To become a citizen of Montenegro, Aram had to go through several stages: from preparing documents to fingerprinting.
1
+ 2.5 monthsPreparation of documents, including waiting for Aram’s children to be born
2
+ 3 weeksOpening accounts in a Montenegrin bank
3
+ 1 weekPaying fees and applying
4
+ 6 monthsPreliminary approval from the CBI unit
5
+ 1 weekFulfilment of investment conditions
6
+ 1 weekFinal approval from the CBI unit
7
+ 2 daysFingerprinting and getting passports
1. Preparation of documents. Aram provided lawyers with:
copies of family members’ passports;
marriage certificates;
applicants’ birth certificates;
police clearance certificates for the investor, his spouse and eldest son;
military ID cards of the investor and his son;
medical insurance for the whole family.
When the twins Leila and Zara were born, the couple provided their birth certificates and passports. They received documents for the children in three weeks.
Lawyers translated and apostilled documents and filled out government questionnaires and forms. To pass Due Diligence, the lawyers compiled a history of the investor’s wealth: indicated all sources of income and assets in possession, and documented their legality.
To confirm the financial dependence of his son, Aram provided bank statements and receipts for Samvel’s studies at an American university.
The lawyers also drew up an affidavit explaining why Aram and Mariam have different last names. Mariam did not change her surname upon marriage to avoid wasting time replacing passports.
2. Accounts in a Montenegrin bank are needed to transfer payments under the program investment options. Two escrow accounts were opened: from one, the investor transfers money to the developer under a real estate purchase and sale agreement, from the other, he pays a non-refundable contribution to the state fund.
Aram did not have to go to Montenegro: a lawyer acted on his behalf by proxy. The lawyer submitted documents to the bank for opening escrow accounts in the investor’s name. In the agreement with the bank, he indicated the amounts and purposes of payments planned to be made on the account.
When the bank approved the opening of accounts, Aram transferred €700,000 to them, which he would spend on buying real estate and participating in the citizenship program. At the same time, the bank froze the amount set for the purchase of real estate and payment of contributions to the state fund.
3. The investor pays fees before applying to the CBI unit. Costs for a family of five include:
€95,000 — administrative fee
€11,500 — Due Diligence fee
Lawyers attached the payment receipts to the rest of the documents. They submitted an investor application for participation in the Montenegro citizenship program on May 17th, 2021.
4. The investor receives preliminary approval from the CBI unit based on Due Diligence results. It lasted six months and was successfully completed without further requests from the CBI unit.
5. Fulfilment of investment conditions. Lawyers notified the bank that the CBI unit had approved Aram’s application. Without approval, the bank had no right to transfer investments to the accounts specified in the agreement. If the investor had been refused, the bank would have unfrozen and returned the money to the account holder.
To fulfil the conditions of the citizenship program, the bank transferred on Aram’s behalf:
€450,000 went to the developer’s escrow account for the purchase of an apartment in the approved real estate project;
€100,000 went to the escrow account of a special state fund as a non-refundable contribution.
Aram’s expenses for obtaining citizenship for the family amounted to €656,500. The investor did not go beyond the budget, even considering the purchase of real estate for €450,000 instead of the minimum €250,000.
6. Aram received the final approval a week after the investment conditions were met. The CBI unit received confirmation of payments from the bank and opened an appointment for the investor’s family to submit fingerprints.
