A second Vanuatu passport as plan B: why entrepreneurs and families need one

What plan B is and why one passport creates risk

In brief: plan B is a back-up legal status that works when the main document is temporarily unavailable or restricted: the passport has expired, is at an embassy for a visa, a bank does not accept the document, the family needs to leave quickly. A Vanuatu passport gives such a status in 2-3 months.

A single passport is like a server with no backup: while it works the risk goes unnoticed, and when something happens the downtime is measured in weeks. An entrepreneur who is unable to travel for three months because of a document delay loses not only time but clients. Plan B removes the dependence of travel, accounts and family plans on one document.

A Vanuatu passport does not replace the main one: Vanuatu recognises dual citizenship, and the first citizenship is not given up. It is an official government programme with a Financial Intelligence Unit check and a Citizenship Commission decision. The conditions are covered in the article Vanuatu citizenship by investment, and what changes in a citizen’s life in the article the rights of a Vanuatu citizen in practice.

A back-up travel document

In brief: the Vanuatu passport is biometric, valid for 10 years and accepted for tickets, hotels and border control like any other passport. It remains valid whatever happens to the main document.

A main passport expires, gets lost, spends weeks at an embassy for a visa, and consulate appointments abroad can be months away. With a second passport, travel and work continue while the issue with the main one is resolved. For a person whose income depends on flying, this is a direct saving of weeks of downtime.

• A passport for everyone. Children receive their own passports; they cannot be entered in a parent’s passport.
• Validity. Many countries require a passport to be valid for at least 6 more months on the date of entry, so the validity of the whole family’s documents is kept in a calendar.
• A document from day one. After the certificate and the passport are issued, the citizen needs no residence period or waiting time.

How the passport works and how strong it is in the indices is covered in the article the Vanuatu passport.

Two passports in practice

In brief: you enter and leave each country on one passport, the ticket is bought on the same document, and the visa is placed in the passport used for the application. A dual national usually enters their home country only on that country’s passport; a Russian citizen, for example, enters Russia only on the Russian passport.

Mixing up documents costs more than it seems: an airline will not board a passenger whose ticket details do not match the passport at the desk, and a border officer will ask where the entry stamp is. So the trip is planned around the document: choose the passport, buy the ticket on it, pass both borders on it.

• Latin-script name. The spelling of the name in the Vanuatu passport is checked against the main passport at the form stage, so banks and airlines see the same person.
• Citizenship certificate. It is kept separately from the passport: it is needed when replacing the document and confirms status at a bank.
• Forms and visas. The second citizenship is stated where it is asked for; it must not be concealed on a visa application.
• Notice deadline. Some countries require citizens to report a second citizenship; a Russian citizen, for example, notifies the Interior Ministry within 60 days of receiving the passport.

It is convenient to keep the family’s passports in one table: number, date of issue, expiry date and the countries already entered on it. That way plan B keeps working in five and ten years, not only on the day the passports are received.

Travelling with a Vanuatu passport and the route to Europe

In brief: a Vanuatu passport opens 46 countries without a visa, 42 more give a visa on arrival, and 3 admit travellers with an electronic authorisation. The Schengen Area and the UK require a visa, and Vanuatu citizens who want to live in Europe start with Greek residence.

For plan B, the destinations that matter are those where entrepreneurs and families spend time: Hong Kong for 90 days, Singapore and Malaysia for 30 days, Russia for up to 90 days under a visa waiver agreement. The EU fully suspended visa-free travel for Vanuatu citizens on 4 February 2023, and the UK has required a visa since 19 July 2023, so trips there are planned with a visa.

If the plan B goal includes living in Europe, the Vanuatu passport becomes the first step: citizenship in 2-3 months, then Greek residence under the Golden Visa programme with a property threshold of €250,000 to €800,000. Conditions are on the page Greek residence for Vanuatu citizens, and the list of destinations in the article where a Vanuatu passport takes you.

