BRIDGES Insights
Vanuatu After the End of EU Visa-Free Travel: What Happened to Demand
Updated: August 2026·13 min read·Expert reviewed
Terms and costs verified: August 2026
Contents
For a year and a half I have been asked the same question: now that the European Union has withdrawn visa-free travel, is the Vanuatu passport useless? I answer at length and with figures, because a short "no" convinces nobody.
On 12 December 2024 the Council of the European Union definitively ended visa-free travel for citizens of Vanuatu. The decision had been in preparation since 2022 and was motivated precisely by the citizenship-by-investment programme. The market expected demand to collapse.
A year and a half has passed, and there are data showing what actually happened. We look at what changed in the figures, what changed in applicants' motivation, and why the European goal can still be achieved with this passport — only by a different route.
In short: what happened
- Visa-free travel to Schengen has been fully revoked since December 2024.
- The United Kingdom and Ireland closed visa-free access earlier.
- The number of visa-free destinations has fallen to roughly 90-100.
- Demand did not collapse: 2025 was stronger than 2024 by number of approvals.
- Applicants' motivation has shifted from freedom to travel to speed, tax and a back-up document.
- European goals are achieved through residence, to which the passport gives access.
We will work through your European goal
We will tell you which path to Europe fits your situation and how a second passport fits into it.
What exactly the European Union decided
The chronology, without speculation.
| Date | Decision |
|---|---|
| February 2022 | The EU partially suspends visa-free travel |
| Early 2023 | The suspension is extended to all citizens of Vanuatu |
| 12 December 2024 | The EU Council moves Vanuatu to the list of countries whose citizens need a visa |
| 2022-2023 | The United Kingdom and Ireland end visa-free access |
Brussels' reasoning concerned the security and migration risks linked specifically to the investment citizenship programme: short processing times and a low refusal rate. A detailed analysis of the decision and its consequences is in Vanuatu and Schengen.
What happened to demand
The main question is whether applicants left. The data say they did not.
State revenue from the citizenship programmes according to the Reserve Bank of Vanuatu. The EU Council decision was taken in December 2024 — that is, between the fourth and fifth columns. No collapse is visible after it: the 2025 figure is above the levels of 2022 and 2023. The 2026 value covers only the first half and is shown with a dashed outline.
The number of approvals tells the same story: 2025 was stronger than 2024. The fall in revenue in 2025 is explained by the fee structure and the move to biometrics, not by applicants leaving.
Why demand held up
The answer lies in why people actually take this passport. Visa-free Europe was never the main reason for choosing Vanuatu — more suitable programmes have always existed for that.
- Speed. Two to three months from filing to passport — faster than any alternative on the market.
- Tax. Vanuatu has no tax on income, capital gains, inheritance or worldwide income.
- Remote processing. Personal attendance is needed only to give biometrics.
- Dual citizenship. There is no requirement to give up your original citizenship.
- Entry to European residence. European programmes can be arranged on the basis of this passport.
To those for whom visa-free Schengen really was the goal, we say plainly that they should look at other programmes; the comparison is in Vanuatu or the Caribbean.
How to count visa-free access now
The number of visa-free destinations is the most manipulated point in the whole subject. Different rankings count differently, and the spread runs to dozens of countries.
| What is counted | How it looks in the figure |
|---|---|
| Full visa-free access only | the fewest destinations, the most accurate base |
| Visa-free plus visa on arrival | the figure grows by dozens |
| Plus electronic authorisations | a further increase, though the authorisation has to be obtained in advance |
| Plus territories and dependencies | formally correct, practically useless |
We count the first two categories and arrive at roughly 90-100 destinations. If you see a noticeably higher figure, check the method: it most likely includes electronic authorisations and dependent territories. A full breakdown by region is in the articles on Asia and Africa and Oceania.
What changed in how the market works
The EU decision reshaped not only demand but how the programme is sold. Three observations from practice.
Promises have become more specific. The phrase "visa-free Europe" has disappeared from serious presentations. Where it remains, it is a reliable sign that the agent is working from outdated material.
The link with residence has grown in importance. The client needs not a passport as such but a solution to a problem. So the conversation has shifted to what the passport opens: European residence programmes, accounts, tax status.
Checks have become stricter. Vanuatu responded to criticism not by relaxing but by moving the other way: a full financial intelligence check before filing, a rising refusal rate and a biometric passport since November 2025. That is exactly the response outside observers expected of the programme.
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How the European goal is achieved now
It is important to separate the concepts here, because most mistaken expectations are built on them.
Visa-free entry is about travel. Residence is about the right to be and live somewhere. For most clients the second is the real goal, and it is achieved not by the Vanuatu passport directly but through the residence programmes to which it gives access.
The practical combination looks like this: a fast second passport in two to three months, then a European residence programme on that basis — above all the Greek one through property, and also the Hungarian grounds. We covered this structure in the section on residence programmes.
