2025 was a busy year for the citizenship-by-investment market: programs were closed, new players entered the market, and some announced launches and are actively preparing their own versions of the program. In times of high turbulence, both politically and economically, in many countries, investors are looking to diversify their risks. There’s demand, which means the citizenship by investment market will respond.
— AFRICA —
São Tomé and Príncipe
The Sao Tome and Principe citizenship by investment program began accepting applications in the fall of 2025. This official government initiative was launched to support economic sectors such as renewable energy, ecotourism development, education, and infrastructure. In the global citizenship-by-investment market, this program fills an important niche offering for the “middle class”. So, a significant advantage of São Tomé’s program is the investment requirement of $90,000 (USD) (a non-refundable contribution to a government fund) for a single applicant and $95,000 (USD) for 2-4 people.
Sao Tome and Principe does not participate in the Common Reporting Standards (CRS), FATCA (the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act), or similar automatic information exchange systems. Financial accounts opened in the country are not subject to automatic disclosure abroad. Non-residents are only subject to taxation on income earned within São Tomé and Príncipe.
São Tomé does not have visa-free travel agreements with Schengen countries or the UK. The main advantage of this citizenship-by-investment program is its cost and speed of processing.
— OCEANIA —
Nauru
The Pacific island nation recently launched its own Citizenship by Investment program, which requires a minimum $105,000 contribution. The first applications were processed in September 2025. And in December, the UK introduced visa requirements for Nauruan citizens. The UK authorities took a negative view of this program and revoked Nauru’s visa-free entry privilege, as they had previously done with Vanuatu (in 2023).
— US —
Trump Card
President Trump’s initiative occupies a unique position in the market. It’s a Golden Visa, not a citizenship program, but given the visa restrictions imposed by the United States, we consider it essential for this review.
In December 2025, applications for the Trump Gold Card began being accepted through the portal https://trumpcard.gov/. Currently, the following options are available under this program: for individuals, this is the payment of a $15,000 processing fee and, if approved, a payment of $1 million.
And $2 million for company employees (you can send an employee to permanent residence in the US, and then even replace him with another without new investments, but with the payment of a transfer fee and fees for checking the candidate) – also $15,000 for processing.
The previously announced third option, the Trump Platinum Card, is still in development. As a reminder, it requires a $5 million investment and offers the privilege of tax-free income outside the US, while allowing stays in the US for up to 270 days.
— LATIN AMERICA —
Argentina
Argentina’s citizenship by investment program will not launch until late 2026 or early 2027, according to an official tender published by the Argentine government. Applications for the program’s Master Agent will be accepted until January 20, 2026. Once selected, companies will have two months to define and agree on all participation criteria, including investment options.
Six months are then given to prepare for processing, but overall, the program must launch no later than 12 months after signing the contract with the master agent. Argentina is taking a serious approach to launching this option for investors, and we are monitoring developments.