Plan B and Europe in 9 months

In brief: the family receives Vanuatu passports in 2-3 months and then Greek residence. The whole turnkey package takes up to 9 months, and the documents for both applications are prepared once.

The order is simple: in the first month the pre-check and the FIU check are completed, in the second and third months the Commission decides, the family pays the contribution, takes the oath and receives the passports. In parallel a property in Greece is selected, and after the passports are received the family applies for residence as Vanuatu citizens.

Greek residence gives the right to live in the country and travel in the Schengen Area for up to 90 days in any 180, and the application covers the spouse, children and parents. Living in Greece permanently is not required to keep the card as long as the property remains owned. Police certificates, apostilles and translations are prepared with both applications in mind, so the family does not collect the package twice.

Accounts and business abroad

In brief: a second passport gives an additional identification document for banks, payment systems and company registration. It does not remove checks: the bank still asks about the place of residence, tax residence and origin of funds.

Banks look at the full set of facts: where the client lives, where they pay taxes, where the money comes from and what logic the transactions follow. A Vanuatu passport removes one document-related barrier but does not replace an address, a tax number and income documents. Banks report account information by the client’s tax residence, not by citizenship.

So the passport works best together with clear tax residence and a transparent money trail. The source-of-funds package collected for the FIU is later useful for banks and counterparties that check beneficial owners. Which banks operate in Vanuatu and what they check is covered in the article banks in Vanuatu, and information exchange in the article confidentiality of Vanuatu citizenship and CRS.

Taxes: what the passport does and does not give

In brief: Vanuatu has no personal income tax, capital gains tax or inheritance tax, but the passport does not make you a Vanuatu tax resident. Taxes are paid in the country where the person lives: for example, a Russian citizen who spends at least 183 days in Russia within 12 months remains its tax resident.

The passport gives freedom to choose a country of residence and makes relocation easier, while tax status is changed by actually relocating under the rules of the new country of residence. As long as residence stays the same, so do taxes and foreign account reporting. If the family moves to Greece on a residence permit and lives there most of the year, it becomes tax resident in Greece, and taxes are calculated under Greek rules. The tax system is covered in the article taxes in Vanuatu.

Protecting the family and passing on citizenship

In brief: one application includes the spouse, children under 25 and parents over 50, and the whole family receives passports at the same time. Children born after citizenship is acquired receive it by descent without a contribution.

A family plan B covers several needs: in an urgent departure everyone has a valid document, children can study and live in different countries, and the status passes to the next generation. For a family of three or more the CIIP fund is better value: $165,000 turnkey, of which $50,000 is returned after 5 years.

The passport does not change the inheritance of property: it follows the law of the country where the assets are and the taxes of the country where the heirs live. How citizenship passes to children is covered in the article passing Vanuatu citizenship to children, and family composition in the article Vanuatu citizenship for the family.

Speed

In brief: a Vanuatu passport is obtained in roughly 2-3 months from filing with the FIU. Plan B is valuable because it is ready before it is needed, so processing speed is the programme’s key feature here.

The application is filed in two stages: a short package for the FIU check, which takes up to 7 working days without queries, then the full package for the Citizenship Commission, which meets twice a month. After approval the contribution is paid, biometrics are given, the oath is taken, and the passport is issued in 1-3 weeks. The applicant travels in person only for biometrics, which are given in Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Dubai, Hong Kong or Port Vila.

Speed has a price: the DSP contribution is not refundable. A family that wants to keep part of the amount chooses the CIIP fund with $50,000 returned after 5 years and the same processing time. Stage timings are covered in the article Vanuatu citizenship timeline.

What to prepare in advance

In brief: most of the time goes not on the Commission’s decision but on documents: the main applicant collects 11 documents, an adult participant 7, a child 3. Police certificates are obtained no earlier than 3 months before filing.

