TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL SLAMS EUROPE'S CBI PROGRAMS

The international corruption watchdog agency, Transparency International, has severely criticized the Citizenship by Investment program offered by many countries of the European Union, for failing to meet even the minimum due diligence standards necessary to insure that clearly unqualified applicants will never be approved for their "Golden Visas," Europe's term for CBI passports.

European nations still outside the EU are also offering CBI products, but they are also failing in due diligence of applicants, either through negligence, or intentionally. Ana Gomes, a member of the European Parliament, described the program operated by Cyprus as "Absolutely perverse, immoral, and increasingly alarming."

Readers who wish to review the TI White Paper, entitled Gold for Visas, may access it here. The article notes that the CBI scheme was started by St Kitts & Nevis. It is recommended reading for anyone with an interest in the current flaws of CBI programs, whether in Malta, or in the nations of the East Caribbean.