Renewing a Vanuatu Passport: A New Document Before a Bank Review and a Trip to Asia

A Vanuatu citizen since 2016 and a letter from the bank

This is a composite example: the story is built from typical enquiries from Vanuatu citizens, and no real client is described; the names are invented. Alexander is 58, a Russian citizen living in Novosibirsk. He owns a company selling agricultural machinery from Asia.

Alexander obtained Vanuatu citizenship in 2016. His Vanuatu passport proved useful for trips to suppliers in Hong Kong and Singapore and for a personal account at a Hong Kong bank, where it is on file together with his Russian passport.

For ten years the passport sat in a safe and came out only before trips. Alexander did not think about its expiry until the bank wrote: update your details by the end of the quarter.

Vanuatu citizenship has no expiry date. Only the passport does, and it is easy to forget.

Anna KovalevskayaHead of Legal

Three months of passport and two months to the trip

First Alexander tried to reach the company that had arranged his citizenship in 2016. Its website no longer opened, and the phone went unanswered. That is why he came to us: he had the documents in hand but did not know who would help with the renewal.

The lawyer laid out the dates on the first call. The passport is valid for three more months. The bank expects the new document by the end of the quarter, in ten weeks. The trip to Singapore is in two months.

The trip had a separate trap. Many countries, including Singapore, admit travellers only with a passport valid for at least six more months on the date of entry. Formally the old passport still worked, but it was no longer good for the trip.

The lawyer proposed a fallback: if the new passport was not ready in time, fly to Singapore on the Russian passport with a visa. Alexander applied for the visa straight away, just in case, through a visa agency in Moscow. It was issued in five working days and went into his Russian passport as a fallback. How renewal works is covered in detail in renewing a Vanuatu passport.

Why the old passport is not extended

Alexander expected an extension stamp in the old passport. The lawyer explained how it actually works.

Citizenship is confirmed by the citizenship certificate, issued once and without expiry. The passport is issued by Vanuatu’s Immigration and Passport Services. An expired or expiring passport is not extended: a new 10-year biometric passport with a new number is issued, and the old one is cancelled.

Alexander asked how much it costs. The lawyer explained what the total consists of: the passport authority’s government fee, document delivery and support. The exact fee is confirmed by a current invoice before filing, so the lawyer gave the total after checking the documents rather than on the first call.

A new passport requires biometrics: since 2025 everyone gives them in person in one of five cities. In 2016 Alexander had not given biometrics, so this was his first such trip.

One name, three Latin spellings

The most important part of the work turned out to be the check. The lawyer asked for scans of three documents: the Vanuatu citizenship certificate, the old Vanuatu passport and the new Russian international passport.

Alexander’s name is Александр. In the 2016 certificate it was spelled Alexander, and the same in the old Vanuatu passport. But in the Russian international passport he renewed in 2022, current rules gave Aleksandr. The third spelling turned up at the bank itself: in 2017 a clerk had entered Alexandr on the form, without the e.

The difference looks trivial, but a bank checks the name on the form against the passport, and an airline checks the name on the ticket against the document at check-in. If the new Vanuatu passport were issued with one spelling while the bank holds another, questions would be unavoidable.

The lawyer explained what to go by. A Vanuatu passport is issued on the basis of the citizenship certificate, so the spelling in the new passport must match the certificate: Alexander. We explained the difference from the Russian passport in a short letter for the bank: it is one name under different transliteration rules, confirmed by the birth certificate.

How to get the Latin spelling right is covered in names in a Vanuatu passport.

Documents gathered in a week

Before filing, the lawyer asked the licensed agent to confirm that Alexander has been on the citizens’ register since 2016. The previous agent was no longer operating, and the lawyer wanted to be sure all citizenship records were in place. The confirmation came a week later with the same certificate number Alexander held.

The renewal required the old Vanuatu passport, the citizenship certificate, the Russian international passport, the passport form and photos meeting the passport authority’s requirements.

