Vanuatu Development Support Program (DSP)
The Development Support Program is Vanuatu's sole route: a 130,000 USD contribution for a single applicant or 180,000 USD for a family of four, as commonly reported for 2026, though due diligence and processing fees typically push the all-in total to 150,000-165,000 USD. Approval is fully remote and commonly completed in one to two months, with no visit, residence or interview required at any stage. Family scope extends to dependent parents, a feature not every programme offers. Compare it against other fast routes on our comparator.
Key figures
- From
- $130 000≈ $173 550 for a family of four, fees included
- Processing time
- 1–2 months
- Physical presence
- None. No visit, residence or interview is required before or after grant — the process is fully remote.
- Family
- Spouse, dependent children, and — a Vanuatu particularity — dependent parents, subject to the current age and dependency rules of the Citizenship Office.
Timeline and status
The programme announces 1–2 months. That is the official figure, not a commitment. Status checked against Vanuatu Citizenship Office & Commission — site officiel on .
Vanuatu is widely regarded as the fastest citizenship-by-investment programme; approvals in about one to two months are routinely reported, faster than any Caribbean unit.
Investment routes and what each one really costs
| Route | Official minimum | Real total, family of four | Hold | Recoverable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DonationDSP contribution for a single applicant, as commonly reported for 2026. On top sit due diligence, processing and agent fees, so the real single cost is higher than the headline — budget closer to 150,000–165,000 USD all-in. | $130 000 | ≈ $173 550 | — | No |
| DonationDSP contribution for a family of four (main applicant, spouse, two children), as commonly reported for 2026. Additional dependants raise the figure; confirm the current schedule with the Citizenship Office. | $180 000 | ≈ $240 300 | — | No |
Limits and drawbacks
- Mobility has collapsed, and this is the decisive point: the European Union suspended visa-free Schengen access for Vanuatu passport holders, Switzerland has required a visa since 4 February 2025, and the United Kingdom also requires one. If your goal is visa-free travel to Europe, this passport no longer delivers it.
- The headline contribution is not the real cost: due diligence, government processing and agent fees push a single applicant well above the 130,000 USD figure — budget 150,000–165,000 USD all-in.
- Because approval is fast and remote, Vanuatu has drawn heightened international scrutiny over due diligence; expect thorough source-of-funds checks, and confirm current eligibility for your nationality directly with the Citizenship Office.
- Exact contribution amounts and fees have changed repeatedly; verify the current schedule on vancitizenship.gov.vu before relying on any figure.
What it gets you
- The fastest programme on the market — approvals commonly in one to two months
- Fully remote: no visit, residence or interview
- Family-friendly scope, including dependent parents
- A genuine zero personal-income-tax jurisdiction
Where the sources disagree
How many countries can a Vanuatu passport still enter visa-free?
- What the official source says
- The Citizenship Office promotes visa-free access to a large number of destinations, a figure that predates the European suspensions and is not updated for them.
- What practitioners report
- Passport-power indices have downgraded Vanuatu materially since the EU, Switzerland and UK moves; the practically useful count today is well below the headline once Schengen and the UK are removed.
- What is not settled
- No single authoritative, current list reconciles the marketing figure with the post-suspension reality. Treat any visa-free count for Vanuatu as provisional, and check the specific countries you care about before relying on them.
Official sources
Tax in brief
- No personal income tax at all — a genuine zero-income-tax jurisdiction
- No corporate income tax on company profits
- No capital gains, inheritance, estate or wealth tax
- Government revenue rests on VAT (15%) and import duties
- Citizenship does not by itself make you tax-resident
Who else accepts the same kind of investment
Compare it with another jurisdiction
| — | Nauru | Vanuatu |
|---|---|---|
| Official minimum | $90 000lower | $130 000 |
| Real total, family of 4 (fees included) | ≈ $120 150lower | ≈ $173 550 |
| Announced processing | 3–4 months | 1–2 monthsfaster |
| Presence required | None.Identical on this line | None.Identical on this line |
| Investment routes | DonationIdentical on this line | DonationIdentical on this line |
| A route returns the capital | NoIdentical on this line | NoIdentical on this line |
| Open to Russian applicants | YesIdentical on this line | YesIdentical on this line |
| Region | PacificIdentical on this line | PacificIdentical on this line |
Open the country page · NauruOpen the country page · Vanuatu
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What we do for you
Citizenship or residence, the honest answer often is not the one you arrived with. We take the whole procedure with you — eligibility, the route that fits your situation, the file, the follow-up — with one person on your side throughout.
For Vanuatu specifically, you are talking to someone who already knows the file: who to speak to on the ground, what the unit actually asks for, and the points where applications stall.
- One point of contact, from the first call to the certificate
- Vetted partners on the ground — law firms, licensed agents, banks — introduced, not listed
- It starts with a short qualifying call, and no, it is not a sales call
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