World Citizenship Report 2023

The World Citizenship Report 2023 (WCR) is our second annual edition and reveals how the mass affluent, as well as high-net-worth-individuals (HNWIs) are searching for freedom.  Let’s unpack…

What is the World Citizenship Report?

The WCR is an industry-first endeavour to investigate the value of citizenship through the lens of the global-minded individual.

The post-Covid ‘normal’ has global citizens looking beyond the confines of their own borders when thinking about their own future, and the future of their families.

The WCR delivers a data-intensive product that highlights the importance of nationality. It measures 188 countries across five motivators that are most relevant among the newest generation of global citizens. It also aids in demystifying the standing of each country in the world in the context of certain motivators that determine what we consider important in our lives for us to thrive.

A holistic approach

In the 2023 edition of the WCR, we’ve taken a unique look at the needs of global citizens. We believe that one’s nationality and the rights enjoyed and the responsibilities required, should be considered from a personal perspective.

For some this may mean being able to enjoy better social safety and security for oneself and family, for others it could mean having increased access to better employment prospects and business opportunities. Perhaps it’s being able to live in territories with higher social and institutional stability.

The holistic approach we’ve taken this year concentrates on the factors that global citizens consider when deciding where to live, work, educate themselves and their families, and to place down secondary roots.

World Citizenship Index

The WCR showcases the World Citizenship Index (WCI), a distinctive tool that compares world citizenships from the perspective of a global citizen. The product of a research-driven approach that goes beyond ordinary concepts of passport strength, the WCI places emphasis on the diverse attitudes regarding key facets of citizenship.

Unlike other rating tools, the WCI ranking is designed to reflect a citizenship’s value through the lens of HNWIs and the newest generation of global citizens: the mass affluent population.

The five motivators

As we mentioned above, the unique methodology of the WCR is a product of comprehensive qualitative and quantitative research. The result is the evaluation of 188 nationalities across five motivators of citizenship according to their value to a mass affluent population across the globe.

The WCR highlights the strengths and weaknesses of each country through the assessment of five key motivators, namely:

This year, Quality of Life ranked in first position of the five pillars, overtaking both Physical Safety and Financial Freedom. 

Why do we need a World Citizenship Report

Global citizens are preparing for the future, in which they have more control over their freedoms. And they are securing these freedoms by ensuring that they have a second home through residency and citizenship programmes.

These are some of the changes that are rapidly occurring around us in 2023:

• Inflation
• broader macroeconomic volatility
• geopolitical instability, and
• energy uncertainty.

It can be challenging to keep up with how all these disparate factors influence people’s attitudes toward global citizenship.  The WCR, using the WCI, answers how can we keep abreast of the shifting kaleidoscope of citizenship values and priorities. It stands apart from other reports in the industry because it “examines which countries offer the most benefits for global citizens, particularly in a post-COVID world where those that have the means are consistently searching for greater opportunities and better protection” –Micha Emmett, CEO of CS Global Partners.  

“In the 2022 edition of the World Citizenship Report, we only surveyed high-net-worth individuals (HNWI), this year, we expanded the survey to include a wider audience in order to gain a better perspective of what people prioritise in terms of their own nationality. The expanded audience of over 1000 participants included both HNWIs and the mass affluent from across the globe.”

“Findings from the survey showed that while the research participants came from varied backgrounds and cultures, all with different needs and pain points, they all had one common goal: freedom,” concludes Micha Emmet, CEO of CS Global Partners.

How can I access the World Citizenship Report?

Click here for more information on our World Citizenship Report 2023. We also take an in-depth look at the five motivators that make up the unique methodology of the WCR.