Eligibility & suitability
Who can qualify
- Applicants able to make and retain the prescribed qualifying investment
- Applicants able to substantiate identity, background and funds
Restrictions & unsuitable cases
- The investment alone is not citizenship or unrestricted permission to work
- No automatic inclusion is assumed for adult children, parents or unmarried partners
Economic permanent residence: application sequence
The official checklist establishes the evidence requirements. A universal approval time is not published in the material verified for this guide.
01Confirm applicant, family and work scopeBefore committing to the investment
Identify the principal applicant, each family member and whether employment or active business work is intended.
Documents & evidence
- Passports
- Family/custody schedule
- Work description
- Assuming every dependent or partner is included
- Assuming unrestricted work permission
02Establish the qualifying investment fileBefore application; transaction timetable varies
Document the selected property or specified bond route and the ten-year holding commitment.
Documents & evidence
- Conveyance and property-tax evidence where relevant
- Investment documentation
- Source-of-funds records
- Treating the threshold as the all-in cost
- Ignoring liquidity and property suitability
03Collect and authenticate personal recordsSequence the thirty-day medical window near filing
Obtain civil records, translations, police certificates and medical evidence in the required form.
Documents & evidence
- Birth/marriage records
- Police certificates
- Medical certificate
- References
- Authenticated translations
- Expired short-validity records
- Unresolved name or custody inconsistencies
04Submit the complete applicationOfficial assessment; no promised decision deadline
Submit the prescribed economic PR form, request letter and published processing items. Respond to lawful requests for further evidence.
Documents & evidence
- Notarised form
- Application stamp
- Processing receipt
- Complete supporting file
- Calling a processing fee the final cost
- Booking irreversible dates around an invented approval estimate
05Review the grant and maintain the conditionsOn approval and through the investment holding period
Read the actual residence/work rights and retain evidence of the investment and continuing compliance.
Documents & evidence
- Certificate and conditions
- Asset holding records
- Updated bank self-certification where appropriate
- Selling a qualifying asset without assessing the holding condition
- Using residence permission as proof that all foreign tax duties ended
Document checklist
Track your preparation in this browser. Final requirements depend on the route and filing authority.
A durable residence application supported by an investment
Economic permanent residence can suit someone who wants a long-term Bahamian base and can commit capital for the required period. The department’s current minimum is BSD 1m through qualifying real estate or Central Bank zero-coupon bonds, with a minimum ten-year hold.
The investment and the immigration permission should be assessed together. A property selected only to meet a threshold can be unsuitable for the household; a bond commitment ties up capital differently. Neither choice creates automatic citizenship or unrestricted work rights.
Compare the two capital routes
| Route | Published commitment | Practical analysis |
|---|---|---|
| Real estate | At least BSD 1m qualifying investment; retain for at least ten years. | Title, condition, occupation, property tax, insurance and liquidity affect the real cost. |
| Central Bank zero-coupon bonds | At least BSD 1m in the specified bond route; ten-year holding requirement. | The immigration threshold is not a quoted yield, redemption schedule or offer document. Obtain the applicable subscription terms. |
Who the grant covers
The PR checklist requests spouse and children’s identity and civil records where applicable. It does not supply a universal public table saying that every dependent child of any age, parent or unmarried partner receives status automatically.
Prepare the family schedule before committing capital. Identify each person’s relationship, age, custody position and intended work or study. A same-sex partnership should not be assumed to qualify as a spouse under the domestic marriage framework; an independent permission may be needed.
The work-right question should be explicit
The department describes the certificate as a right to reside and/or work, depending on the grant. If the applicant plans to manage or work in a local business, the application strategy must address that activity rather than relying on the investment alone.
Work rights can also affect the July 2026 owner-occupied property-tax classification. The economic-residence investment, the particular permission granted and the tax treatment of the home are connected facts, but not interchangeable legal tests.
Document preparation drives the application sequence
The public checklist requires an original medical certificate no more than thirty days old at submission and a police certificate issued within six months covering five years of residence, for applicants aged fourteen and above. Foreign civil records require the prescribed authentication and English translations.
Property applications need the conveyance and real-property-tax evidence where applicable. Keep the chain from source of wealth to investment payment intelligible for both immigration and bank due diligence. A collection of account screenshots is less useful than a reconciled file explaining the transaction.
Budget beyond the investment principal
| Issue | What it means |
|---|---|
| Government filing items | Published BSD 200 non-refundable processing fee; application requires a BSD 10 postage stamp. These are not a complete approval or card-fee quote. |
| Professional and evidence costs | Legal work, translations, authentication, medical examination and police records depend on the file. |
| Real-estate route | Conveyancing, relevant transaction charges, annual property tax, insurance and upkeep are additional. |
| Bond route | Confirm the actual instrument, payment instructions, lock-up and redemption terms from the authorised channel. |
| Timing | No verified universal approval deadline is supplied here. Document completion and official decision-making are separate periods. |
After approval: retain the evidence as well as the asset
Keep the certificate and its conditions, investment records and holding-period evidence. A later sale or restructuring should be assessed before implementation, rather than assuming lifetime residence makes every investment condition irrelevant.
Keep financial-account residence information accurate. The September 2026 CRS notice specifically warns institutions to investigate investment-residence claims where they do not fit the wider facts.
Where this route fits in the wider plan
This route is most useful when the long holding commitment and the intended Bahamian base both make sense. It is less useful as a last-minute document intended to override a continuing foreign home, company-management pattern or tax filing obligation.
The research page describes the route and its dependencies. Availability of application support and its scope should be established through an inquiry; no fixed service price or guaranteed outcome is asserted here.
Sources & research notes6 references
Sources supporting this guide. Research draft awaiting editorial review.