Vanuatu Citizenship: Second Passport in Under 60 Days

July 22, 2021

The current Vanuatu Citizenship Program, launched in January 2017, aims to stimulate the economy of the country through attracting the capital of foreigners. As a result, the approved applicants can obtain Vanuatu passport and citizenship by investment.

Vanuatu is located in the Pacific Ocean, next to Australia and New Zealand. The capital city is Port Vila with a population of 267,000. The name VANUATU comes from the words “vanua” (“land” / “house”) and “tu” (“stand”). The two words together refers to the independent status of the island country in 1980.

Vanuatu Citizenship by Investment Program

Currently, the Citizenship by Investment Program of Vanuatu only includes the option of making economic contribution to the government fund.

In 2020, the Vanuatu Department of Citizenship Program has drafted the law containing the possibility of obtaining a second passport and citizenship by purchasing real estate in Vanuatu. If local legislators permit relevant amendments to the law, investors will be able to get the second passport of Vanuatu through purchasing property. By launching this new program, Vanuatu, as an attractive Pacific jurisdiction, will strengthen the position of the South Pacific jurisdiction in the global market of investment immigration.

Investments options offered by Vanuatu Citizenship by Investment Program

Those with minimum age of 18 and no criminal records can apply for Vanuatu citizenship. The applicants also need to prove of having minimum of 250,000 USD assets to be qualified.

The following are the investment options for obtaining Vanuatu Citizenship (Passport):

Donation to Vanuatu Development Funds as follows:

130,000 USD – Single Applicant,
150,000 USD – Main Applicant and Spouse,
165,000 USD – Main Applicant, Spouse and 1 Child,
180,000 USD – Main Applicant, Spouse and 2 Children,
15,000 USD – Per Additional Child or Parent above 50 years.

Benefits of Vanuatu citizenship (passport)

The Vanuatu passport is one of the most affordable in the market of citizenship programs. It brings the investors visa-free travel access to the European Union, Hong Kong, Singapore, United Kingdom, and many other countries.

Some benefits of Vanuatu Citizenship (passport) are as follows:

The fast processing (1-2 months),
Visa-free access to more than 140 countries including 26 Schengen area,
No residency requirements for applicants,
Application may include all family members,
Payment in Bitcoin for the Citizenship by Investment Program under special circumstances,
No income, wealth, and inheritance taxes,
Dual citizenship permitted,
No language requirement,
Renewal of the passports in every 5 years,
Perfect location for family trips.

Gotten rid of unnecessary bureaucracy, the local authorities of Vanuatu now allow the applicants to apply for the program without visiting the country. Thus, you are not required to have an extensive travel in order to obtain citizenship and a passport in Vanuatu.

The procedures of obtaining Vanuatu citizenship

The application process of the Citizenship by Investment Program of Vanuatu is so fast, simple, and affordable that no investors can avoid it! The applicants just need to go through the following stages:

Stages 1: You have to choose the licensed immigration agent and discuss your goals and desires with him or her and sign an agreement with the agent,

Stages 2: The agent will conduct preliminary due diligence checks. Then documents will start to be prepared and forms completed,

Stages 3: The agent will submit your application for citizenship plus all the supporting documents to the immigration authorities on Vanuatu,

Stages 4: The authorities will process the application,

Stages 5: If their decision is positive, you can make the donation in the required amount,

Stages 6: You will obtain the citizenship certificate and the passport of Vanuatu.

The government of the country tries its best to make the process easy and simple and also makes the program as attractive as possible for foreign investors.

Pay with Bitcoin to Get Vanuatu Citizenship

Vanuatu is the first country which offers the investors to pay with bitcoin for the citizenship by investment program. However, you are not allowed to pay directly in bitcoin, but through an authorized agent. Then, the funds are remitted to the Vanuatu government in USD.

The popularity records of Vanuatu passport

In spite of the pandemic, the demand for obtaining Vanuatu citizenship is always high. According to the reports of the government, citizenship by investment programs could contribute about 132.6 million dollars to the economy in 2020, which shows 25.8% raise comparing 2019. Therefore, the program has been the largest source of revenue for the local government, so far.

The table below presents the amount of earning from the citizenship program of Vanuatu from 2017 up to now:

According to the table, the funds from Vanuatu citizenship program has remarkably increased during five years. So, it won’t be an exaggeration if the government claims that today’s economic citizenship programs are the lifeblood of the Vanuatu economy.

It can be said that in 2020, about 42% of all government revenues earned from two investment-based citizenship programs: the VCP/Vanuatu Contribution Program (for the Chinese) and the DSP/Development Support Program (for everyone). The previous record was about 37% of state revenues in 2019.

New horizons of the Citizenship by Investment Program of Vanuatu in 2021

Although the tourism industry disruption caused by the pandemic is devastating, local authorities of Vanuatu have contributed to the national budget by simplifying the process of granting Vanuatu citizenship for investment. Regarding this, the candidates are not required to meet the Vanuatu officials outside the new homeland or a make a personal visit to Vanuatu territory. Currently, the applicants have the opportunity to take the oath of allegiance to the new homeland via videoconference.

Additionally, the Vanuatu Investment Migration Bureau has finally announced the introduction of a CBI Real Estate Option (REO) to Parliament at the beginning of April 2021 after more than four years since the launch of the program.

As Ronald Warsal, chairman of the Vanuatu National Citizenship Commission, stated the crucial aspect of their efforts is to develop the program to generate greater benefits for the wider economy. The government aims to attract investment into Vanuatu through providing more opportunities for the investors. However, the kind of real estate and the minimum amount of investment are still unknown. The government emphasizes that making decision about all of these depends on the experiences of other countries with the citizenship by investment program.

For more information, please contact one of our advisors in UAE, Denmark or Canada, and we will do our utmost to guide you through your Investment and Vanuatu Citizenship by Investment process.

If you have any questions or experience in this regard, please comment below.