You've heard of the expression “jumping out of the frying pan into the fire.”
Some people have unfortunately done this with their Plan B – mostly because it was more of a “Wish B” without enough forethought and planning.
Like this one case I know of from a few years back, where a Chinese national living in China decided he had had enough, wanted out, and figured his ticket would be a passport from a Caribbean country. He quickly checked a few countries online, and settled on one.
Then he did an internet search and found an “International Immigration Consultant” in Eastern Europe who claimed to be able to get him what he wanted. The client happily wired his money (approaching 1M in US currency) for a “real estate and citizenship” deal which supposedly would be worth twice what he paid within a year.
Sadly the “Consultant” stopped communicating with him before he ever saw any citizenship. And the real estate was off-the-plan, but never got past the digital paper it was written on.
NOW the client slowed down and investigated properly, only to find…
…it was all a scam.
Yes, some people approach the idea of living and working in another country like a bull at a red cape, casting aside their customary good sense and caution. I am assuming this man normally had good sense because he had access to such a large sum.
And it's infuriating that shonky operators take advantage of the unwary and give the industry a bad name. I guess that's true in all fields, but it's a bit personal when it happens in your own industry.
Oh, here's an obvious tip: get to know your Immigration Consultant before you wire any money!
I never found out, but I wonder if the dodgy operator ever explained to his mark – er, client – that China does not allow dual citizenship. Therefore he would have been forced to give up the citizenship of his mother country and only visit his relatives as a “foreigner” needing a tourist visa. If they let him in.
It's the sort of obvious thing that I customarily point out to my clients. Indeed I find often Chinese tend to favour Permanent Residency since it gives them the ability to get their children into better educational establishments without having to become “foreigners” to the rest of their family.
It's not always the case, and there are plenty of Chinese people living here in Vanuatu who have happily given up their Chinese nationality, but it's a kinda big step, so it needs careful thought.
Way back in 2014 Vanuatu actually changed their constitution to allow multiple citizenship… and a big part of the reason was so they could more readily sell Vanuatu Citizenships.
“Something isn't working? We'll fix it!” It's the kind of sensible, practical approach to things you will find here.
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