Vanuatu CBI Costs in 2026: Government Contribution, Due Diligence and Hidden Fees

Most adverts for Vanuatu citizenship show one number: $130,000. That figure is real, but it is only the government contribution for a single applicant under one of the two routes. When families ask me for a budget, I build it from separate lines, so that each item can be checked against what the state actually charges.

Below I go through every line, explain who receives the money and when, and finish with worked examples for a single applicant, a couple and a family of four.

The two contributions

Vanuatu offers two main routes with the same passport and the same rights. The difference is only financial.

DSP: a non-refundable contribution

Under the Development Support Program the contribution goes to the government and is not returned. It depends on the family:

Applicants	DSP contribution
One person	$130,000
Couple	$150,000
Couple and one child	$165,000
Couple and two children	$180,000
Each additional person	plus $26,500

CIIP fund: partly returned after five years

Under the CIIP fund a family of up to four pays one amount of $157,000. After five years the state buys back the holding and returns $50,000. Each person beyond four adds $26,500. Leaving the fund early is possible, but you lose part of the amount under the contract terms.

The fee everyone forgets: FIU due diligence

The Financial Intelligence Unit checks every adult on the application. Its fee is:

• $5,000 per application under the DSP;
• $8,000 per application under the CIIP fund.

Three things matter about this fee. It is charged once per application, not per person. It is paid when the application is filed. And it is not refunded if the application is refused. That last point is why I insist on a preliminary check of background and source of funds before anyone pays it.

The other lines in a real budget

Passports and ID cards. After approval, each family member receives a citizenship certificate, a passport and an ID card, paid at the official tariff. The passport is valid for 10 years. BRIDGES budgets about $2,000 for the biometric passport and about $1,000 for the birth certificate and local ID in its single-applicant estimate.

Translations, notarisation and apostilles. Documents not in English are translated and certified, and police certificates and civil records are apostilled. The cost depends on the number of documents and on how many countries issued them. A police certificate is needed from the country of citizenship and from countries of residence, and each country has its own apostille procedure. A typical allowance for a single applicant is about $2,000.

Support. Applications are filed only through government-designated agents, so support is always part of the cost. The state does not set this fee. A single applicant with salary income and a three-generation family with proceeds from a business sale need very different amounts of work.

Bank charges. Contributions are paid in US dollars to official accounts. Your bank and the correspondent banks charge their own fees, and conversion is added if your account is in another currency. Ask your bank for the exact figure before you pay.

Biometrics travel. Each family member gives biometrics in person. If you do not live in one of the cities where this is possible, flights and hotels for the whole family belong in the budget.

Worked examples

These use the DSP and fund contributions plus the FIU fee only. Translations, support, bank charges and travel come on top and depend on the family.

Family	DSP: contribution + FIU	Fund: contribution + FIU	Fund after $50,000 return
One applicant	$135,000	$165,000	$115,000
Couple	$155,000	$165,000	$115,000
Couple and one child	$170,000	$165,000	$115,000
Couple and two children	$185,000	$165,000	$115,000

The pattern is clear. For one person the DSP is cheaper at the point of payment by $30,000. For a couple the difference narrows to $10,000. From three people the fund costs less even before the return, and for a family of four it is $20,000 cheaper on day one and $70,000 cheaper once the $50,000 comes back. The price of that saving is $50,000 that you cannot use for five years.

When each payment is made

1. Preliminary check and contract. Your adviser’s first payment, if any, under the contract.
2. Filing. The FIU fee and a small application fee are paid when the application is lodged.
3. After the Commission approves. The DSP contribution is paid against an official Treasury invoice. Fund payment terms are set out in the investment plan documents, so check the exact order in your contract.
4. Biometrics and documents. Passport and ID card fees, and travel for biometrics.

The key safeguard: under the DSP the large contribution is paid only after approval, so before the decision the family is risking the FIU fee and the cost of documents, not the full contribution. Government payments go only to official government or fund accounts, never to an intermediary’s account.

What you do not pay

There are no annual fees to keep citizenship. You do not need to buy property, keep a bank deposit in Vanuatu or visit the country. The only later costs are passport renewal after 10 years and, if needed, a separate application for a relative who was not included in the first one. A child born to a Vanuatu citizen after the grant becomes a citizen by descent without a new contribution.

How to check a quote

When I review a quote that a family has received elsewhere, I look for four things:

1. Are the contribution, the FIU fee and the support fee shown as separate lines?
2. Is the FIU fee $5,000 for the DSP or $8,000 for the fund, once per application?
3. Does the quote say who receives each payment and when?
4. Is the contribution paid to an official government or fund account?

If a quote shows one round number with no breakdown, ask for the breakdown before signing. BRIDGES publishes its own Vanuatu cost breakdown by family size, which is a useful reference point when you compare offers.

Ways families overpay

• Choosing the wrong route. A family of four paying under the DSP when the fund would have cost less.
• Forgetting a relative. A parent or adult child added later pays a new contribution and a new FIU fee.
• Redoing documents. A police certificate that expires while other papers are collected, or a name spelled differently on two documents.
• Paying the FIU fee before a preliminary check. It is not refunded on refusal.

Most of these mistakes are avoided by spending a week on planning before filing anything.