
Citizenship by investment
Economic citizenship programs allow you to get citizenship in exchange of a substantial contribution. These also include citizenship by exception or merit-based programs.

Diversify your passport portfolio with a second or third citizenship and give your family more privacy, wealth and freedom for generations to come.
+100 countries allow dual citizenship
Second or third passport
Citizenship by investment or descent
A second citizenship is a full, legal citizenship you acquire in addition to the one you were born with, giving you a second passport, the permanent right to live in another country, and rights you pass on to your children. Around 100 countries allow it. You can acquire one through ancestry, investment, naturalization, or marriage, and the right route depends mostly on your family tree and your timeline.
The benefits of a second passport go beyond visa-free travel and mobility.
Limit your dependency on any one particular state with multiple passports in strategic jurisdictions.
Get a stronger passport to travel freely (and longer) to the world's most desirable destinations.
Access tax and crypto-friendly jurisdictions to safeguard your wealth.
Give your loved ones access to safe locations when uncertainty strikes.
Keep your primary passport private. Use a different one for banking, business, and travel.
Build your legacy with an asset that ensures optionality and freedom for future generations.
They describe the same situation from two angles. Dual citizenship is the legal status of being a full citizen of two countries at once. A second citizenship is the additional nationality you go out and acquire, which is what creates that status. If both countries involved allow the combination, you hold both citizenships completely: two passports, two sets of rights, no ranking between them. The full definitions, obligations, and edge cases are in our glossary entry on dual citizenship.
Direct citizenship programs, such as those by investment or descent, are usually the preferred pathway to acquire a second citizenship because of their little to no presence requirements and reduced time to passport. This flexibility is key for HNWIs looking to obtain dual citizenship.

Economic citizenship programs allow you to get citizenship in exchange of a substantial contribution. These also include citizenship by exception or merit-based programs.

Some countries allow you to claim citizenship if you have ancestry and fulfill other requirements.
A second citizenship is a full legal citizenship acquired in addition to your original one. It comes with a second passport, the unconditional right to live and work in that country, and, in almost all cases, citizenship for your children. It is permanent: unlike visas and residence permits, it does not expire and cannot be cancelled by a policy change.
For practical purposes, yes. Dual citizenship is the legal status of holding two nationalities; a second citizenship is the one you go out and acquire. If both your countries allow the combination, you hold both fully, with both passports.

Most countries allow you to apply for naturalization after some years as a permanent resident, in many cases with additional requirements such as language and history tests.

A few countries will allow you to get citizenship if you marry one of their citizens, in some cases requiring a period of residency as well.
Five routes exist: descent (a qualifying parent, grandparent, or sometimes great-grandparent), investment (twelve countries run formal programs), naturalization (years of legal residence), marriage (accelerated naturalization in most countries), and exceptional grants for merit. Check descent first; it is the cheapest by a factor of fifty, and more people qualify than know it.
By descent, usually $500 to $10,000 in fees, archives, and translations. By investment, from roughly $200,000 in the Caribbean to $400,000 in Türkiye, plus 15–20% in due diligence and professional fees. Naturalization and marriage cost fees rather than capital, and years rather than months.
If you qualify by ancestry, a descent claim: Ireland's Foreign Births Register costs a few hundred euros. If you do not, the cheapest formal investment programs start around $105,000 (Nauru) to $140,000 (Vanuatu), though the Caribbean programs from $200,000 buy considerably stronger passports.
Depends on what you hold. With Irish or Italian ancestry, those claims are the easiest meaningful citizenships in the world. Without ancestry: a Caribbean investment program (four to nine months, no residence, no language test) or Argentina's two-year naturalization if you are willing to move.
For most Americans with European ancestry, an EU citizenship by descent (Ireland, Italy, Poland) beats anything money can buy: a whole continent of living and working rights for archive-fee prices. Without a claim, Americans most often choose Caribbean programs for speed or Portugal's five-year naturalization for an EU passport worth waiting for. The US allows dual citizenship with every country, so nothing is at risk on the American side.
Investment programs: four to twelve months. Descent claims: one to three years, mostly spent on archives and consulate queues. Naturalization: the residence period (two years in Argentina, five in Portugal) plus processing. Nothing legitimate is faster than about four months; treat anything quicker as a warning sign.
Through a legislated government program, yes, and verifiably so: every real program is published on the issuing government's own website with official pricing and licensed agents. What is illegal is the gray market around it: forged documents, unofficial "contacts," and passports from programs that do not exist. If you cannot verify it on a government domain, it is not citizenship.
Only if your country restricts dual nationality. Around 100 countries allow it freely, including the US, UK, Canada, and (since 2024) Germany. China, India, Singapore, and about 25 others terminate or restrict it. Check your country on the Dual Citizenship Index before you start; it is the first question that matters.
Investment programs are built for families: spouse, dependent children, and often parents join one application. Descent claims extend to everyone who shares the ancestor. Children born after you acquire citizenship receive it automatically in nearly all cases, which is much of the point.
As many as your countries allow. No international law caps the number; triple citizenship works exactly like dual. Each addition multiplies options and paperwork in roughly equal measure.
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