BRIDGES Insights
Vanuatu citizenship refusals: trends 2021-2026
Updated: September 2026·12 min read·Expert reviewed
Terms and costs verified: September 2026
Contents
For many years Vanuatu was criticised for one thing: nobody was refused there. The criticism was justified. According to the European Commission, by the end of 2020 the country’s authorities had rejected exactly one application in the entire history of the programme. Then everything changed, and quickly: 4 refusals in 2021, 5 in 2022, 22 in 2023. The refusal rate rose from 0.37 per cent to almost two. I consider this the best thing that has happened to the programme, and below I will explain why. I will also show where applications get stuck today: almost always on documents that could have been prepared in advance.
In brief: how strictness has changed
- Before 2020: one rejected application in the programme’s entire history.
- 2021: 4 refusals out of 1,072 applications, 0.37 per cent.
- 2022: 5 refusals out of 872 applications, 0.57 per cent.
- 2023: 22 refusals out of 1,113 applications, almost 2 per cent.
- A severalfold increase in two years, and the trend continues.
- The main reason for rejections is the source of funds, not criminal records.
Refusals by year
The share of rejected applications out of the total filed. For 2021-2023 it is calculated from official Vanuatu Citizenship Commission statistics. For 2024-2026 there is no official data, and a BRIDGES estimate based on our practice is shown.
| Year | Applications filed | Refused | Refusal rate | Data status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 1,072 | 4 | 0.37% | official |
| 2022 | 872 | 5 | 0.57% | official |
| 2023 | 1,113 | 22 | 1.98% | official |
| 2024 | no data | ~30 | ~1.5% | BRIDGES estimate |
| 2025 | no data | ~35 | ~1.7% | BRIDGES estimate |
| 2026, first half | no data | ~20 | ~1.9% | BRIDGES estimate |
In absolute numbers there are still few refusals. But what matters is not the absolute value but the rate of change: in two years the figure grew more than fivefold. For a programme criticised for years for superficial checks, this is a fundamental change of approach.
What this means for you. Refusal is still rare, but a perfunctory application no longer passes. Allow time for full document preparation before filing.
How the check works now
The key change is not in the number of refusals but in where exactly the decision is made.
Previously the application went to the Citizenship Commission, and the check was largely a formality. Now the application first goes to Vanuatu’s Financial Intelligence Unit, and that is where the background and origin of funds are assessed. The Commission receives an application that has already been checked, and the decision is made quickly, which, incidentally, explains the programme’s overall speed.
The practical consequence: a weak application is stopped at the first stage, before it reaches the Commission, and often does not even appear in the official refusal statistics. The real strictness is higher than the figure shows.
| Stage | Who checks | What is assessed |
|---|---|---|
| Preliminary check | licensed agent | obvious obstacles, completeness of the package |
| Due diligence | Vanuatu Financial Intelligence Unit | background, criminal records, source of funds |
| Review | Citizenship Commission | decision based on the check results |
| Document issue | passport office | biometrics, production of the passport |
We looked at the mechanics of each stage in detail in the article on due diligence for Vanuatu citizenship.
Episodes in your background that raise doubts can be assessed before filing.
Where applications get stuck
The reasons repeat year after year. Most often an application stalls not because of a criminal record or sanctions lists but because the source of funds is only partly proven by documents or the data in the papers is inconsistent. Below is the distribution according to BRIDGES practice.
| Reason | How often it occurs | Can it be addressed in advance |
|---|---|---|
| Source of funds only partly proven | common | yes, with a full document package |
| Discrepancies in documents and dates | common | yes, by checking before filing |
| Unresolved episodes in the background | less common | usually yes, with an explanation backed by documents |
| Criminal record | rare | depends on the offence and how long ago it was |
| Sanctions restrictions | rare | no |
Note the right-hand column: almost everything that leads to rejection can be addressed through preparation. A refusal on the merits, when a person fundamentally does not qualify, is rare. Far more often an application stalls because of a lack of preparation.
A review of specific grounds for rejection is in the article reasons for refusal of Vanuatu citizenship, and cases involving a criminal record or a previous refusal by another programme in a separate article on Vanuatu citizenship with a criminal record.
I will review your situation personally
Describe your situation in two lines. I will look at it myself and tell you whether the programme solves your task and what to close before filing.
Why the source of funds became central
The shift of focus to the origin of money happened not in Vanuatu alone but across the whole citizenship by investment market. The reason is external: the requirements of international anti-money laundering standards.
What this means in practice. It is not the account balance that is checked but the route by which the money got there. A statement showing the amount proves nothing; a chain is needed: where the income came from, which contracts, which taxes were paid, how the funds moved between accounts.
A typical mistake looks like this: the applicant brings a bank letter showing two hundred thousand dollars and considers the matter closed. A query arrives: what proves the origin of this amount? Documents are then collected retrospectively, and the application drags on for months. The right order is the reverse: the chain is assembled before filing.
What a correct package looks like is covered in the article on documents for Vanuatu citizenship.
What a checker’s query looks like
Between “approved” and “refused” there is an intermediate stage that is rarely written about: an additional query. Formally it is not a refusal, but it is what stretches out the timeline, and it is what most rejections grow out of.
A typical query looks like this: confirm the origin of the amount received in the account on such-and-such a date; explain the discrepancy in the spelling of the surname between the passport and the birth certificate; provide documents on the company whose stake was sold. The time to reply is limited, and while it runs, the application is on hold.