What does not go out of date is collected in advance: birth and marriage certificates, diplomas, source-of-funds documents for recent years, statements on the sale of a business or dividends. Police certificates and medical reports are left for the last month so they are valid on the filing date. Participants’ passports are checked straight away: the first stage requires valid international passports for all family members.

The spelling of names is checked separately: if the name is transliterated differently in the birth certificate, diploma and passport, the translator brings it into one form, otherwise the package will be returned for correction. The full list is in the article documents for Vanuatu citizenship.

Who a Vanuatu passport serves as plan B

In brief: an entrepreneur who is always travelling, a specialist who changes countries of residence, a family with children and a family planning to live in Europe through residence.

The founder of an IT company with a team in several countries obtained a Vanuatu passport as a backup of the main document: a pre-check before the start, a source of funds from the company’s dividends and profit distributions over five years, a personal package in ten days. He received the passport in two months and did not cancel a single work meeting. Details are in the case of a back-up passport for a founder.

For a specialist who lives sometimes in Asia and sometimes elsewhere, the passport helps with travel to Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia. A family with children values a passport for everyone and passing on citizenship. For a family planning Europe, the Vanuatu passport gives a basis for Greek residence.

All these people have one thing in common: they obtain a second passport while there is no urgent need for it. The entrepreneur prepares documents between deals, the family applies before the eldest child turns 25, the specialist gets the passport before relocating, not after. That is why plan B is worth two or three calm months of preparation rather than urgent processing in a crisis.

What to consider before deciding

In brief: the Schengen Area and the UK require a visa, the DSP contribution is not refundable, and taxes change only with a change of country of residence. For these needs the plan is built with extra steps.

• Europe. To live in the EU, Greek residence is added to the passport.
• Keeping part of the amount. For a family of three or more, the CIIP fund with $50,000 returned suits.
• Taxes. A tax effect appears after relocating and changing residence.
• Checks. Criminal records, sanctions and an unproven source of funds close the programme, so they are checked before any payments.

The programme’s strengths and weaknesses are covered in the article what to weigh before the contribution, and the decision by scenario in the article a scenario-by-scenario review.

Mistakes in preparing plan B

In brief: plan B most often fails because of haste: the family starts the process when the main document is already unavailable, the certificates have expired and the source of funds has not been collected.

1. Waiting for a crisis. In a rush, certificates take longer, banks check transfers more strictly, and there is no longer any margin for an extra Commission meeting.
2. Leaving passports to expire. If a participant’s international passport is running out, the first stage has to be postponed until it is replaced.
3. Different spellings of names. Discrepancies in the Latin script between documents send the package back for correction.
4. Unproven money. Funds without documents on their origin stop the FIU check.
5. Expecting a tax effect without relocating. The passport does not change residence, so the tax side is planned separately.

Each of these mistakes is removed at the pre-check: a lawyer reviews the background, documents and money before the first payment. Other common mistakes are covered in the article mistakes in obtaining Vanuatu citizenship.

When to start arranging plan B

In brief: plan B is arranged in advance, while all the family’s documents are valid and circumstances are calm. In a crisis, certificates take longer, banks check transfers more strictly, and deadlines become tight.

• Children are approaching 25. After 25 a child is no longer included in the parent’s application and applies separately.
• International passports are expiring. The first stage requires valid passports for all participants.
• The source of funds is recent. Documents on the sale of a business or dividends are easier to collect while they are recent.
• A relocation is planned. The Vanuatu passport and residence in Europe are built into one schedule ahead of the relocation date.

The application calendar is built from the next Commission meeting: 2-3 weeks for the first stage and the FIU check, 2-3 weeks for the full package, then the decision, the contribution and the passport. If the passport is needed by a specific date, a margin of one extra meeting is built in.

How to keep plan B working after receiving it

In brief: plan B works while the documents are valid: the family’s passports are replaced before the end of the 10-year term, children born after citizenship is acquired are registered by descent, and certificates and copies are kept separately from the passports.

