Immigration at the Heart of Policy Debates in the EU
February 22, 2016
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By: Nadine Goldfoot
In my last blog I mentioned that we would be looking at the impact of EU reform on investor migration here over the coming months.
Immigration is the hot topic of 2016 and is at the heart of today’s tough policy debates around the EU: from the migrant crisis across the EU; to global security concerns; to the temporary reintroduction of internal border controls in some Schengen Member States; to the UK’s negotiations ahead of a ‘Brexit’ referendum. Much of the debate is focused on an unprecedented migrant exigency in the EU, but it would be very wrong to assume that these debates (and policy changes which may follow) will not impact the world of investor migration. I recently wrote, for example, about House of Lords debates in the UK, where the very existence of the UK’s Tier 1 Investor scheme was challenged in discussions about the current crises.
Emergency measures to reintroduce Schengen border controls and potential membership changes in the EU are important (albeit mutually exclusive) concerns for investor migrants. Many investor programmes within the EU are popular because of the flexibility of movement they provide HNWIs, not to mention educational and employment opportunities for family members. Citizenship programmes in Cyprus and Malta confer rights of free movement and establishment within the EU, programmes in other countries allow residents to benefit from visa free travel within the Schengen area and beyond. We are now also at a point where the UK is poised to decide on its very place in the EU. David Cameron has completed his negotiations and the UK’s referendum on membership of the EU will happen on 23 June.
In the event of a no vote what rights will HNWIs settled in the UK have around the EU? What rights would HNWIs who have chose Maltese or Cypriot citizenship programmes have to reside or settle in the UK and how will this impact investor migrant choices in the future?
Over the next few months, I will look at developments around these questions and bring you the view from other HNW industries impacted such as property, education and banking. Watch out for our next blog in the series, where Christine Sullivan, WPCP Manager, Europe, will explain how EU free movement works and how investor migrants currently benefit from these agreements.
