Ciudadanía por inversión — Bono de acción nacional (bonos gubernamentales)

• CBI residency / genuine-link requirement: Act 22/2025 s.8 inserts a new s.30A requiring an applicant and each qualifying dependant to comply with prescribed residency and genuine-link requirements; s.30A(2) provides that the requirement 'takes effect from the 1st day of January, 2026'. - CBI mandatory denial grounds: the Board shall deny an application where the applicant (i) provides false information, (ii) has been convicted of a criminal offence except a minor traffic offence, (iii) is the subject of a criminal investigation, (iv) is a potential national-security risk, (v) is involved in activity likely to cause disrepute to Saint Lucia, or (vi) has been denied a visa by a country with which Saint Lucia has visa-free travel and has not since obtained one; and (per Act 22/2025) the Board MAY deny where the application has been denied by an OECS Member State. - CBI due-diligence and identity-verification process: the CIU engages independent professional persons/bodies to conduct due-diligence checks on applicants (CBI Act s.34), and an applicant may be required to attend an interview in Saint Lucia or at an embassy/High Commission. From 1 September 2023 applications are subject to an interview (in person or virtual) and an identity-verification process; SI 57/2026 reg 10 adds a new reg 15A requiring successful applicants to provide biometric data (including fingerprints). Due diligence is conducted on applicants and dependants 16 years and older. - CBI authorised agent requirement: every CBI application must be submitted by an authorised agent licensed by the Citizenship by Investment Board; the agent must maintain a place of business in Saint Lucia, be of good repute with no criminal record, pass background checks, and pay an application fee of US$1,000 and an annual licence fee of US$10,000 (due by 31 January each year). Direct applicant submission is not permitted; only the authorised agent may check application status. - CBI official processing time: the CIU's stated guideline is that from the date of notifying the authorised agent that an application has been accepted for processing, it takes approximately ninety (90) days to the grant of citizenship. - CBI review of a denied application: where an application for citizenship by investment is denied, the applicant may request a review by the Minister in writing within 60 days of the letter of denial; the request may not introduce new information and must show one or more grounds (incorrect application of law, irrelevant/relevant-matters error, decision-making irregularities, or absence of supporting evidence). The Minister considers the request within 21 days. - CBI change-of-name restriction (Act 22/2025 new s.36A): a citizen shall not change his or her name within five years of being issued a certificate of registration, except for changes legally required by marriage/divorce/adoption/legitimization, witness-protection/anti-trafficking programmes, or clerical/transliteration corrections; any post-certificate name change requires written notice to the Unit, a certified Deed Poll, the prescribed change-of-name due-diligence fee, and a fresh due-diligence check. - CBI Sovereign Wealth Fund allocation: Act 22/2025 s.6 inserts a new s.19A requiring that no less than 10 per cent and no more than 25 per cent of any end-of-financial-year balance resulting from the Unit's activities (after full allowance for the Unit's operations) be paid to the credit of the Sovereign Wealth Fund of Saint Lucia (established under the Sovereign Wealth Fund Act No. 5 of 2025). - CBI-barred nationalities (forward-looking eligibility constraint): Saint Lucia's CBI programme has suspended/barred Russian and Belarusian nationals since 15 February 2023 and Iranian nationals since 21 February 2023 (tied to the Six CBI Principles agreement with the US Treasury), with a de-facto Ukraine restriction. Russia is therefore a closed CBI buyer market for Saint Lucia.

Primary statute: Citizenship by Investment Act No. 14 of 2015 (Cap 1.20); SI 73/2020 reg 12(3) / Schedule 2 para 4(b)(iv); official CIU Government Bonds page. Operative 2020-05-12–present. Authority: Citizenship by Investment Board / Citizenship by Investment Unit (CIU).