Can non-nationals purchase real estate in Trinidad & Tobago?
The Foreign Investment Act of 1990 allows non nationals (including individuals and companies) to purchase up to one acre of land for residential purposes and up to five acres for commercial purposes provided that the purchase price is paid in an internationally traded currency through a bank or other entity authorized by law as a dealer in that currency. The non national must, through his/her attorney, deliver to the Minister of Finance, a notice specifying hi/her name, address and nationality, the date and registration particulars of the instrument by which he/she became the owner of the property and evidence of payment in foreign currency. If a non national wishes to purchase land in excess of the stipulated acreages, he/she must apply for a license from the President of the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago in order to do so. This application must indicate the proposed land use and must comply with the regulations of the relevant planning and environmental authorities.
