Homes That Qualify for Antigua & Barbuda Citizenship

Antigua and Barbuda runs its citizenship by investment program through the Citizenship by Investment Unit. The real estate route works the same way as everywhere else in the region: the home has to be in an approved development, it has to meet the minimum, and it has to be held for the required period.

The Unit sets the minimum at US$300,000 in an approved development, and states that the property cannot be resold until five years after the purchase, unless the applicant buys another approved property in the country.

I’m a licensed real estate agent. I’m not a lawyer, a tax adviser or a licensed citizenship agent. The citizenship application itself is prepared and filed by a licensed agent approved by the program, and I work alongside the agent and the lawyer you appoint.

The contribution route, which leaves no home at the end, is set out on the Antigua & Barbuda program page.

The qualifying amount is the property, not the total. The program publishes its own fees on top.

The Unit states that 10% of the government processing fee is paid on submission, with the balance due after approval.

These totals add the Unit’s published processing, due diligence and passport fees to the US$300,000 minimum, and nothing else. They leave out the licensed agent’s and lawyer’s fees, purchase taxes and closing costs, which vary by home and by firm.

The line-by-line costs, including the statutory charges on a purchase, are on the citizenship costs and timelines page and in the Caribbean property cost table. I put a single all-in figure for your family and your chosen home in writing before anything is signed.

1. Settle the budget and the family. Decide who goes on the file and what kind of home you want: a managed unit or share, or a residence of your own.

2. Choose the home, then confirm it qualifies. Each home is checked against the approved list before an offer is made.

3. Appoint a licensed agent and a local lawyer. The agent prepares and files the family’s application; the lawyer handles the purchase.

4. Assemble the due diligence file. Identity, source of funds and source of wealth for every person on the application. Gaps here are the usual cause of delay.

5. Agree the purchase and file. The purchase is agreed and the agent submits the application with the fees due on submission.

6. Approval and completion. The remaining fees are paid, the purchase completes and the family’s citizenship is granted. Then the hold period runs.

The US State Department says that “U.S. law does not require a U.S. citizen to choose between U.S. citizenship and another (foreign) nationality.” US nationals, including dual nationals, must use a US passport to enter and leave the United States. Source: US Department of State, Dual Nationality, last checked 8 November 2026.

Not tax advice. The IRS says a US citizen is “subject to U.S. income tax, regardless of where they live or where they earn their income.” Rental income from the home, and any gain when you sell it, stay on your US return, and foreign bank accounts totalling more than US$10,000 at any time in the year need an FBAR filing. Source: IRS Tax Tip 2023-36, last checked 8 November 2026. Speak to a US tax adviser before you buy.