I am applying for permanent residency. Is it required that I own property for my application to be successful?
Auntie’s answer: There is nothing in the latest related legislation, the Immigration (Transition) Law, 2018, that says property ownership is mandated for an application for a Residency and Employment Rights Certificate to be approved.
However, investment in property is one of the ten factors in the points system set out in Schedule 2 of the Immigration Regulations (2018 Revision) which is used to assess the suitability of an applicant for permanent residence, with the second highest maximum point total allocation of 30, after the 100 granted for possessing a close Caymanian connection.
An applicant needs to score a minimum of 110 points out of a maximum possible 215 to receive a grant of permanent residence, so those 30 points can be very important. It is worth noting, though, as a Workforce Opportunities and Residency (WORC) Cayman official explained, “The success of any application is determined by the Director (of WORC) or the (Caymanian Status and) Permanent Residency Board as the case may be, in accordance with the individual applicants’ submissions and measured against the points system used.”
In other words, I think it is fair to say that each case will be decided on its own merits. While owning property is definitely a plus, I know of cases where people have been granted permanent residency without securing any points under that category. The WORC website contains a lot of information on permanent residence, though the WORC official also suggests contacting an immigration consultant for advice.
The law mentioned above can be found on the CNS Library
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If you are applying for Permanent Residency and don’t yet own a house then think of all the money wasted on paying rent for so many years. There are people on work permits who invest in a house at the first opportunity well knowing that they might be here for only a few years. The value of property very rarely goes down so it is worthwhile to use the rent money, which would otherwise be lost, to invest in something tangible and probably make a small profit on selling again when leaving the Islands.
IF I was a member of the relevant board I would not be impressed by an applicant for PR who hadn’t even bothered to make an investment in the territory: You want to live here permanently but won’t make a commitment!
Yes come here and buy up the property to hold so that young Caymanians making 2x minimum wage still struggle to find a 0.3 of an acre under 100k.
Soldier Crab I beg to differ.
When I arrived, my intention was to stay only 1-2 years. I also came with a $9,000 bank draft which was every penny I possessed at the time.
Trust me when I say that I wish I had known that 15 years later that I would still be here. You better believe that I would have invested that $9K in a property instead of paying rent. People aren’t stupid ya know.
People are not going to invest in something that they know little about.
I don’t own property here, or rent. My wife owns our home, as it was bought with money inherited from her family. If she were to pass away or divorce me, and I wanted to stay, I would have to apply without property.