Argentina will sell citizenship to wealthy foreigners, a first for South America. President Javier Milei's government is hunting for dollars to service its debts, and it is now pricing access to a passport that opens doors in more than 140 countries. Expect a political fight a year before the next presidential election.

Argentina will sell citizenship to wealthy foreigners, a first for South America. President Javier Milei's government is hunting for dollars to service its debts, and it is now pricing access to a passport that opens doors in more than 140 countries. Expect a political fight a year before the next presidential election.

Argentina will sell citizenship to wealthy foreigners, a first for South America. President Javier Milei's government is hunting for dollars to service its debts, and it is now pricing access to a passport that opens doors in more than 140 countries. Expect a political fight a year before the next presidential election.

Key details:

Economy Minister Luis Caputo unveiled the citizenship-by-investment scheme at an investor event in Paris on 2 October 2026.

Price: a non-refundable US$350,000 payment to the national Treasury for the main applicant; US$100,000 more for a spouse and US$25,000 per child under 18. A family of four pays about US$500,000.

A second route allows investment in government bonds; applications are expected to open before the end of 2026. Argentina (population about 46 million) becomes the largest country to sell passports. The previous largest was Montenegro, with about 628,000 people.

Pitch: The passport gives visa-free access to more than 140 destinations, including the Schengen area, China and Russia. It appeals to buyers from Southeast Asia and the Arab world who face visa limits. The FATF has warned that such programmes can be used to launder money and hide identities. Further, nationalist sentiment is rising; a bill easing foreign farmland purchases had to be gutted before it passed.

WBW angle: when a G20 economy sells sovereignty for hard currency, it tells you how short of dollars it really is.