Need Europe, not just a passport?
I regard the end of visa-free travel as a healthy correction for the market. Before it, some clients bought Vanuatu with Europe in mind and then discovered that the goal could not be met. Now everything is spelled out at the outset: this passport is about speed, tax and a back-up document, and Europe comes through residence. Demand has not fallen because of that clarity, as the figures show: 2025 was stronger than 2024. The people who understand what they are buying are still here — and there are fewer on the market who bought on false promises, which is good for everyone.
Sergey Evdokimov
How banks reacted
A separate question clients ask immediately after the EU news: will they now be refused an account? Practice shows that the link here is indirect.
A bank assesses not the visa regime of the passport's country but the client: tax residence, the source of funds, the nature of transactions and sanctions risks. The Vanuatu passport remains a valid document of a sovereign state — biometric since November 2025 and valid for ten years.
What has really changed is that passports from investment programmes in general now attract more follow-up questions. That is handled by preparation — explaining why the second document was obtained and providing a full source-of-funds pack. The details are in the article on a bank account with a Vanuatu passport.
What changed for those who already hold the passport
A separate question that concerns not future but existing citizens. Point by point.
The passport remains valid. The EU decision changed the visa regime, not the status of the document. Citizenship obtained before December 2024 is not affected in any way.
Travel to Schengen is on a visa. The visa is applied for as a citizen of Vanuatu, under the ordinary procedure. The rules contain no refusal on the basis of the passport's country.
Exchange for a biometric passport. Since November 2025 a biometric passport valid for ten years has been issued. Existing citizens obtain it through the replacement procedure, with biometrics taken.
Accounts and banks. There is no direct link with the EU decision. Banks' questions concern tax residence and the source of funds, not the visa regime of the passport's country.
Where the passport gives entry now
| Region | What is available |
|---|---|
| Asia | Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia and several other countries in the region |
| Oceania | most states in the region |
| The Caribbean | broad access, including the programme countries |
| Africa | some destinations, mostly on arrival |
| Europe and the United Kingdom | by visa |
| The United States, Canada, Australia | by visa |
Roughly 90-100 destinations in total. The exact list changes, and we keep it separately in visa-free countries for the Vanuatu passport.
What this means for an applicant now
- Check promises about Schengen. If an agent talks about visa-free Europe with this passport, they are working from outdated data.
- Count visa-free access against the current list. It is now roughly 90-100 destinations, including Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia and several countries in Asia and Oceania. The full list is in the article on visa-free countries for the Vanuatu passport.
- Build the European goal separately. The passport is the entry; residence is the solution.
- Do not expect a relaxation. A return of visa-free travel to the EU is not in sight for the foreseeable future.
Vanuatu and Schengen →The year in figures →
Who the programme suits after December 2024
The EU decision did not end the programme, but it changed whom it should be recommended to. By task:
| The client's task | Does Vanuatu fit? |
|---|---|
| A second document for the unforeseen | yes, this is the main scenario |
| Speed: a passport by a specific date | yes, two to three months is the fastest |
| Reviewing tax status | yes, zero rates on income and inheritance |
| Entry to European residence programmes | yes, the passport gives access |
| Visa-free travel in Schengen | no, by visa since December 2024 |
| Moving to and living on the islands | rarely; that is not what the programme is for |
The first four rows cover the vast majority of the requests people bring to us. The fifth row is the one that causes disappointment if nobody mentions it at the start. We mention it in our very first sentence, and that saves everyone time.
BRIDGES service: Vanuatu citizenship by investment with BRIDGES support.
Frequently asked
Questions people ask before deciding
01When did the EU end visa-free travel for Vanuatu?
A partial suspension applied from February 2022 and was extended to all citizens from early 2023. The EU Council took the final decision on 12 December 2024, moving Vanuatu to the list of countries whose citizens need a visa.
02Did demand for the programme fall after this decision?
No. According to the Reserve Bank of Vanuatu, programme revenue in 2025 remained above the levels of 2022 and 2023, and by number of approvals 2025 was stronger than 2024. The fall in revenue from the 2024 peak is linked to the fee structure and the move to biometrics.
03How many visa-free destinations remain?
Roughly 90-100, including Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia and several countries in Asia, the Caribbean and Oceania. Promises of 130 or more countries including Schengen do not reflect the 2026 position.
04Can I get to Europe with a Vanuatu passport?
Travel to Schengen is now by visa. The European goal, however, is achieved through the residence programmes to which this passport gives access: above all the Greek programme through property, and also the Hungarian grounds.
05Will visa-free travel return?
A return is not in sight for the foreseeable future. The decision was taken at EU Council level and relates to the very structure of investment citizenship programmes, not to one-off circumstances.
06So why do people take a Vanuatu passport?
For the two-to-three-month timeline, zero taxes on income, capital gains and inheritance, remote processing, permitted dual citizenship and access to European residence programmes.
About the author
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