The real price of a second passport: every programme ranked for a family of four

A citizenship-by-investment price has three layers. The qualifying investment is the donation, property or fund subscription the law requires. Government fees — due diligence, processing, certificates, passports — are charged per person and add 5% to 15%. Professional fees for the licensed agent and lawyers come on top and vary by provider; ours are published on each programme page.

This ranking covers the first two layers, because they are set by governments and can be compared honestly. All figures are from each programme's published fee schedule as used in our cost calculator, checked on 30 September 2026, for a main applicant, a spouse and two children under 16.

The 2026 ranking: all-in government cost for a family of four

Notice what happens to Dominica. As a single applicant it is the cheapest Caribbean passport by a wide margin; with a family of four it drops to eighth, because its fund contribution rises to $250,000 for families while Grenada, Antigua and St Lucia price a family of four at the same level as a single applicant. Family shape changes the ranking, which is why we never quote a "cheapest" programme without asking who is on the file.

Under $150,000: the three lowest-cost passports

São Tomé & Príncipe: the cheapest active programme

Launched in September 2025, São Tomé charges $90,000 for a single applicant and $95,000 for a family of up to four, plus $5,000 per extra dependant and a $5,000 submission and due diligence fee. Processing has run between two and five months. The passport opens around 60 destinations visa-free — not Schengen, not the UK — and the United States added it to its visa-bond list in October 2025. For many buyers, its real value is Portuguese-speaking community membership and a neutral second nationality rather than travel.

Nauru: low price, climate mission

Nauru's contribution is $90,000 for the principal applicant under a limited-time rate valid for applications filed before 31 December 2026, after which it returns to $115,000. Each dependant aged 16 or over adds $2,000, siblings $15,000, and application, due diligence, bank and passport fees apply per person. The passport reaches roughly 86 destinations, without visa-free Schengen or UK access. Russian, North Korean and Iranian nationals are excluded.

Vanuatu: fastest, but no longer a Schengen passport

Vanuatu has two routes. The Development Support Program is a straight donation from $130,000 for a single applicant and $180,000 for a family of four. The relaunched Capital Investment Immigration Plan costs slightly more upfront for a single person but prices families of up to four at about $155,000 to $165,000, with roughly $50,000 refundable after four to five years. Vanuatu's visa-free access to the Schengen area was suspended in February 2025 and it lost UK visa-free access in 2023, so it is now bought for speed and neutrality, not European travel.

The Caribbean band: $250,000 to $280,000

Since the 2024 regional price floor, the five Caribbean programmes cost roughly the same for a family: between about $258,000 and $278,000 all-in. The choice between them now rests on three things the price does not show:

• Travel. Grenada, Antigua and St Kitts keep visa-free UK access; Dominica and St Lucia now need UK visas. Antigua and Dominica are subject to 2026 US visa restrictions.
• Speed. St Kitts averages about five months, St Lucia about eighteen.
• Family rules. Age limits for children, parents and siblings differ; a family with adult children or parents can find one programme far cheaper than another.

We compare the five in depth in five Caribbean passports, head to head, and explain the 2026 rule changes in Caribbean citizenship in 2026.

What the cheapest passports actually buy

Price only makes sense next to what a passport does. The table compares the programmes in this ranking on the destinations most of our clients care about.

Read the two tables together and a pattern appears: every step up in price between $100,000 and $280,000 buys a clear step up in travel. Between the Caribbean programmes themselves, the differences are smaller and more specific — the UK and US columns matter more than the headline count.

When the cheapest option is the one you get back

A donation is gone once paid. Real-estate, bond and deposit routes cost more upfront but can be recovered after a holding period, so their real cost is the fees, the transaction costs and the return you give up.

Real-estate routes rarely return the full price: approved developments often resell below their CBI price, and exit depends on finding a buyer. We model each one against the donation before recommending it.

Programmes we left out, and why

Jordan after its 2025 reform

Jordan reformed its investment routes in July 2025, replacing the older deposit options with project-based investments starting around JOD 350,000 (about $490,000) and capping approvals at 500 a year. It is a niche option for founders interested in the US E-2 treaty — which requires three years' domicile in Jordan first — not a low-cost passport.

North Macedonia’s dormant route

North Macedonia's economic citizenship route still appears in many rankings at €200,000, but it has been largely dormant, with only a handful of grants in 2023–2024, and the European Union is pressing for its repeal as part of accession talks. We do not recommend building a plan on it.

Paraguay: residence first, passport later

Paraguay is not citizenship by investment: an investment grants permanent residence, and citizenship follows after three years of residence with genuine ties. At about $70,000 for the investment route it is the lowest entry point of all, but it is a slower, residence-based path. See Paraguay.

Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone announced solo and family routes from $95,000 in 2026. The programme runs on presidential discretion while its regulations are pending; we are watching it, but it is too new to rank.

The costs no ranking shows

• Adult children and parents. Most programmes charge supplements of $10,000 to $50,000 per dependant beyond four, and higher due diligence for adults.
• Enhanced due diligence. Applicants from some countries or with complex wealth pay additional checks.
• Renewals and biometrics. St Kitts now requires biometric enrolment; several programmes issue first passports valid for five years only.
• Stay requirements. A future 30-day stay in the Caribbean means travel costs within five years.
• Currency and transfer costs. Contributions are paid in US dollars from verified accounts; conversion and bank charges add up on six-figure transfers.
• Professional fees. Licensed agent and legal fees are unavoidable. Ask for them in writing, per stage — ours are on every programme page.

Paying safely: how contributions are made

A low price is worthless if the money goes to the wrong place. In every legitimate programme, the qualifying contribution is paid only after the government issues an approval in principle, and it goes directly to a government account, an approved developer or a regulated escrow agent — never to an individual or to an agent's personal account. Due diligence and processing fees are paid at submission, usually through the licensed agent, against official receipts.

Before paying anything, check that your agent appears on the official list of authorised agents published by the programme — most citizenship units publish one — and ask for the government's payment instructions in writing. Offers of discounts below the published minimum, or requests to pay the contribution before approval, are red flags. Since 2024, Caribbean programmes have made discounting below the regional minimum unlawful.

How to choose when price is not the only factor

1. Start with eligibility. Nationality bans, previous refusals and source of funds narrow the list before price does.
2. Define the job of the passport. Schengen and UK travel, a US visa route, a neutral nationality for banking, or a family plan B each point to different programmes.
3. Price your actual family. Run the cost calculator with every person you plan to include.
4. Compare recoverable routes if you have capital that can be parked for three to five years.
5. Weigh speed and stability. A programme under EU pressure or facing rule changes may be cheaper for a reason.

Cheapest second passport: straight answers