caribbean Community. The Dominican government began issuing biometric passports to its citizens on 19 July 2021, having spent $13 million upgrading its passport system to improve national security across its borders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint Kitts and Nevis passport</span>

The Saint Kitts and Nevis passport is issued to citizens of Saint Kitts and Nevis for international travel. Prior to 1983, Saint Kitts and Nevis, together with Anguilla, was an associated state of the United Kingdom. The passport is a Caricom passport as Saint Kitts and Nevis is a member of the Caribbean Community. As of 29 July 2023, citizens of Saint Kitts and Nevis had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 154 countries and territories.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vanuatu passport</span> Passport

The Vanuatu passport is an international travel document issued to Vanuatu citizens.

Immigrant investor programs are programs that allow individuals to more quickly obtain residence or citizenship of a country in return for making qualifying investments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Comorian passport</span> Passport issued to citizens of the Union of the Comoros

The Comorian passport is issued to citizens of the Union of the Comoros for international travel. As of 1 January 2017, Comorian citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 48 countries and territories, ranking the Comorian passport 88th in terms of travel freedom according to the Henley visa restrictions index.

Economic citizenship can be used to represent both the economic contributions requisite to become a citizen as well as the role in which one's economic standing can influence his or her rights as a citizen. The relationship between economic participation and citizenship can be considered a contributing factor to increasing inequalities and unequal representation of different socioeconomic classes within a country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Georgian nationality law</span>

Georgian nationality law is the organic law governing the acquisition, transmission and loss of Georgian citizenship.

The Henley Passport Index is a global ranking of countries according to the travel freedom allowed by those countries' ordinary passports for their citizens. It was launched in 2005 as Henley & Partners Visa Restrictions Index and was updated to Henley Passport Index in January 2018.

Henley & Partners is a British investment migration consultancy based in London. The company offers services to individuals and consults governments on residence and citizenship programs. In some cases, the company even runs the programs on behalf of governments. The company has pioneered the industry of selling citizenship and passports.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christian Kälin</span> Swiss lawyer

Christian H. Kälin or Kaelin is a Swiss businessperson, author, government advisor and lawyer who is the chairman of Henley & Partners, an architect of citizenship-by-investment programs that allow wealthy individuals to obtain additional passports.

Ron S. Geffner is an American attorney and former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission enforcement lawyer. Geffner is a founding partner of Sadis & Goldberg, where he heads Financial Services Group providing legal counsel to over 800 funds including domestic and international financial institutions, family offices, hedge funds, venture capital and private equity funds. Geffner was previously in-house counsel to the Investment Management Industry Services Group of PricewaterhouseCoopers.

References

  1. ↑ "Selling citizenship is big business - and controversial". www.economist.com. 29 September 2018. Retrieved 23 October 2018.
  2. ↑ "The multi-billion dollar immigration industry is on 'extraordinarily thin ice' and fretting about its 'Napoleon III' moment". Business Insider Deutschland. 2017-06-08. Archived from the original on 2018-11-15. Retrieved 2018-10-24.
  3. ↑ "Investment Migration Council Defends "Golden Visas", Says Ethics Code Vital". Wealth Briefing. 2018-10-15. Retrieved 2018-11-09.
  4. ↑ "Memberships". www.investmentmigration.org. Retrieved 29 October 2018.
  5. ↑ "investment-migration-forum". Hedgeweek. Hedgeweek. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  6. ↑ "Government says 'Malta leads the way in the investment migration industry'". www.independent.com.mt/. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
  7. ↑ "In Whose Interest? Shadows over the Hungarian Bond Program" (PDF). Transparency International. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 November 2018. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  8. ↑ "Citizenship for sale: how tycoons can go shopping for a new passport". The Guardian. 2017-06-02. Retrieved 2018-10-30.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.