Pressure is building in South Africa. President Jacob Zumahas called on parliament to change South Africa’s constitution and allow him to seize and redistribute land without compensation. Once that passes, expect him to target bank accounts, assets and passports next. Now is the time to prepare your exit from South Africa.
At the same time as pressure is building in South Africa, other countries are closing their doors to South African expats. Many have capped applications for residency or the purchase of second passports.
The reason for the limits on residency are simple – small countries don’t want to have too many expats from any one country. They want to ensure their national heritage and culture.
Large countries like the US and UK make it nearly impossible for South Africans to get a visa. For example, the EB-5 queue in the US for South Africans is about 2 years now.
The reason for the cap on passports for sale is that these countries don’t want to be caught up in a major international incident. They don’t want the press and racial stigma generated by purchasers moving large amounts of wealth out of South Africa. They don’t want the attention, so they limit their exposure as the pressure mounts. Fortunately, you have options with countries in Latin America.
So, time is of the essence if you want an exit strategy. Let me say a few more words on South Africa…
You must be getting ready for the forced redistribution of land and assets. Be prepared and have an exit strategy in place. Have your residency or second passport in hand before you’re frozen out of the system by a corrupt government.
There have already been cases of businesses being taken over by the state. Now look for local bank accounts and other assets to be seized and redistributed to friends of Zuma.
To protect your cash, you need to move it out of the country before currency controls lock it in. Once wire transfers are blocked, you’re at the mercy of the government.
The solution is to form an offshore trust for personal savings, an offshore corporation for your business, and open an international bank account. Wire what you can out of South Africa and out of the Rand. Hold accounts in USD or Euros for diversification and asset protection.
The same goes for your travel rights. The government will begin revoking and refusing to renew the passports of some land owners. I guarantee this will begin in the very near future as Zumahas work to lock you into the country. They’ll freeze your cash with currency controls and tie you down by revoking your passport.
There are many cases of governments targeting citizens by revoking their passports. If you lose your travel document while you’re in country, you’re stuck until you pay unto Caesar whatever he demands. If you’re traveling abroad when your passport is revoked, you’ll be returned to South Africa to face the music.
For example, just last week the Turkish government accused Enes Kanter of terrorism because he supports the political opponent of Turkey’s President Erdoğan. Mr. Kanter is a Turkish citizen and was basically charged with terrorism by his home country.
Enes has a US green card and a Turkish passport. He was traveling when Turkey revoked his passport and hasn’t been home in years. In most cases, when your passport is revoked, you’ll be forcibly returned to your country of citizenship.
But, in the case of Kanter, he had a US visa. The airport contacted the US government and got permission to send him to the United States. Once assured that he would be granted entry even though his passport was revoked they put him on the next plane out.
The reason the airport needed permission to allow him to fly was that Kanter didn’t have a valid travel document… his only passport had been revoked. He had a visa, but not a travel document.
If he didn’t have that visa, he would have been sent to Turkey and certain death. In this case, his US visa quite literally saved his life.
The best protection from Zuma is a second residency. However, this window is closing fast for citizens of South Africa. We’ve seen a 20-fold increase in applications since January and several countries are planning to cap their programs in the next few months.
Currently, the easiest and least expensive residency for citizens of South Africa is Panama. Invest $21,000 in one of their teak plantations and receive residency in exchange. After 5 years, you can apply for citizenship. For more on Panama, see: Best Panama Residency by Investment Program.
Nicaragua offers a similar reforestation visa program and this country is also open to South Africans. You can get residency with an investment of $35,750 and citizenship after 5 years. And this program is a better value… more teak for the dollar… than Panama.
The big difference between Nicaragua and Panama is that Nicaragua wants you to move there and Panama has a minimal physical presence requirement. Nicaragua requires you spend 180 days a year in the country and expects you to become a part of the community. Panama exchanges its residency visas for cash and only asks you to visit 1 day every 2 years.
The above investment amounts cover you and your immediate family. That is, your spouse and dependent children under 18. Legal and processing fees will apply to each applicant, but the investment amount remains the same for the family unit.
These investment amounts are significantly lower than the costs for a second passport. A single applicant can buy a passport from Dominica for about $130,000 and families should expect to spend over $200,000.
South Africans can also get a second passport from St. Lucia with an investment in government bonds of $500,000 to $550,000 plus $50,000 in fees.
When you buy a second passport, you receive your travel document in a couple of months. With second residency, you’re earning your citizenship by spending money and time in the country.
A second residency from Nicaragua and Panama offers you an affordable exit strategy from South Africa and a path to citizenship. Combine this with an offshore trust or a Panama corporation and you have a solid asset protection and personal protection plan.
I hope this article on the benefits of second residency for citizens of South Africa has been helpful.
If you would like more information please contact our office HERE and we would be happy to chat with you.
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Here is another great article: How To Get A Second Residency For Citizens of South Africa
