Sustainable Island State Contribution from US$250,000, programme since 1984
St Kitts and Nevis citizenship costs from US$250,000 for one applicant or a family of up to four, approved in 5.1 months on average (range 3–8), with the strongest passport of the five Caribbean programmes. The limitations: the highest headline price and due diligence fees, and an EU letter asking the programme to close by 1 June 2028.
Figures verified 27 September 2026 · Licensed CICC consultant, Toronto
All routes carry the same government fees: due diligence US$10,000 for the principal and US$7,500 per dependant aged 16 or over, US$1,000 administrative fee, US$500 per passport. Every line is on our cost page.
from US$250,000
from US$250,000
from US$325,000
from US$600,000
Figures verified 27 September 2026 against the Citizenship by Investment Unit, ciu.gov.kn. We confirm the current schedule before you sign anything.
Add your dependants and their ages; the calculator applies the official SISC and fee schedule.
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Official government figures only. Excludes our professional fees, legal and bank charges, translations and courier. Some fees are non-refundable if an application is refused. Figures verified 2026-09-27.
Get this as a written estimate
Jane Katkova has advised on citizenship and residence by investment since 1998. We confirm eligibility, the complete fee schedule and the realistic processing time before you pay anything, and we advise against a programme when it does not fit your circumstances.
The St Kitts passport requirements: be 18 or over, pass enhanced due diligence and an interview, prove the source of your funds and pay from US$250,000. Children under 30, parents 55 and over and siblings in defined cases can join. Seven nationalities are restricted, and a refusal is shared with all five islands.
The unit accepts applications only through an authorised agent. We prepare the file in Toronto; the licensed local agent files.
Nationality, residence history, source of funds and family composition checked against the unit's rules before you spend anything.
Passports, police certificates, civil documents, medicals, bank references and the source-of-funds narrative. Full list on the requirements page.
Due diligence and the US$1,000 administrative fee are paid now and are non-refundable.
Third-party background checks and the ECCIRA regional database check. The interview is mandatory for the principal, at the unit's discretion for dependants 16+; biometrics captured at interview.
Only now do you pay the SISC or complete the real estate purchase through escrow.
Certificate of registration, then passports at US$500 each.
| Your situation | What St Kitts and Nevis adds | What it does not change |
|---|---|---|
| US citizen | A second lifetime passport with UK, Schengen, Hong Kong and Singapore; an asset for your children | US worldwide taxation, FBAR and FATCA; your US passport already covers most of the same destinations |
| Canadian citizen | The same visa-free access, plus contingency travel documentation if your passport becomes a liability abroad | Canadian tax until you sever residential ties |
| US or Canada resident on a weaker passport | Schengen, UK, Hong Kong, Singapore and around 150 destinations you cannot reach today; a citizenship independent of your permit | US visa requirements; conditional Canadian eTA; nationality restrictions |
Read more about the St Kitts and Nevis passport and visa-free travel
Photo: Katelyn Comer / Unsplash
Photo: Omar Martin / Unsplash
Photo: Hugh Whyte / Unsplash
Photo: Hugh Whyte / UnsplashYou are acquiring a second passport and a lifetime citizenship your children can hold, not a tax strategy. St Kitts and Nevis was not named in US Presidential Proclamation 10998, both the US and Canada permit dual citizenship, and no renunciation is asked of you.
What does not change: the US taxes its citizens on worldwide income wherever they live, FBAR and FATCA reporting continue, and a St Kitts and Nevis bank account is reported to the IRS under the Model 1 agreement. Canada taxes by residency, so a Canadian keeps paying Canadian tax until residential ties are severed. Zero local tax applies only to tax residents, generally 183 or more days a year on the island.
This is the passport our clients from Nigeria, India, Vietnam, China, Pakistan and the Gulf most often choose for the widest visa-free access: Schengen, the UK (with the UK ETA), Hong Kong and Singapore are visa-free today, and the citizenship does not depend on a permit or PR renewal.
It does not get you into the US or Canada more easily. Canada allows an eTA only if you held a Canadian visa in the last ten years or hold a valid US non-immigrant visa, and only by air; US visitor visas still apply. Nationality restrictions cover Afghanistan, Iran, North Korea, Russia, Belarus, Sudan and Yemen, with limited exceptions for ten-plus years' residence elsewhere; ask us.
For the lowest minimum investment we usually recommend Dominica; for a US E-2 Treaty Investor visa route, Grenada. For the fastest processing and the strongest passport, St Kitts and Nevis. We confirm the right programme in the first consultation.
Video coming: what changed under ECCIRA and what the EU 2028 letter means for applicants filing now.
From US$250,000 through the Sustainable Island State Contribution for a single applicant or a family of up to four, plus US$10,000 due diligence for the principal and US$7,500 per dependant aged 16 or over, US$1,000 administrative fee and US$500 per passport. A single applicant pays about US$261,500 in government charges; a family of four with young children about US$270,500. Real estate starts at US$325,000 with a seven-year hold.
5.1 months on average, with a range of 3 to 8 months, according to the IMI Processing Times Tool for Q4 2025. That makes it the fastest and most predictable of the five Caribbean programmes. The former accelerated route that promised approval in under two months no longer exists, so treat any such promise with caution.
Not today. ECCIRA, the regional regulator in force since December 2025, requires 30 days of physical presence within the first five years of citizenship, and we expect St Kitts and Nevis to apply it; earlier filings were grandfathered. Separately, every passport holder must enrol biometrics by 31 July 2027.
No. St Kitts and Nevis is not in US Proclamation 10998, but its nationals still need US visitor visas. Canada allows an eTA only if you held a Canadian visa in the last ten years or hold a valid US non-immigrant visa, and only when arriving by air. The passport's benefit lies elsewhere: Schengen, the UK, Hong Kong, Singapore and around 150 destinations in total.
Schengen access is intact today. In July 2026 the European Commission asked all five Caribbean governments to phase out citizenship by investment by 1 June 2028, and the Visa Suspension Mechanism now treats operating a programme as grounds for suspension. The next Commission report is due December 2026. We advise every client that Schengen visa-free access is current and not guaranteed after 2028.
Compare them side by side: second citizenship options compared and Caribbean second passport comparison. Prefer residence to a second passport? See Greece residency by investment or Hungarian residency by investment.
This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. Programme rules change; we confirm every figure before you commit.
A confidential consultation with a licensed CICC consultant. We assess eligibility and total cost before you commit to any programme.