The cheapest fast passport in the Pacific — now without EU or UK visa-free access. The honest cost-benefit, with official figures.
Overview
Vanuatu's citizenship-by-investment offerings — the Development Support Program (DSP) and the Capital Investment Immigration Plan (CIIP) — are administered by the Vanuatu Citizenship Commission under the Citizenship Act [CAP 112], with contributions historically published from US$130,000 for a single DSP applicant and tiered amounts for couples and families; applications go exclusively through government-designated agents, and the Commission suspended the CIIP in March 2025 for a regulatory overhaul, so current program status and pricing must be confirmed before committing funds. The cost question is now inseparable from a value question: the European Union partially suspended Vanuatu's Schengen visa waiver in 2022, fully suspended it in 2023, and on 12 December 2024 the Council formally ended the exemption — moving Vanuatu to the EU's visa-required list specifically because of the investor-citizenship schemes. The United Kingdom imposed a visit-visa requirement on Vanuatu nationals on 19 July 2023 on the same grounds. Residence (as opposed to citizenship) runs through the Department of Immigration and Passport Services, with published visa charges from VT57,600 (one year) to VT511,200 (ten years). Verified against immigration.gov.vu, consilium.europa.eu and gov.uk as of June 2026.
What the Vanuatu Passport No Longer Buys — Verified Timeline
- EU/Schengen — gone permanently: the EU partially suspended the visa waiver for Vanuatu passport holders in 2022 (initially targeting passports issued from 25 May 2015), extended it to a full suspension in 2023, and on 12 December 2024 the Council of the EU adopted the regulation ending the exemption outright — Vanuatu was moved from the visa-exempt list to the visa-required list of Regulation (EU) 2018/1806. The Council's stated reason: the investor citizenship schemes created security and migration risks, granting EU access to nationals who would otherwise need visas.
- United Kingdom — visa required since 2023: on 19 July 2023 the UK imposed a visit-visa requirement on ni-Vanuatu nationals (alongside Dominica and Honduras), citing 'clear and evident abuse' of citizenship-by-investment schemes including grants to individuals known to pose a risk to the UK. A transition ran to 16 August 2023; all Vanuatu passport holders now need a Standard Visitor visa.
- This applies to every Vanuatu passport, not just CBI-acquired ones — native-born ni-Vanuatu citizens lost the same access.
- What remains: visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to a reduced set of destinations (parts of Asia and the Commonwealth among them). Verify any destination that matters to you against the destination government's own rules before treating it as a program benefit — agent marketing maps are frequently stale.
- Could it come back? Only via a new EU legislative amendment. The EU's position ties any reconsideration to dismantling or fundamentally reforming the investor-citizenship schemes; no timetable exists. Buying this passport on the assumption of restored Schengen access is speculation, not planning.
Citizenship Program Contributions (Confirm Current Figures Before Paying)
- DSP (Development Support Program): the established donation route, created by regulation under the Citizenship Act in 2017. The published contribution for a single applicant has stood at US$130,000, with tiered levels for couples and families (around US$150,000–US$180,000 for a family of four in published schedules), plus due-diligence, processing and agent fees on top.
- CIIP (Capital Investment Immigration Plan): a newer plan combining a contribution with a partially refundable investment component, marketed around US$155,000–US$165,000 for a family of up to four. The Commission suspended the CIIP on 17 March 2025 for a government regulatory overhaul to tighten due diligence — confirm its current status and terms directly before engaging.
- Designated agents only: you cannot apply directly to the Commission; applications are lodged through government-designated agents, whose professional fees are additional and vary. Insist on seeing the government fee schedule itemized separately from agent charges.
- Processing: historically among the world's fastest (one to three months) — a speed that itself fed EU and UK due-diligence concerns and the subsequent visa actions.
- What you receive: honorary citizenship under the Citizenship Act — a Vanuatu passport and citizen status, but without the right to vote or hold public office. Dual citizenship has been permitted since constitutional changes in 2013, so renunciation of your existing nationality is not required.
Residence Visas — the Official Categories (Department of Immigration and Passport Services)
| Category | Core requirement | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Self-funded Resident | Certified income of VT250,000/month from a Vanuatu bank (VT500,000 if including a spouse/de facto partner) | The retiree/independent-means route; pre-Feb 2011 self-funded retirees keep legacy criteria |
| Foreign Investor | Approval certificate as a foreign investor from the Vanuatu Investment Promotion Authority (VIPA) plus business licence where applicable | Investment approval precedes the immigration application |
| Leasehold Holder | Leasehold property valued at VT10,000,000+ and income criteria | All Vanuatu land is customary-owned; foreigners hold long leases, not freehold |
| Employee | Employment in Vanuatu of at least 12 months | Work permit obligations run alongside |
| Partner | Marriage or genuine de facto relationship with a Vanuatu citizen or resident | Includes widowed-spouse provisions |
| Child | Dependent child of a citizen or resident | Dependants: unmarried under 18, or 18–20 if financially/physically dependent |
Official Fees and Filing Mechanics
- Residence visa charges scale with duration: for applicants 18 and over, from VT57,600 for a one-year visa up to VT511,200 for a ten-year visa; applicants under 18 pay VT2,880. Visas are issued for 1, 3, 5 or 10-year terms depending on category.
