There are two ways to get a second passport without relocating. You can buy citizenship outright — the Caribbean programmes, Turkey, Vanuatu — with no residence at all. Or you can hold a residency that counts towards citizenship while you carry on living at home. Among residency routes, Portugal stands alone: around seven days a year, and that time counts towards an EU passport. For Americans the clock is ten years. Panama gives lifetime residency on a visit every two years, but a passport there is possible, not the point.
This is general information on the routes that exist and how they work. It reflects my own experience and is not advice.
Why people want a second passport
The reasons I hear most are the same every week. A second place to live if things change at home. The right to live, work and study somewhere else, for you and your children. Easier travel. And a plan that sits in the background without forcing a move today.
The last one is the key. Most people asking how to get a second passport do not want to emigrate. They want the option. That narrows the field quickly, because most routes to a second citizenship assume you will actually live in the country.
Route one: buy citizenship outright
Citizenship by investment (CBI) is the only route where you can get a passport with no residence at all. You make a qualifying donation or investment, pass due diligence, and receive citizenship, typically within months.
| Programme | Entry point (2026) | Residence needed |
|---|---|---|
| Dominica | US$200,000 donation | None |
| Antigua & Barbuda | US$230,000 donation | Five days in the first five years |
| Grenada | US$235,000 donation | None |
| St Lucia | US$240,000 donation | None |
| St Kitts & Nevis | US$250,000 donation | None |
| Turkey | US$400,000 property, held three years | None |
| Vanuatu | From around US$130,000 | None |
The trade-offs are real, and worth stating plainly.
- These are purchase programmes. You are buying a nationality with no connection to the country. That is legal and well established, but it is a different thing from a citizenship you have lived your way into.
- The passports are weaker. None of them gives the right to live and work in the EU. Turkish passport holders need a visa for the Schengen area, and the EU suspended Vanuatu’s visa-free access to Schengen in 2022 over its passport sales, and has since removed it permanently.
- EU scrutiny is growing. The EU has strengthened its powers to suspend visa-free travel for countries that sell citizenship, and the Court of Justice ruled against Malta’s programme in April 2025. Malta’s citizenship by investment is now closed.
For some people a Caribbean passport is exactly the right tool. It is fast and simple. It is just not an EU passport. There is more on each programme in my citizenship by investment guide.
Route two: a residency that becomes citizenship
The alternative is a residence permit that leads to naturalisation. Here, almost every country expects you to live there. Ordinary naturalisation means years of genuine residence, usually most of each year. That rules it out for anyone who wants to stay at home.
There is one exception.
Portugal: the passport in the background
Portugal’s Golden Visa needs around seven days a year in Portugal on average. The statute counts that time as legal residence for citizenship. So you keep living where you live now, visit for a week a year, and the citizenship clock keeps running. It is the only investment route in the world to an EU passport that does not require you to relocate.
The facts as they stand in November 2026:
- Entry points: a cultural donation from €250,000 or a qualifying investment fund from €500,000. The property route closed in October 2023. Full detail is in the Portugal Golden Visa guide.
- Permanent residency: available from year five, and you can exit the investment at that point.
- Citizenship for Americans: ten years. Lei Orgânica 1/2026, in force since 19th May 2026, set ten years of legal residence for most nationalities, counted from the issue of the first residence permit. The seven-year period applies only to EU and Portuguese-speaking (CPLP) nationals. It does not apply to US citizens.
- Other requirements: A2-level Portuguese, the new civic knowledge test, and a clean criminal record.
- Dual citizenship: Portugal allows it, and the US does not require you to give up US citizenship.
Ten years is a long time. The point is what you do during those ten years: nothing different. You live at home, spend a week a year in Portugal, and at the end you can apply for a passport that gives you the right to live anywhere in the EU. That is why I describe it as a passport in the background. The detail on the timeline and the 2026 law is on my Portugal citizenship by investment page.
One date to note: proposed changes to the Golden Visa fund rules are before Portugal’s parliament, with votes due between 18th and 24th November 2026 (what is proposed).
Panama: lifetime residency, not a passport promise
Panama’s Qualified Investor Visa — which Jason advises on in partnership with Mercan — is a different tool. It gives permanent residency from the start, in a US-dollar economy with territorial tax. Under Executive Decree No. 17 of 2026, in force since 16th September 2026, the entry points are US$300,000 for new-build or off-plan property bought on first sale, US$500,000 for resale property, US$500,000 in securities, or a US$750,000 bank deposit. You keep the residency with a visit every two years.
Citizenship is where honesty matters. Naturalisation is legally possible after five years of residence. It is discretionary, needs Spanish and civics exams and an interview, and in practice favours people with genuine ties to the country. Panamanian commentary now openly warns that a visit every two years is likely to be refused at naturalisation. So treat Panama as a lifetime residency, with a passport possible but not the point. My Panama Golden Visa guide has the detail, and the two are compared side by side in Panama vs Portugal.
Greece, Malta and the UAE
These come up often, so here is where they sit.
- Greece: no minimum stay to keep the Golden Visa. Citizenship needs seven years of genuine residence, Greek language and a naturalisation exam. Without moving there, a Greek passport is not realistic.
- Malta: permanent residence needs no minimum stay. Citizenship by investment is closed, and naturalisation means genuinely living there.
- UAE: the ten-year Golden Visa is easy to keep. Citizenship for investors is not a realistic route.
All three are good ways to hold a residency. None of them is a way to a second passport without moving.
The routes side by side
| Route | Time needed | Passport |
|---|---|---|
| Caribbean CBI | None | Months; not an EU passport |
| Turkey CBI | None | Months; Schengen visa still needed |
| Portugal Golden Visa | Around 7 days a year | EU passport after 10 years for Americans |
| Panama Qualified Investor | A visit every two years | Possible after 5 years; discretionary |
| Greece Golden Visa | None to keep the permit | Only by genuinely moving |
| UAE Golden Visa | Minimal | Not realistic |
Which route fits
If you want a passport quickly and EU rights do not matter, citizenship by investment is the only fast route. If you want an EU passport and are happy for it to take ten years while you live at home, Portugal is the only option that works. If you want a permanent second home base close to the US and a passport is a bonus, Panama is worth a look.
I go through all of this live, with questions, on my free webinar on Wednesday 18th November. If you would like to see where you stand first, the private assessment takes a few minutes.
