Peace Longe
5 min read
Argentina’s Economy Minister Luis Caputo has announced South America’s first citizenship-by-investment (CBI) program, a pathway to an Argentine passport without having to wait for years, CTV reports. The price starts at a non-refundable $350,000 contribution to the national treasury and the economy, an arrangement that the ministry says is “part of Argentina’s ongoing process of opening up and international integration.”
The program could generate strong demand among wealthy foreigners. In June, Nuri Katz, founder of the citizenship-advisory firm Apex Capital Partners, told Fortune that there’s a real appetite for backup citizenship among rich Americans. He also later predicted that “Really wealthy Americans will be embarrassed if they do not have an Argentina passport.”
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Some American elites are already moving to Argentina. One example is billionaire entrepreneur and PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, who has temporarily relocated his family to Buenos Aires and purchased a $12 million mansion in the Argentine city. Philippe Amarante, who leads government advisory at the passport-planning firm Henley & Partners, called Thiel’s Argentine bet “a bit of a proof of concept” for the new program, according to ABC News.
What $350,000 actually buys you
There are two routes open to applicants. $350,000 is the cheaper one and is non-refundable. The more expensive route, Reuters reported, is an $800,000 commitment to a public bond. The bond pays no interest and will be locked up for seven years, essentially making it a loan to the Argentine government in exchange for a passport. If you are applying with your spouse and kids, it will cost an additional $100,000 per person, although children under 18 incur a lesser fee of $25,000, according to the Associated Press.
Payment does not guarantee citizenship, as the government must first conduct due diligence before granting approval. Any money paid into the citizenship-by-investment program moves through institutions cleared by Argentina’s central bank, and intelligence agencies vet each applicant’s identity, criminal record and source of funds before anyone is approved, according to Fragomen, a global law firm that specializes in immigration services.