Once a year the family checks a simple list: the validity of all participants’ passports, where the citizenship certificates are kept, whether the contacts for the passport service are current, and whether copies are in secure storage. If anyone’s main passport is expiring, it is replaced in advance so both documents are valid when travelling.

• A new child. The birth certificate with a translation is filed to register citizenship by descent, then a passport is issued; a trip to the islands is not needed.
• A new spouse. Citizenship for a spouse married after the passport was received is obtained by a separate application.
• Lost passport. The loss is reported at once, and a new passport is issued on the basis of the citizenship certificate.

Replacement and loss of the passport are covered in the article loss and replacement of a Vanuatu passport, and renewal in the article renewing a Vanuatu passport.

Plan B and home-country obligations

In brief: Vanuatu accepts applications from citizens of Russia and other countries, biometrics for Russian citizens are taken in Moscow and Saint Petersburg, and where the home country requires it, the citizen reports the second citizenship; in Russia, the Interior Ministry is notified within 60 days. Russian citizens do not need a visa for Vanuatu for trips of up to 90 days.

The contribution is paid in US dollars from an account at a bank in another country, opened in advance, with documents on the origin of funds, when transfers from the home country do not reach Vanuatu, as is the case with Russian banks. A tax resident of the home country may have to report a foreign account and its movements. In Russia, for example, missing the Interior Ministry notice deadline carries a fine of RUB 500 to 1,000 under Article 19.8.3 of the Administrative Code, and failure to file carries a fine of up to RUB 200,000 under Article 330.2 of the Criminal Code.

In their home country a dual national is usually treated only as its citizen and enters on that country’s passport, using the Vanuatu passport abroad; this is how it works in Russia. All the obligations are covered in the article Vanuatu citizenship and home-country rules.

Conditions and cost

In brief: under the DSP the turnkey total is $135,000 for one person and $185,000 for a family of four; under the CIIP fund $165,000, of which $50,000 is returned after 5 years. On top of the contribution only the FIU fee is paid to the state: $5,000 under the DSP and $8,000 under the fund, per application.

The choice of programme depends on family composition. For a single applicant or a couple the DSP is usually better value: the contribution is lower and the timeline the same. For a family of three or more the CIIP fund usually suits better: the amount does not grow with each participant, and part of the money is returned after 5 years. The contribution is paid after the Commission’s approval, and before the decision the family pays only the FIU fee.

The exact amount for your family is shown by the estimate for your family, and all cost items are covered in the article how much Vanuatu citizenship costs for a family. The stage-by-stage procedure is covered in the article stages of obtaining Vanuatu citizenship.

What to check before filing

In brief: before any payments, check the source of funds, criminal records and reputation, sanctions lists, consistent spelling of names across documents and expectations of the passport. These points determine whether the application passes first time.

1. Source of funds. A documented money trail: sale of a business, dividends, salary, sale of assets.
2. Criminal records and publications. A spent conviction or negative publications are disclosed in advance with explanations.
3. Sanctions lists. Matches are identified before paying the non-refundable FIU fee.
4. Documents. Names match in all documents, certificates are valid on the filing date, translations and certification are done.
5. Expectations. A passport for travel and family, Europe through residence, taxes through residence.

Due diligence is covered in the article due diligence.

How BRIDGES builds plan B

In brief: the work starts with a pre-check within 1-2 working days, then an estimate by family composition, a calendar from the next Commission meeting and support through to the passports, and if needed through to Greek residence.

At the pre-check a lawyer reviews each participant’s background, source of funds and documents and names the risks before the first payment. Then we prepare an estimate under the DSP and the CIIP fund so the family chooses a programme by the numbers, and a calendar with the dates of filing, the meeting and passport issue. Our team completes the forms, and the client checks and signs them.

If plan B includes Europe, we prepare the documents for both applications at once and start selecting a property in Greece in parallel with the check in Vanuatu. More about the terms on the page Vanuatu citizenship with BRIDGES.