Читать книгу Global Residence and Citizenship Handbook - Christian H. Kälin - Страница 48

People from all over the world and from a wide range of backgrounds are interested in multiple citizenships and consequently hold more than one passport.

Many of the wealthiest individuals and most internationally successful people hold more than one passport. In recent years, an increasing number of internationally forward-thinking entrepreneurs and investors have specifically acquired one or more additional citizenship(s) to diversify their personal exposure and options. They realize that not only their investment portfolio, but also their residence and citizenship portfolio needs to be diversified to reduce risk and increase international flexibility.

More than ever, wealthy citizens are becoming a target for kidnappings, terrorism, and in some countries politically motivated violence. Wealthy people are at risk in insecure countries where organized crime, in particular kidnapping, is widespread, as in many South American countries; but also where they may be part of an ethnic minority group and may face hostility within their own country or in regions with significant political upheaval, such as the Middle East in recent years, or where the future of their home country is uncertain.

Even if the home country is stable and personal security is not an issue, citizens of countries where the political and economic situation does not allow widespread visa-free travel for its passport holders are a further group where an alternative travel document offers great merits.

Persons who travel frequently to countries requiring visas also need an alternative citizenship and passport. They may need to travel at short notice while they are waiting for such visas to be issued on their current passports, and often passports have to be sent to the relevant embassies or consulates and remain there, sometimes for several weeks, before being sent back. This also includes the risk of one’s passport being lost in the process and therefore having an alternative is critical if you wish to remain flexible with regard to international travel.

Citizens of countries with an uncertain future acquire alternative citizenship and passports to ensure that they will continue to be able to travel or have the option to relocate after possible political changes. Unfortunately, many countries fall into this category; citizens of these countries cannot be sure about the political future of their home. Alternative options need to be secured in good time.

Persons who value privacy when travelling, doing business or for banking and investment are interested in protecting their interests and their personal data by using a different citizenship depending on where they operate and what they do. In times of widespread data abuse, identity theft and cyber-crime, it is increasingly important to be able to protect one’s personal profile. Having more than one citizenship and passport can help achieve this.

Citizens who wish to have the option to renounce their current citizenship must first acquire another citizenship; otherwise they would become stateless, which is a status to avoid at all costs.³² There are many reasons why one may wish to give up citizenship, for example to legally avoid otherwise compulsory military service requirements or taxation.

Persons who were rendered stateless by birth or through accidents of history need to acquire citizen status of at least one country, in order to have the freedom of travel and other rights that citizens can enjoy. They may not be able to acquire citizenship by naturalization in their country of residence³³ and thus may need to immigrate elsewhere or acquire citizenship-by-investment. If you have no citizenship, the situation can be extremely difficult.

Citizens of countries with high direct taxes may acquire alternative residence and citizenship as part of a strategy to reduce their tax liability. Citizenship may play a role in the determination of one’s tax domicile, even though, of course, the main factor remains the place of residence and usually citizenship has only a very limited role to play.

Finally, anyone who wishes to have the possibility to retire in a safe country at any time in the future can secure this permanently by acquiring citizenship of that country.