Residency
Citizenship by investment
Also known as CBI, economic citizenship
Citizenship by investment is the grant of nationality in exchange for a qualifying contribution or investment, generally without a residence requirement. A small number of countries operate such programmes, principally in the Caribbean and the Pacific, alongside a longer list that has closed them.
In plain terms: A passport bought directly, rather than through residence or descent.
Why it matters
The five Caribbean programmes agreed a common minimum contribution and mandatory interviews in 2024. Malta's scheme was found incompatible with EU law, and Vanuatu lost EU visa-free access — the benefit most buyers were paying for.
Common misunderstanding
Expecting it to change a tax position. Citizenship and tax residence are unrelated concepts almost everywhere; the exception is the United States, which taxes citizens wherever they live and which no second passport releases you from without renunciation.
Read the full guideCitizenship by investment, priced honestly