Knowledge

High-net-worth individuals, their families, family offices and businesses have been facing an increasing number of global, personal, commercial and political risks, which has resulted in their growing desire to be genuinely offshore and to acquire residency in other jurisdictions.

Options for residency by investment for persons of independent means

The government has a long history of welcoming foreign investment and this approach is evident when considering the flexibility around attaining residency by way of a property investment:

• Property can be registered in the holder's name, in joint names or in the name of a limited liability company for asset-protection reasons, a popular option for those wishing to rent or settle the shares of that company into a trust for succession-planning purposes.
• There are no specific residency-by-investment properties and thus no limitations on choice.
• Any property purchased for the purposes of submitting the application can be treated as an investment property and rented on a short- or long-term basis.

Option 1: permanent residence

For many, obtaining permanent residence is the best option as it provides a holder and their spouse / civil partner with a lifetime grant to reside in the Cayman Islands for a minimum investment of at least KYD2 million in developed real estate, as well as an ability to work locally, should they wish to do so.

Other family members can be added as dependants and, in return for meaningful physical residence in the Cayman Islands over the following 5 years after the initial grant of permanent residence, there is the option for the entire family to obtain British overseas territory citizenship (Citizenship) and, thereafter, the right to be Caymanian

Option 2: extended residence

Although extended residence neither offers any right to work locally nor any citizenship pathways, it does offer a holder and any qualifying dependants with a 25-year renewable residence certificate for:

• a minimum investment of circa KYD1 million, of which at least 50 per cent must be invested in developed residential real estate; and
• either a minimum annual income of circa KYD120,000 or the maintenance of a deposit of at least circa KYD400,000 with a Cayman Islands Monetary Authority-regulated and locally licensed institution (such as one a bank or brokerage).

Option 3: substantial business presence

Substantial business presence (SBP) was developed to encourage existing (or new) businesses and family offices to come to the Cayman Islands, by providing key players and their qualifying dependants with a clear and defined pathway to a 25-year renewable residence certificate.

SBP neither mandates any personal or commercial real estate investments nor a need to lease commercial premises, enabling individuals who wish to transfer or set up a new business or family office in the Cayman Islands and are happy to work from a home office.

The most common route is for an applicant to first incorporate an exempted company (being a company that is carrying on business mainly outside of the jurisdiction), set themselves up as its sole shareholder and director, and then apply for SBP to obtain the requisite employment permission, in exchange for an annual work permit fee of at least KYD20,925.

As with permanent residence, SBP also provides the entire family with a pathway to Citizenship and, thereafter, the right to be Caymanian, but over a longer timeframe. Citizenship can be acquired in return for meaningful physical residence in the Cayman Islands over the following ten years after the initial grant of SBP.

Originally published in the STEP Journal, Issue 2, 2025