- Reply with documents, not an explanatory note. An explanation without proof does not close the query.
- Close the episode in full. Answering strictly the literal question leaves grounds for the next query.
- Stay within the deadline. An extension is requested only when absolutely necessary.
- Check whether the reply raises new questions. Unnecessary documents sent at random give the checker new leads.
In our practice a properly prepared application goes through without a single query. Each additional query adds two weeks to a month and a half to the timeline.
What to do after a refusal
A refusal does not always close the road. What to do next depends on the grounds.
- Incomplete documents. A common and solvable case: the application is reassembled and filed again with the gaps closed.
- Questions about the source of funds. Solvable if the origin of the money can in principle be proven. A full package covering the chain is needed, not an extra certificate.
- Criminal record. Depends on the offence and how long ago it was. Such situations are reviewed in the article on Vanuatu citizenship with a criminal record.
- Sanctions restrictions. There is no prospect, and it is better to hear this straight away rather than after paying the contribution.
We should also warn about a common mistake: applying to another programme immediately after a refusal. A refusal under one programme is recorded, and the next application form asks about it. Staying silent about it turns a solvable situation into an unsolvable one.
I read the rise in refusals as good news, although it takes a long time to explain this to clients. A programme that refuses one in five hundred raises questions with banks and visa services. A programme that refuses two in a hundred looks like a working mechanism with real checks. The latter makes the passport more valuable in substance, not in price. As for practice: over the past two years not one of our applications has stalled because of the applicant’s background. They stalled because of an incomplete source of funds, and it was always because documents began to be collected after filing rather than before.
What the Financial Intelligence Unit asks about
To understand what the check looks like from the inside, here are typical queries received on applications. The wording is generalised, and no specific applications are disclosed.
| Query | What lies behind it |
|---|---|
| Confirm the origin of the payment received on such-and-such a date | a gap in the chain: money appeared in the account without a document showing where from |
| Provide documents on the company whose stake was sold | checking that the asset existed and was sold at a real price |
| Explain the discrepancy in the spelling of the name | different transliterations in the passport and certificate |
| Clarify employment for the period | an unexplained break in employment history |
| Provide tax confirmation for the income | checking that taxes on the income were paid in the relevant jurisdiction |
Note that none of the typical queries concerns the applicant’s person as such. They are all about documents. So an application assembled in full goes through without queries, while one assembled partially receives them in batches and drags on for months.
Download the pre-filing checklist
We will send a list of what in the form and documents most often leads to refusal and how to close it before filing.
Where the figure will go next
Our estimate: the refusal rate will rise to three or four per cent within two years. Three reasons.
- Biometrics. Since November 2025 applicants’ data passes through a biometric system, which makes checks against international databases thorough.
- External requirements. Pressure on citizenship by investment programmes in general is growing, and Vanuatu responds by tightening rather than softening.
- Experience. The checkers have built up practice and now see schemes that used to pass.
The practical conclusion for the applicant is one: requirements will grow, and an application that passes today may require twice as much proof in a year. A detailed forecast for the programme as a whole is in the article forecast for the Vanuatu programme to 2028.
Reasons for refusal →How applicants are checked →
How we calculated
The number of applications and refusals for 2021-2023 is from the Vanuatu Citizenship Commission’s annual reports and European Commission materials, and the data up to 2020 from European Commission materials. The figures for 2024-2026 are a BRIDGES estimate based on our practice; on the chart they are shown with a dashed outline. The distribution of reasons for rejection and the typical queries are based on applications we handled, with generalised wording.
Frequently asked
Questions people ask before deciding
01Are Vanuatu citizenship applications often refused?
According to official statistics, the refusal rate rose from 0.37 per cent in 2021 to almost 2 per cent in 2023: 4 refusals out of 1,072 applications, then 5 out of 872 and 22 out of 1,113. In absolute numbers this is not much, but it is more than a fivefold increase in two years.
02What is the most common reason for refusal?
An incompletely proven source of funds. Criminal records and sanctions restrictions are noticeably rarer. Almost all reasons for rejection can be addressed by preparing documents before filing.
03Who decides on a refusal?
The check is carried out by Vanuatu’s Financial Intelligence Unit, and the decision is made by the Citizenship Commission. A weak application is stopped already at the check stage, before it reaches the Commission, and often does not appear in the official refusal statistics.
04What exactly is checked in the source of funds?
Not the account balance but the route of the money: where the income came from, which contracts support it, which taxes were paid, how the funds moved between accounts. A single bank letter is not enough.
05Can I reapply after a refusal?
The possibility of reapplying depends on the grounds for rejection. If the application stalled because of incomplete documents, it is prepared again and filed. If the reason is sanctions restrictions, there is no prospect.
06Will checks keep getting stricter?
By our estimate the refusal rate will rise to three or four per cent within two years. The reasons: the move to biometrics from November 2025, growing external requirements for citizenship by investment programmes and the checkers’ accumulated experience.
About the author
Related materials
What to read next
ArticleBanks in Vanuatu and accounts abroad: what a bank checks for a Vanuatu citizen
ComparisonSecond citizenship in 3-6 months: Caribbean, Türkiye or Vanuatu in 2026
AnalysisWhat is due diligence and why the Caribbean is rejecting applicationsPersonal programme selection is conducted by Anna Kovalevskaya, Head of Legal, BRIDGES.
We will help you obtain Vanuatu citizenship
We will prepare the documents and handle the application through to the passport on the programme’s current terms.
