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On Tuesday 14 February, the Irish government announced the closure of the Immigrant Investor Programme (IIP). IIP applications via approved projects may be granted a grace period of three months to submit the finalised application. Any interest in IIP is the last chance and would have to apply on an urgent and immediate basis or the programme will no longer be available. Contact us now.

Month: March 2022

Loughshinny Nursing Home repayment – client Luna Wu on her successful IIP journey

Posted on by bwa

In March, Bartra proudly invited our clients in Ireland to visit Loughshinny Nursing Home, a project they invested in back in 2017 that is now complete and in operation. We are pleased to see that our clients are satisfied with their IIP investment journey with Bartra, not only because their principal amounts are secure with the agreed interest on the return on investment, but also having seen the project built to high specifications and now providing the highest quality of care to over 120 residents under Bartra’s successful management.

Ms Luna Wu is one of the investors. She invested in Bartra’s Loughshinny Nursing Home in 2017 and moved to Ireland with her family, including daughter Ellie, after receiving their Stamp 4 visa. She has now received the full repayment and interest from Bartra following the five-year investment term.

During the recent site visit, we spoke to Luna and Ellie. “I am glad to see my investment in Loughshinny has made a contribution to society,” says Luna. “The value of the investment is so meaningful beyond just the financial element. I am happy to see the project is well built, well managed, and that the people living in the care homes are happy.”

Luna’s family is planning to start a new business in Ireland using the repayment fund as capital. One of her ideas is to seed fund digital products related to cultural and lifestyle exchange between Ireland and China, while her husband plans to expand his retail business in Ireland. The couple enjoy their life in Ireland, and are keen to continue to explore all that the Emerald Isle has to offer.

Watch our interview with Luna to learn more about her journey to Ireland and her experience with the IIP and Bartra.

In a letter to investors, Mike Flannery, CEO of Bartra Group said, “In January, Bartra completed the repayment to all of our Loughshinny Nursing Home investors. The Executive Team is proud to repay all principal amounts and the agreed interest to investors. It is also with great delight that several investors have decided to re-invest in other non-IIP Bartra projects, showing their confidence in Bartra’s management team. It also demonstrates Bartra’s ability to continuously create investment opportunities for its clients and proves Bartra’s commitment to guiding investors along their IIP journey.”

Best-in-class Loughshinny Nursing Home

What makes this IIP project successful? At Bartra, we believe a great healthcare project requires three things: a great location, great specifications and great people. Our Loughshinny home ticks all those boxes.

Overlooking the Irish Sea, Loughshinny Nursing Home has been constructed on a panoramic 3.5-hectare site approximately 15km from Dublin City Centre in Blacklands, Skerries, Co. Dublin. The site is located within Fingal County Council (one of four local authorities in the Greater Dublin Area), which has a population of 555,000, of which 72,000 (13%) are aged 65 and over.

The construction of Loughshinny Nursing Home was completed in June 2019, and is now in operation, providing 123 world-class single occupancy private ensuite rooms within a state-of-the-art residential setting.

In addition, residents’ comfort and safety has always been our utmost priority. Loughshinny Nursing Home accommodates some of the most advanced equipment to ensure high-tech and intelligent nursing services. All beds can be easily raised and lowered, and the mattresses in each room are customised in consideration of body pressure distribution. Furthermore, every room is equipped with an alarm system for daily needs or emergency assistance.

Our highly skilled and experienced care team is inculcating a culture of quality caregiving in all our facilities, ensuring a standard of care that recognises our residents’ needs for independence, choice, dignity, respect, compassion and advocacy.

Additional project details:

  • Mid 2016: Fundraising began
  • November 2017: Construction started
  • As of 2019: All investors in the project and their family members had obtained Irish Stamp 4 visas
  • April 2019: The first investor in the Loughshinny Nursing Home Project successfully obtained the Stamp 4 renewal. He was also the first investor to enjoy the cancellation of the programme’s landing requirement
  • May 24, 2019: Loughshinny was completed and delivered
  • June 19, 2019: HIQA staff visited Loughshinny and confirmed that all facilities fully met HIQA standards.
  • July 1, 2019: The HIQA certification was officially effective
  • July 5, 2019: Bartra and the National Medical Purchasing Foundation of Ireland (NTPF) reached an agreement on the bed rate of the Nursing Home Support Scheme, and the NTPF agreement was signed for funding €1210/bed/week
  • July 17, 2019: Loughshinny welcomed its first occupant
  • July, 2020: During the pandemic, Loughshinny featured in the Irish Times; it has now resumed normal operations.
  • August 18-19, 2021, Manuela Cristea, inspector of the Irish HIQA visited Loughshinny for a two-day inspection. She spoke to residents, nursing home management and healthcare personnel, and assessed the overall capacity, quality and safety of the healthcare service. Loughshinny nursing home met the highest standards set by the HIQA and has been deemed fully compliant with all regulations. This is testament to Bartra’s successful management of the nursing home and all of its staff.

