Department of Justice and Equality releases new guidelines for applications under the Immigrant Investor Programme
Friday, 22 February 2019
The Department of Justice and Equality has released a new application form and guidelines for those individuals seeking to obtain residency status in Ireland under the Immigrant Investor Programme (IIP).
The (IIP) was introduced by the Irish Government in 2012 to encourage inward investment and rewards non-European Economic Area nationals, and their family members, who make specified investments or endowments in Ireland, with permission to reside in the State.
The specified investment categories are:
(a) Enterprise Investment
(b) Investment Fund
(c) Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT)
(d) Endowment
In terms of the Enterprise Investment category, the new guidelines now specifically note that;
"Categories eligible for consideration include investments in social housing and primary care centres.”
Additionally, in terms of the Investment Fund category, the new guidelines now advise that a list of Investment Funds that have been approved for the purposes of the IIP by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) can be obtained by writing to the Investor Unit of the INIS to request it.
The new guidelines also appear to suggest that the source of funds for investments under the IIP will now be subject to greater scrutiny, noting:
“all applications will be subject to further enhanced levels of due diligence processes in respect of anti-money laundering, Know Your Client, Politically Exposed Persons and sanction checks”.
In line with this, the new guidelines advise that;
"applicants must supply a due diligence report from a reputable international risk management and security screening organisation."
Applications under the IIP can only be made during certain windows and below are the application windows for 2019:
Window 1: 4th March 2019 –8th March 2019
Window 2: 20th May 2019 – 24th May 2019
Window 3: 19th August 2019 – 23rd August 2019
Window 4: 21st October 2019 – 25th October 2019
Click here to download the Immigrant Investor Programme Guidelines 2019
Click here to download the Immigrant Investor Programme Application Form 2019
For further information or advice, please contact Emmet Whelan, or any member of the ByrneWallace Employment Law team.
To register for ByrneWallace updates click here, and follow us on Linkedin
