Wealth Solutions & Wealth Planning

EU-US ‘visa war’ to have big impact on global mobility, says Henley & Partners

Henley & Partners, the global residence and citizenship advisory firm, says the vote by the European Parliament to end visa-free travel for Americans to EU countries will have a major impact on global mobility, especially the travel freedom currently enjoyed by US and possibly even EU citizens, if US president Donald Trump retaliates in kind.

The firm is due to publish its annual Visa Restrictions Index this month. But the EU backlash against Trump’s failure to meet the deadline to lift visa restrictions on five EU countries – namely Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Poland, and Romania – may see America fall out of the top 10 on the prestigious travel freedom ranking for the first time since it was first published in 2003.

Following the EU vote, the EU Commission now has two months to reintroduce visas for Americans wishing to travel to Europe, after MEPs agreed the EU is now “legally obliged” to suspend the Visa Waiver Programme (VWP) with the US for a year after the US administration failed to meet a deadline to respond to their visa reciprocity arrangement.

Wealthy Americans who want to be protected from disputes such as the so-called ‘visa war’, now have the world to choose from when it comes to acquiring an alternative residence or citizenship. 

Caribbean citizenship-by-investment programmes, such as the recently revitalised Grenada Citizenship-by-Investment Program, can protect your travel freedom to the world’s largest markets including China, the UK, and Europe’s Schengen area.