A successful IIP investment journey

Bartra is the only group that integrates development, operation and management in the IIP. The one-stop-shop services help investors mitigate risk during their investment journey. Successful applicants enjoy a fast approval time for the whole family with minimal residing requirements, and 100% capital repayment as well as a total of 20% interest for return on investment at maturity.

While investing in Bartra’s IIP nursing homes is a way to obtain Irish residency, it is also an amazing contribution to Irish society. Nursing care is an in-demand sector in Ireland. Due to years of under-investment in the country’s key infrastructure, the Irish nursing home sector is facing a major shortage of beds. Additionally, Ireland has an ageing population, which further increases the demand for nursing home facilities. By 2036, Ireland’s population aged over 80 is expected to rise from 170,000 in 2020 to more than double that at 343,000. Private sector investment in nursing home care plays an important role in supporting the sector in the medium to long term. It is also a safe investment funded by the government. More information is available about the benefits of investing in Bartra’s nursing homes here.

We are dedicated to providing our clients with the best IIP projects and services to ensure a straightforward and enjoyable journey to investing and living in Ireland.

Be a smart IIP investor – is now the best time to buy Euros?

Posted on by bwa

Similar to many other foreign investments, investing in the IIP at the right time can be beneficial from a foreign exchange perspective. Knowing how to take advantage of the forex (FX) market means you can budget for an investment more effectively and potentially save a considerable amount of money. However, the exchange rate can fluctuate dramatically in a short period of time, and investors need to act quickly to avoid missing out on a foreign exchange opportunity.

What is happening now?

The Russia-Ukraine war has hit many currencies hard. J.P. Morgan Research expects the US dollar, the Swiss franc and the Japanese yen to outperform high-beta currencies. The Russia-Ukraine conflict will likely see the euro weaken versus other reserve FX given the Eurozone’s reliance on Russia for energy.

Since the war in Ukraine began, the euro has lost value against the US dollar, British pound and other major currencies as investors believe the conflict will substantially slow the region’s economic growth rates. Goldman Sachs co-heads of global FX, rates and EM strategy, Zach Pandl and Kamakshya Trivedi, said the Wall Street giant’s constructive outlook on the euro was off the table as long as the military conflict continues.

So for how long will the euro fall? Standard Chartered Bank expects the uncertainty in Ukraine to plague short-term sentiment of the euro. Technically, the closest support level for EUR/USD is 1.10, followed by 1.08 and 1.0635; if the situation in Ukraine shows signs of stabilisation, this may trigger a rebound in EUR/USD towards 1.1400.

What does this mean to IIP investors?

The war in Ukraine has led to significant changes in the world’s major currencies, which impacts their purchasing power. For example if you earn in Hong Kong dollars, where HKD is the quote currency, the euro has dropped in value (EUR/HKD) from 9.5062 a year ago at its height to its current low of 8.4953 as of March this year. For USD, EUR/USD fell to a low of 1.0866 on March 7 from a high of 1.2339 in January last year.

The exchange rate of EUR/USD and EUR/HKD on March 12.

IIP investors are required to invest 1 million euros into IIP qualified projects when they receive their pre-approval letter after application. If investors can seize a currency opportunity by taking advantage of a strong USD or HKD, and a weak EUR, they can potentially enjoy significant savings. For example, when investing at 8.5 EUR/HKD, the 1 million euro investment sum only requires capital of HKD 8.5 million as opposed to HKD 9.5 million a year ago. Investors may find their capital can be used more effectively by saving around one million Hong Kong dollars.

As the Russia-Ukraine conflict intensifies and continues, and focus switches to the looming threat to European energy supplies, Pandl and Trivedi suggest that the currency will likely trade even lower—around 1.07-1.08, given the moves in other market variables.

Our advice to IIP investors considering Irish immigration is to seize this opportunity and apply and invest now.

What are the other factors to consider?

Exchange rates are very difficult, if not impossible, to predict, at least in the short to medium term. Investors may argue that the euro could still be underperforming against the USD or HKD in 3 or 5 years time when they can regain their capital at maturity.

The 4% net annual interest return from investing in Bartra’s nursing home project can be treated as the risk-adjusted return on capital for any currency depreciation or to price in inflation. It will still provide a significant income to investors over the 5-year investment term aside from the 100% capital return.

Additionally, it is always advisable that investors purchase investments in various currencies to gain international exposure and diversification, and reduce overall risk.

Summary

According to FxStreet, the bearish trend of the euro is expected to continue through Q1 and the Q2 of 2022, and is likely to face selling pressure in the short term. However, the euro has contributed to the stability, competitiveness and prosperity of European economies for more than two decades, and is the second-largest reserve currency as well as the second-most traded currency in the world after the US dollar. It should regain its value once there is more clarity around the current conflict and the European market regains its stability.

 

Disclaimer:

This should not be taken as advice on Foreign Exchange Trading. Investors must understand that FX involves risks. When converting foreign currencies into other currencies (including Hong Kong dollars), the fluctuations of foreign exchange may see customers make profits or incur serious losses.