Grenada Permanent Residence Requirements and Eligibility

Grenada permanent residence requirements fall into two separate tracks. You can apply under Section 24 of the Immigration Act after living lawfully on the island, submitting a documentary package to the Minister for review, or you can qualify through the Citizenship by Investment (CBI) program, which grants permanent residence as a step toward citizenship in exchange for a qualifying investment. Both give you the right to live in Grenada indefinitely, but the eligibility criteria, cost, and timeline are entirely different.

Who Qualifies Under the Immigration Act

Section 24 of the Immigration Act allows the Minister to grant a permit of permanent residence to anyone who applies in the prescribed manner, is of good character, and states an intention to reside permanently in Grenada.¹ The statute sets no minimum number of years you must have lived on the island before applying, but the government considers how long you have been ordinarily resident when deciding whether to grant the permit.

Dependents can be added to your permit. When permanent residence is granted, the Minister may endorse the permit to cover a spouse or dependent children, either at the time of the original grant or on a later application.¹ Each dependent must still meet the documentary requirements.

Note that Section 10 of the Act was repealed by the 2017 amendment, so older references to “Form 5” or a Section 10 procedure no longer describe the current process.² Work from the forms and instructions the Ministry issues now.

Documents You Must Submit

The Grenada High Commission publishes the current instruction sheet. Your package must include:

Application forms, completed and signed before a Justice of the Peace or Notary Public.
Two reference letters: one from a reputable person in your country of birth or residence, and one from Grenada.
Police certificates of character from your country of origin, your country of residence, and Grenada. Each must be dated within six months of the application.
Your birth certificate (original plus one photocopy). If your name does not appear on it, you also need an original affidavit.
A personal letter stating your date of arrival in Grenada, your purpose of visit, the activities you have been engaged in, and your reason for wanting permanent residence.
Four passport-sized photographs, certified by a Justice of the Peace or Notary Public.
Bank statements, submitted after the Ministry completes its initial due diligence rather than with the original filing.
A medical certificate from a registered practitioner covering a chest X-ray, malaria blood smear, serum creatinine, syphilis serology, stool examination, HIV antibody test, Mantoux (TB) test, and up-to-date immunizations including measles, mumps, rubella, tetanus, and hepatitis B. Tests must be conducted at the General Hospital Laboratory and completed within six months of the Ministry’s request.³

Application Fee

The fee is EC$275.00 plus an EC$5.10 transaction fee, payable by international postal order or cashier’s cheque to the Government of Grenada.³ That is roughly USD $102 at current exchange.

How the Review Works

After you submit the package, the Ministry of National Security runs background checks and due diligence. Only after that stage are you asked to provide bank statements and medical reports. This sequencing matters: do not pay for medical testing upfront, because the results must fall within six months of the Ministry’s request to be valid. An interview to verify your information and assess your suitability is a standard part of the review.

The review can stretch over several months. There is no fixed statutory timeline. If the Minister approves the application, you receive a Permit of Permanent Residence.

The Investment Route

The Citizenship by Investment Act of 2013 created a separate pathway that does not require prior residence on the island. Applicants making a qualifying investment receive permanent residence as a prerequisite step before citizenship.⁴

Two investment options qualify:

A non-refundable contribution of at least USD $235,000 to the National Transformation Fund for a single applicant or family of up to four.⁵
A purchase of at least USD $270,000 in an approved real estate development, plus a $50,000 NTF contribution. The property must be held for at least five years if resold to another CBI applicant at the qualifying price.

Due diligence charges of $5,000 per applicant aged 17 and older, plus processing fees ranging from $500 to $1,500 per family member depending on age, sit on top of the investment amount. Government processing and passport fees add more.

After permanent residence is granted through the CBI route, you must appear in person at a Grenada consulate or embassy within six months for identification and confirmation of your application materials. You then have twelve months from the grant to apply for citizenship. Missing that window can result in forfeiture of your investment, though the permanent residence certificate itself is not automatically revoked and remains subject to ministerial review.⁴

One reason investors choose Grenada over other Caribbean CBI programs is the U.S. E-2 treaty investor visa. Grenada nationals can apply for E-2 visas with multiple entries and a validity period of up to 60 months, and the State Department has confirmed that passports issued under Grenada’s CBI program are valid for this purpose, subject to establishing identity to a consular officer’s satisfaction.⁶

What the Permit Does Not Cover

Permanent residence does not include the right to work. An employer hiring a permanent resident must still obtain a work permit on their behalf, the same as for any other foreign national.⁷ If you plan to be self-employed or start a company, factor the work permit process into your timeline and costs.

Land ownership is also separate. Non-citizens, including permanent residents, need an Alien Land Holding License to own property or hold any lease exceeding one year.⁸ The license is property-specific and covers only the land and interest it describes, so you need a new one for each property. Land held by an unlicensed alien is subject to forfeiture. The statutory stamp duty on the license is EC$25, with additional administrative costs on top.

Tax Position

Grenada operates a territorial tax system. You are taxed only on income earned within Grenada’s borders. Foreign-sourced income, offshore investments, and business profits earned elsewhere are not taxed, regardless of residency status. There is no capital gains tax, wealth tax, or inheritance tax.

For Grenada-sourced income, the first EC$36,000 per year (roughly USD $13,300) is exempt. Income from EC$36,001 to EC$60,000 is taxed at 15 percent, and anything above EC$60,000 at 30 percent.⁹ Tax residency is generally triggered by spending more than 183 days per year in Grenada. Permanent residents who spend most of their time elsewhere would typically not be tax resident and would owe Grenada tax only on any Grenada-sourced income, at a flat 15 percent rate for non-residents.

How You Can Lose Permanent Residence

Section 25 of the Immigration Act gives the Minister the power to revoke a permit on several grounds:

Living outside Grenada continuously for three years or more.¹
Being imprisoned for a criminal offense for one year or more, in any country.
Conduct that, in the Minister’s opinion, makes it undesirable for you to keep the privileges of the permit.
If your permit was endorsed as a dependent spouse, separation by court decree, deed of separation, or dissolution of the marriage can lead to revocation of the endorsement.¹

For permanent residence obtained through the CBI program, a separate framework applies under the Citizenship by Investment Act. The Minister can revoke CBI-based permanent residence if the holder no longer satisfies the provisions of the Act, with fraud or misrepresentation in the original application being the most common trigger.¹⁰

1
Grenada Parliament. Immigration Act – Chapter 145
2
Grenada Parliament. Immigration (Amendment) Act 2017
3
High Commission for Grenada. Instruction Sheet for Permanent Residence
4
IMI Daily. Grenada Citizenship by Investment Act, 2013
5
Investment Migration Agency. Citizenship by Investment
6
U.S. Department of State. Grenada Reciprocity Schedule
7
Department of Labour, Grenada. Work Permits
8
FAO. Aliens (Land-Holding Regulation) Act – Chapter 13
9
Ministry of Finance, Grenada. All You Need to Know About Personal Income Tax
10
Grenada Parliament. Grenada Citizenship by Investment (Revocation of Permanent Residence and Citizenship) Order