The language of global mobility, defined.

A

Adverse media

Negative news coverage about an applicant, their business or associates, found during screening. Even unproven allegations can lead a reviewer to ask for explanation or to refuse an application.

AML (anti-money-laundering)

The body of laws and controls designed to prevent illicit funds entering the financial system. Investment-migration advisers, banks and governments all apply AML checks to applicants. Read more →

Apostille

A standard certificate, issued under the Hague Convention, that authenticates the origin of a public document so it can be used in another member country without further legalisation.

B

Beneficial owner

The natural person who ultimately owns or controls a company, trust or other entity, however many layers lie between. Screeners need to identify and verify beneficial owners.

Biometric data

Fingerprints, facial images or similar identifiers collected as part of an application for identity verification and database checks.

C

Citizenship by descent

Nationality acquired through a parent or earlier ancestor who holds it, rather than through birth in the territory or naturalisation. Rules on generations, registration and maternal or paternal lines vary by country. Read more →

Citizenship by investment (CBI)

A program in which a government grants nationality, and a passport, in exchange for a qualifying contribution or investment, subject to due diligence. Distinct from residence by investment, which grants only the right to live in the country. Read more →

Common Reporting Standard (CRS)

An OECD framework under which participating jurisdictions automatically exchange financial-account information about each other's tax residents. It is why a bank will ask where you are really tax resident. Read more →

Controlled foreign company (CFC) rules

Anti-avoidance rules that attribute the income of low-taxed foreign companies back to their owners in the owners' country of residence, whether or not the income is distributed. Read more →

Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF)

An OECD framework, developed to complement the CRS, for the automatic exchange of tax information on transactions in crypto-assets between participating jurisdictions.

D

Dependant

A family member included in an investor's application. Definitions differ by program, covering spouses, children up to a stated age, and in some cases dependent parents and siblings. The definition drives both eligibility and price. Read more →

Domicile

A legal concept of the place a person treats as their permanent home, used in some countries (notably in the common-law tradition) to decide tax or succession treatment. It is distinct from residence and nationality.

Double tax treaty

A bilateral agreement that allocates taxing rights between two countries and provides relief from double taxation. Treaties usually include tie-breaker rules for people resident in both.

Due diligence

Background verification of an applicant and the source of their funds. In investment migration it operates at several levels: the adviser's own checks, the government's checks (often by independent international agencies), and the receiving bank's onboarding. Read more →

E

E-2 treaty investor visa

A US non-immigrant visa for nationals of countries that have a qualifying treaty with the United States, allowing them to direct a substantial investment in a US business. Eligibility depends on nationality; it is not a route to permanent residence. Read more →

eTA / electronic travel authorisation

A pre-travel online authorisation, often cheap and fast, required by some destinations for visa-exempt travellers. Some passport indexes count destinations requiring an eTA as accessible without a visa.

Exit tax

A tax some countries levy on unrealised gains or certain assets when a long-term resident or citizen leaves. The rules, thresholds and timing vary and can materially affect relocation planning. Read more →

F

Family office

A private firm or arrangement that manages the wealth, investments, governance and often the lifestyle administration of one or several wealthy families. Read more →

FATCA

The US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, under which foreign financial institutions report accounts of US persons to the US tax authority. It is a separate regime from, and the model for, the CRS.

G

Golden visa

A popular name for a residence permit granted in return for an investment, usually property, funds or a business. The permit is typically renewable and may lead to permanent residence; it is generally not citizenship. Read more →

Grandfathering

The protection of people already in a process, or already holding a status, when rules change. Whether and how it applies must be confirmed for each change and cannot be assumed. Read more →

H

Habitual abode

A tax-treaty tie-breaker concept: the place where a person normally and repeatedly lives, assessed over time, used when other tests do not resolve which country is the person's residence.

