St. Lucia's citizenship by investment is the most sought-after and cheapest program on the list. Their passport is quite good, which offers ease of traveling across 123 countries without a visa. Individuals can apply for citizenship by contributing $100,000 to the National Economic Fund.
Dominica is one of the fastest passports you can get in the Caribbean. The process can take as little as two months, but the average is more around three. If you're looking for the quickest way to get a second citizenship, go with Dominica. Its program has been around since 1993 and is part of their constitution.
Malta is the country that offers the fastest citizenship program through investment. Residents need to show a one-year residency permit besides contributing the minimum required amount of € 750,000. However, a person with a three-year residency permit gets citizenship with less investment.
According to the WSA website, the fee is $75 for a three-year World Passport, $100 for five years, and $125 for ten years.
Japan once again holds the most powerful passport, allowing visa-free access to 193 countries, according to the Henley Passport Index's third quarter 2022 report released Tuesday.
The world's most powerful passports
Japanese citizens now hold the most passport power, as they are able to enter 193 nations visa free, or with visa-on-arrival. South Korea and Singapore hold joint second place, with both countries' passports enabling their citizens to access 192 nations without restrictions.
Vanuatu has the simplest and cheapest citizenship by investment conditions in the world. In our ranking, the country's program ranks third after Malta and Cyprus.
"Golden passports," formally known as citizenship by investment (CBI) programs, allow wealthy foreigners to receive citizenship or residency in exchange for investing a certain amount of money in a country. Over a dozen countries, including the US, offer immigrant investor programs.
The most difficult countries to obtain citizenship include Vatican City, Liechtenstein, Bhutan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Switzerland, China, and North Korea. If you have ever submitted an application for citizenship, you will know just how difficult the process can be.
1) Portugal
What make Portugal the easiest country in Europe to gain citizenship is that there are no physical presence requirements. Meaning you only need to hold your resident permit in order to qualify for naturalization. You don't need to spend most of the year in the country like most other countries.
Investors can obtain US citizenship, however, it is better to use a US passport when traveling abroad to maintain status. If a person wants to get another citizenship after the American one, he will lose his US passport. Details about the difference between second and dual citizenship.
The best option is to get your citizenship by heritage in the EU. Slovenia and Slovakia are the best options at the moment. You can also start a business with minimum investment, and this would be the cheapest citizenship by investment 2022 program.
Luckily, a number of countries offer Citizenship by Investment (CIP) programs where money — normally invested in real estate — can actually buy a second passport, and the elite status that comes along with owning citizenship in another country.
If you are committed to the dream, there are some opportunities to start your own country. Buying islands are very real. For example, Belize offers several islands for sale, some for less than a house and as little as $200k. After getting your island, you could start your own micro-nation.
Obtaining citizenship.
The investor, his or her spouse and children under 18 years old can apply for UK citizenship by investment one year after receiving permanent residence. During this period, it is important not to travel outside the UK for more than 90 days.
Paraguay. Paraguay is considered one of the easiest countries to immigrate to because of its investment visa and retirement scheme. Both of these options make it effortless to obtain permanent residency and then citizenship- granted, there is a catch; you need to be well off in terms of financial means.
Luckily, a number of countries offer Citizenship by Investment (CIP) programs where money — normally invested in real estate — can actually buy a second passport, and the elite status that comes along with owning citizenship in another country.
Mexico is the easiest and lowest cost residency visa period. Mexico also the most popular country with about 10 times more visas issued to US citizens than any other.
Travelers from Japan have the most global freedom, according to the results of a new study. Here's why: A Japanese passport allows its bearer to visit 193 countries without needing to first apply for a visa, according to a quarterly report by global citizenship and residence advisory firm Henley & Partners.
Japan has the world's most powerful passport - providing hassle-free entry to 193 countries. Just one country short, Singapore and South Korea are tied in second place, according to the latest Henley Passport Index from Henley & Partners, an immigration consultancy.
The British passport is the world's sixth most powerful with visa-free or visa on-arrival access to 187 countries. The UK passport was one place ahead of the US at 186 countries, while EU states dominated much of the top rankings, data from Henley & Partners' 2022 Henley Passport Index showed.