The original certificate was in the same safe as the passport. The lawyer advised keeping them apart after the renewal: if both documents were lost together, restoring the certificate takes much longer than a passport.

The photos were retaken once. A photographer in Novosibirsk first shot them as for a Russian passport, on a light grey background. The lawyer sent him the Vanuatu passport authority’s requirements, and an hour later a new version on white arrived.

Alexander signed the forms in Novosibirsk, and a courier sent the package to the licensed agent. The government fee was paid on the passport authority’s invoice. Ten days later the agent confirmed the application had been accepted.

Biometrics in Moscow between two meetings

Biometrics are given in person in one of five cities: Port Vila, Dubai, Hong Kong, Moscow or Saint Petersburg. From Novosibirsk Moscow is the closest.

Alexander was flying to Moscow for an agricultural machinery fair anyway. The lawyer booked him for the morning of the fair’s second day. He needed to bring the old Vanuatu passport, the certificate and his Russian passport. The officer checked the details, took fingerprints and a photo. The old passport was handed back: it is cancelled when the new one is issued. It all took less than an hour.

A courier delivered the new passport to Novosibirsk three weeks later. The old passport was cancelled when the new one was issued. All stages are covered in renewing a Vanuatu passport.

The bank, tickets and a passport table

On the day he received the passport, Alexander sent the bank a scan of it and our letter on the name spelling. The bank updated the form within a week and asked no further questions.

The bank called two days later, in the evening Novosibirsk time. The officer asked why the form said Alexandr while the new passport said Alexander, and read our letter during the call. The form was corrected to match the passport.

The Singapore ticket had been booked on the old passport. The lawyer reminded him: ticket details must match the document you travel on. The passport number in the booking was changed on the airline’s website, and the trip went ahead on the new passport without a visa. The visa in the Russian passport remained a backup.

At Singapore airport Alexander went through the automated gates in a minute. The officer did not even glance his way, and Alexander admitted to the lawyer that for the first time in ten years he had flown on his Vanuatu passport without wondering whether its validity was enough.

Finally, the lawyer suggested keeping a simple table: passport number, issue date, expiry date and the banks where it is on file. Alexander’s next renewal is due in 2036, and the table will remind him a year ahead.

What the applicant gets

In this scenario the new passport was issued on time, and Alexander made both the bank review and the trip. In a real renewal issue times depend on Vanuatu’s passport authority, so it is best to start six months before expiry.

Alexander’s spouse, a Russian citizen, was not part of the 2016 application. Seeing how smoothly the renewal went, she asked whether she could join the citizenship now. The lawyer replied that a spouse is added with a separate application and her own due diligence, and promised to cost it separately.

Alexander has a new 10-year biometric passport. His citizenship did not change: it has no expiry, and the 2016 certificate remains valid.

Travel on the new passport is the same: Hong Kong visa-free for up to 90 days, Singapore for up to 30. He keeps his Russian citizenship; he notified the Interior Ministry of his Vanuatu citizenship back in 2016, and a passport renewal does not require repeating it.

A passport renewal goes smoothly when it starts before a bank or an airline reminds you of the expiry date.

Anna KovalevskayaHead of Legal

Who will find this useful

This story repeats for people who obtained Vanuatu citizenship several years ago. The passport sits in a safe, and its expiry comes to mind only when a bank, a visa or a trip prompts it.

Check your passport’s expiry date now. If less than a year remains, start the renewal: many countries require six months of validity, and issuing a new passport takes time.

Before filing, check the name spelling in the citizenship certificate, the old Vanuatu passport and your first-citizenship passport. A mismatch is best explained in advance.

Similar stories: Vanuatu citizenship for a newborn and a backup passport for a tech founder. Full programme terms are on the Vanuatu citizenship page.

Composite example: this story is based on typical enquiries; no real clients are described. Information as of September 2026. Vanuatu passports are issued by Vanuatu Immigration and Passport Services.