I

Interpol Red Notice

A request to law-enforcement worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition or similar action. An active notice is a bar to engagement with most responsible advisers and to approval in most programs. Read more →

K

KYC (know your customer)

The process of verifying a client's identity, address, source of funds and source of wealth, and screening them against sanctions and politically-exposed-person lists, before and during a relationship. Read more →

L

Licensed agent

A professional authorised by a government to submit applications under its investment-migration program. Many programs refuse applications that do not come through a licensed agent.

Long-term residency

A multi-year, renewable residence permit, typically tied to maintaining the qualifying investment. Distinct from permanent residency, which is open-ended. Read more →

Lump-sum taxation

A regime, notably in Switzerland, under which a foreign resident who does not work locally is taxed on a deemed amount based on living expenses rather than on actual worldwide income. It is a recurring tax, not an investment. Read more →

N

Nationality

The legal bond between a person and a state, conferring rights such as a passport, the right of abode and diplomatic protection. Used interchangeably with citizenship in most contexts. Read more →

Naturalisation

The process by which a non-citizen acquires nationality, usually after a period of lawful residence and subject to language, integration and good-character conditions.

O

OECS

The Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States. Five of its members operate citizenship-by-investment programs and are bound by a shared US$200,000 minimum contribution floor under an agreement effective 1 July 2024. Read more →

Off-plan property

Property bought before construction is complete. Some residence programs exclude off-plan purchases or count them only on completion. Read more →

P

Permanent residency

An open-ended right to live in a country, usually with the right to work, but not nationality. It can lapse through prolonged absence or breach of conditions. Read more →

Politically exposed person (PEP)

A person who holds or has held a prominent public function, along with close family and associates. PEP status is not disqualifying but triggers enhanced due diligence.

Proof of funds

Documentary evidence that an applicant holds money of a stated amount, often a separate requirement from the investment itself. Malta's quoted figure of €150,000, for example, is a liquid-assets proof-of-funds requirement, not a cost. Read more →

R

Residence by investment (RBI)

A program granting the right to live in a country in return for a qualifying investment. The permit may be temporary, renewable or permanent, but it is not nationality. Read more →

Right of abode

The unconditional right to enter and live in a country without immigration controls, normally held by that country's citizens.

S

Sanctions screening

Checking individuals and entities against lists of persons subject to international sanctions. A match normally ends an engagement or application. Read more →

Schengen area

A group of European countries that have abolished internal border checks. A residence permit from a Schengen state generally allows short stays, usually up to 90 days in any 180, elsewhere in the area, but not residence or work. Read more →

Source of funds

The origin of the specific money used for an investment, and the path it took to reach the paying account. Read more →

Source of wealth

How a person accumulated their overall net worth over time, such as through employment, business, investment or inheritance, and the evidence for it. Read more →

Substance (economic substance)

Real activity, people and decision-making in a place, as opposed to a paper presence. Tax systems increasingly test for substance when deciding where a person or company is resident.

Sunset clause

A provision that ends a law, route or discount on a stated date unless renewed. Several residence programs carry sunset dates on reduced thresholds. Read more →

T

Tax residency

The country, or countries, entitled to tax a person's worldwide income and gains. It is determined by each country's own tests (days, home, ties) and refereed by treaties, and it is separate from nationality and immigration status. Read more →

Tie-breaker rule

A treaty rule that decides which of two countries a person resident in both is treated as resident in, typically by permanent home, then centre of vital interests, then habitual abode, then nationality. Read more →

U

Ultra-high-net-worth individual (UHNWI)

An individual with very high investable wealth, conventionally thirty million US dollars or more, though definitions vary by source. Read more →

V

Visa on arrival

A visa issued at the border or airport on arrival, rather than in advance. Passport indexes typically count visa-on-arrival access as accessible without a prior visa. Read more →

Visa-free access

Entry to a country without obtaining a visa in advance, usually for a limited stay and purpose. Duration and conditions vary and are not captured by a simple count of destinations. Read more →

Visa-waiver suspension

The withdrawal of visa-free access for a country's passport holders by a partner state or bloc. The European Union has used the mechanism against Vanuatu over its citizenship-by-investment program. Read more →

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