A Global citizen is an individual that forms part of an emerging community of people that are less attached to their country of origin but seek to access the world to enjoy a better quality of life and increased opportunities.
The prosperity of our global community depends on the ability of people to experience the full potential of their abilities irrespective of their original citizenship or location. People who have cosmopolitan values see themselves as global citizens and come from different social, religious and cultural backgrounds. They build a pluralistic identity, meaning that they are less attached to their country of origin but seek more access and mobility to other places of the world.
Global citizenship is becoming an increasingly popular phenomenon. Today, we are witnessing a world where countries, people and economies are more interconnected with national boundaries become increasingly blurred. The best way to respond to this interconnection is to become a global citizen.
The prosperity of our global community depends on the ability of people to experience the full potential of their abilities irrespective of their original citizenship or location. People who have cosmopolitan values see themselves as global citizens and come from different social, religious and cultural backgrounds. They build a pluralistic identity, meaning that they are less attached to their country of origin but seek more access and mobility to other places of the world.
In today’s globalised world, becoming a global citizen can provide numerous benefits to different categories of people. For global citizens this means greater security and stability, tax efficiency, ease of travel, higher standard of living, increased options for children’s education, and investment opportunities.
For families, coming from countries which are passing through a period of war or political unrest, a second citizenship offers a gateway to security in another country. Others can see it as means to enjoy freedom to travel to discover the world, experience new cultures and people, or to simply enjoy a better lifestyle in a country away from the country of birth. According to research, wealthy migrants are motivated to become global citizens as they choose to relocate or acquire citizenship of another country.
Whilst the motivation to become global citizens is clear, there are instances where individuals have reduced mobility rights as a result of their original citizenship or passport. To facilitate mobility, wealth individuals today may opt to invest in a second passport. Numerous countries such as Malta and Cyprus in the EU, and a number of Caribbean countries have successful citizenship by investment programmes which enable wealthy investors to obtain a second citizenship.
There are various factors which can be considered when applying for another citizenship, such as the process and time to citizenship, the number of countries that can be visited without a visa, physical residency requirements, and of course the country itself. Applications vary from one jurisdiction to another, and so do, the process and time for applications, the prerequisites and investment options.
Research shows that in most of the cases wealthy individuals lead the most global lifestyles, having options to travel visa-free to many places around the world. An average of wealthy individual owns multiple properties combined with the majority of wealth outside the country of residence. Global citizens who have a net worth of at least a billion dollars are more likely to apply for an immigrant investor program.
Trends also show that billionaires are five times more likely to apply for another citizenship different than the one related to their country of residency. The reason for this is that they have an advantage obtaining citizenship and the costs of obtaining it are also lower compared to their wealth.
Political instability is one of the major factors pushing people to relocate to another country. Many wealthy people from the Middle East and particularly from countries such as Lebanon, Syria and Egypt are the most common applicants for second citizenship due to unrest in the last few years. Therefore, it is logical for those who have the means to wish to migrate to invest in a second citizenship in order to attain stability for their family and secure their business interests in countries that offer good quality of life and investment potential.