Choosing an adviser: ten questions to ask, and the answers that should end the conversation

Investment migration is one of the few purchases where the person selling you the product often also controls the information you use to judge it. That is why the choice of adviser matters as much as the choice of program. This guide gives you the questions to ask, the answers that should reassure you and the ones that should end the conversation.

Why this choice carries so much weight

Programs are regulated by governments, but advice is not always regulated at all. In many jurisdictions anyone can describe themselves as a migration consultant, and several programs license or accredit agents precisely because quality varies. You are trusting an adviser with your identity documents, your financial history and your family's future status, often before any fee protection exists. A weak adviser does not only cost money; a poorly prepared file can be refused, and a refusal can follow you into later applications elsewhere.

Ten questions to ask any adviser

1. Who is licensed or accredited, and by whom? Ask for the name of the authorising body and verify it with that body directly, not through a document the adviser supplies.
2. Which legal entity will contract with me, where is it registered, and who signs?
3. How are you paid? Ask about every source of income on the engagement: your fees, any commission from a developer, fund, bank or government agency, and any referral arrangement.
4. What happens to my money, and where is it held? Government fees and investment funds should go to the government, the developer or a regulated escrow arrangement, not to a general adviser account.
5. What is the scope in writing? A proper engagement letter says what is included, what is excluded and what happens if the application is refused.
6. Can you tell me, in plain words, why this route might be wrong for me? An adviser who cannot name any downside has not analysed your case.
7. Which of my facts would a screener find difficult, and how do we handle them now rather than later?
8. Who else will see my documents, including subcontractors, translators and partner firms, and how is the data protected?
9. What do you not do? Tax advice, legal advice in a particular country and banking introductions are separate disciplines, and a good adviser says where theirs ends.
10. May I speak to independent legal and tax counsel directly? Advice on tax residence and home-country rules should be available to you without going through the same intermediary.

Signs of a trustworthy adviser

• They talk about program risk and your home-country rules before they talk about price.
• They put the fee structure, the scope and the refund position in writing before you pay.
• They ask for your source-of-wealth story early and tell you what evidence it will need. See the documentation guide.
• They are comfortable saying that a route is closed, unavailable to your nationality or not worth its cost.
• They separate their advice from the products it might lead you to buy.

Signs to walk away

• Guaranteed approval. No adviser controls a government decision. A guarantee is a sales line, not a service.
• Pressure to move quickly, especially around a price rise or a closing date that you cannot check yourself. Real deadlines exist, but they are documented by the government or in law.
• Reluctance to say who is paid by whom, or an unwillingness to put commissions in writing.
• Advice to understate or reshape your history so that it passes screening more easily. See why applications are refused: concealment is the fastest route to a permanent refusal.
• Payment requests to personal accounts, or to jurisdictions unrelated to the program.
• A single route offered to everyone, whatever their nationality, tax position or family situation.

Independence, and why we say so

Every adviser, including us, has a commercial interest in the engagement. What you should expect is that the interest is disclosed and that the analysis does not depend on it. Our disclosures and compliance pages set out how we approach this, and the tools on this site, such as the Pathfinder, the comparison tool and Program Watch, let you do your own first pass before you speak to anyone.

When you are ready, bring your answers to the ten questions above to every conversation, ours included. An adviser worth hiring will welcome them.