Jersey

Jersey Investment Immigration Programs Overview

Jersey has long given wealthy individuals and families a warm welcome, but it recent years the tiny Channel Island has sought to attract global entrepreneurs and job-creators instead of retirees. The High Value Residents (HVR) program offers long-term residency to investors with an annual income of at least 725,000 pounds (just over $1 million), along with significant tax benefits: new arrivals must commit to paying 20 percent on their first 725,000 pounds in earnings, but are then taxed at a rate of just 1 percent on all additional income.

The HVR program is widely used by UK citizens and other EU passport holders who theoretically already have the right to reside in Jersey, chiefly because Jersey has very restrictive laws governing the purchase and occupancy of residential properties. The HVR program is one of the few ways to win the right to purchase property, and thus establish residency, in Jersey. All HVR applicants are expected to spend at least 1.75 million pounds (almost $2.5 million) on their new home.

How To Apply

Jersey’s takes its application process personally: most applications begin with a series of long conversations with officials at Locate Jersey, the agency that administers the HVR program, while both parties figure out whether Jersey is a good fit for the applicant. Applicants who are deemed suitable are then required to submit extensive financial documentation, police background checks, and multiple character references to support their application.

Locate Jersey’s hands-on approach and early scrutiny of potential applicants ensures that very few people who get as far as submitting their paperwork are ever rejected. Most applicants are processed within two weeks of being filed. Successful applicants must pay a 7,500 pound charge to receive a Jersey registration card, and are free to reside in and purchase property in Jersey.

Mobility

The vast majority of Jersey’s High Value Residents come from the UK, and are already British passport holders, so mobility isn’t generally high on applicants’ list of priorities. That’s just as well: while there are no border controls between Jersey and the UK, residents traveling to other parts of Europe will need their usual passports. Even HVR applicants, who eventually go on to obtain British citizenship can face mobility restrictions: in most cases, such applicants would receive what’s called “Islander status,” gaining a British passport in a class that doesn’t allow them to work or reside freely in the rest of the European Union.

Country

The largest and wealthiest of the Channel Islands, Jersey is a Crown dependency that fuses British language and culture with close ties to France, offering what locals say is the best of both worlds. Financial services account for about 40 percent of the island’s economic activity, thanks in part to the island’s favorable tax structure, which offers substantial benefits to both individuals and corporations. Jersey is both one of the sunniest and one of the safest places in the British Isles, and new arrivals can look forwards to Michelin-starred restaurants, high-quality schools, and easy access to both the UK and continental Europe.