- Payment is by bank cheque in vatu, submitted with the application form (block letters) and certified copies of documents per the category checklist published by the Department of Immigration and Passport Services.
- Family inclusion: spouse (married or de facto) and dependent children — unmarried under 18, or 18–20 where financially, psychologically or physically dependent — can be included in one application.
- Investor sequencing: for the Foreign Investor category, obtain the VIPA approval certificate first (foreign-investment screening under Vanuatu's foreign-investment legislation), then the business licence, then the residence visa — immigration will not waive the investment-approval step.
- Citizenship program fees are separate from these residence charges and are denominated in US dollars through the Citizenship Commission's designated-agent structure.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Vanuatu passport still visa-free to Europe?
No — and this is permanent, not a suspension. The EU partially suspended Vanuatu's Schengen visa waiver in 2022, fully suspended it in 2023, and on 12 December 2024 the Council of the EU adopted the regulation formally ending the exemption, moving Vanuatu to the visa-required list of Regulation (EU) 2018/1806. The EU's stated reason was Vanuatu's investor citizenship schemes and the security and migration risks they created. Every Vanuatu passport holder — including citizens by birth — now needs a Schengen visa. Reversal would require new EU legislation, which the EU has tied to fundamental reform of the citizenship-sale schemes; no such reversal is scheduled or promised.
Can Vanuatu citizens still visit the UK without a visa?
No. The UK imposed a visit-visa requirement on ni-Vanuatu nationals on 19 July 2023, announced in a Statement of Changes in Immigration Rules and a Home Office notice, with a short transition for travel booked before the announcement that ended on 16 August 2023. The UK said its review of Vanuatu's citizenship-by-investment scheme showed 'clear and evident abuse,' including citizenship granted to individuals known to pose a risk to the UK. Vanuatu passport holders must now obtain a Standard Visitor visa (normally up to six months) before travelling. Dominica and Honduras lost UK visa-free access in the same change, for related reasons.
What does Vanuatu citizenship actually cost in 2026?
The published DSP contribution has stood at US$130,000 for a single applicant, with tiered family levels (roughly US$150,000–US$180,000 for a family of four in published schedules), plus due-diligence fees, passport fees and the designated agent's charges — realistic all-in costs run meaningfully above the headline donation. The CIIP alternative (around US$155,000–US$165,000 with a partially refundable component) was suspended by the Commission in March 2025 for a due-diligence overhaul. Because pricing and program status have moved repeatedly, treat any agent quote as unverified until reconciled against the Citizenship Commission's current official schedule — and weigh the total against what the passport now delivers without EU or UK access.
Is Vanuatu CBI citizenship full citizenship?
Functionally for travel and residence, yes; politically, no. DSP and CIIP grants are honorary citizenship under the Citizenship Act [CAP 112]: you receive a Vanuatu passport, the right to live in Vanuatu, and the status of citizen, but not the right to vote or stand for public office. Dual citizenship has been permitted since Vanuatu's 2013 constitutional changes, so you keep your existing nationality. Citizenship can be revoked for fraud or misrepresentation in the application — a live consideration given the Commission's post-2024 tightening and the international scrutiny of past grants. Children can generally be included, and the citizenship is heritable, but political rights remain excluded for the honorary class.
What are the residence alternatives if I don't want to buy citizenship?
The Department of Immigration and Passport Services issues residence visas in 1, 3, 5 or 10-year terms across six main categories. The most used by foreigners: Self-funded Resident — certified income of VT250,000 per month into a Vanuatu bank (VT500,000 including a spouse); Foreign Investor — a VIPA investment-approval certificate plus business licence; and Leasehold Holder — a lease valued at VT10 million or more plus income criteria. Official visa charges run from VT57,600 (one year, adult) to VT511,200 (ten years). Residence gives you a Pacific base at a fraction of CBI cost — and after ten years' residence, ordinary naturalization becomes available under the Citizenship Act.
Why is the program so much cheaper than Caribbean alternatives now?
Because the product changed. Vanuatu's pricing (US$130,000 single) was always at the low end, but pre-2022 it bought Schengen and UK visa-free access with one-to-two-month processing — the fastest meaningful passport on the market. The EU's suspension-then-revocation (final in December 2024) and the UK's 2023 visa imposition removed the two headline travel benefits, while Caribbean programs (which retain EU access, for now, under their own EU scrutiny) repriced upward to US$200,000+. What Vanuatu still offers: speed, a genuine second passport for diversification, no residence or visit requirement, no tax on the grant, and dual citizenship. Whether that is worth six figures without EU/UK access is the decision — make it on verified, current facts.