National Economic Fund, National Action Bond, real estate and enterprise investment routes
St Lucia citizenship by investment starts at US$240,000 for a single applicant or a family of four, with the only government bond route in the Caribbean and the lowest additional-dependant contributions in the region. The limitations are 18 months average processing and the loss of visa-free entry to the UK.
Figures verified 27 September 2026 · Licensed CICC consultant, Toronto
Saint Lucia is the only Caribbean programme with a government bond. Government, due diligence and processing fees sit on top of every route.
US$240,000
US$300,000 + US$50,000 administration fee
You forgo five years of interest; the US$50,000 fee is not returned
US$300,000 + government fee of about US$30,000
US$250,000 + fees
Due diligence from US$7,500 for the principal and US$5,000 per dependant aged 16+; processing US$2,000 principal and US$1,000 per dependant; other and passport charges about US$1,950. Figures verified 27 September 2026.
Add your family members and select an investment route; the calculator applies the current official 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 core St Lucia citizenship by investment requirements are: over 18, no criminal record, a documented source of funds and US$240,000 for the National Economic Fund. The Citizenship by Investment Unit assesses the file on documentation and due diligence, and processing takes 18 months on average.
The St Lucia citizenship by investment official minimum contribution 2025 was US$240,000 to the National Economic Fund, covering a single applicant or a family of up to four, and it is unchanged in 2026. It is non-refundable, paid only after approval in principle, and the most straightforward of the four routes.
You cannot file directly; the Citizenship by Investment Unit only accepts files from an authorised agent. We prepare the file in Toronto and the licensed local agent submits it.
Nationality, residence history, family, route, then a written cost estimate.
Police certificates from every country of residence, bank references, medicals and a source-of-funds narrative prepared to meet enhanced due diligence standards.
Fees paid now are non-refundable. Third-party vetting and the ECCIRA regional database check take place at this stage, which accounts for most of the processing time.
Mandatory for everyone aged 16 and over, usually by video.
You pay the donation, buy the bond or complete the purchase through escrow only after approval, then take the oath and receive certificates and passports.
| Your situation | What St Lucia adds | What it does not add |
|---|---|---|
| US citizen | A second nationality if a US passport becomes a constraint; citizenship your children inherit; a tax-free base if you relocate | No relief from US worldwide tax, FBAR or FATCA; no travel gain over a US passport |
| Canadian citizen | A second passport and hereditary citizenship for children; a Caribbean base after severing Canadian residency | Nothing on Canadian tax while resident; no travel gain over a Canadian passport |
| US resident on a weak passport | Schengen, Hong Kong, Singapore and most of Latin America visa-free | No new US visa category; your US status is unchanged |
| Canadian PR or work permit holder | The same visa-free gains, plus a CA$7 eTA to fly home if you hold a valid US visa or held a Canadian visa in the past ten years | The UK now needs a visa; Canadian PR obligations are unchanged |
Read more about the Saint Lucia passport and visa-free travel
Photo: Karl Moore / Unsplash
Photo: Omar Eagle / Unsplash
Photo: Tom Podmore / Unsplash
Photo: Karl Moore / Unsplash
Photo: Germine Sealy / UnsplashYou are acquiring lifetime contingency citizenship for yourself and your children, not a tax strategy. Saint Lucia charges tax residents nothing on foreign income, capital gains or inheritance, but only if you move there for 183 days a year. A US citizen keeps filing on worldwide income, and a Saint Lucian bank account is reported to the IRS under FATCA. A Canadian keeps paying Canadian tax until they sever residential ties.
Most of our Saint Lucia clients hold Nigerian, Indian, Vietnamese, Pakistani or Chinese passports and live in Toronto, Vancouver, Houston or New York on a work permit or PR. You gain visa-free access to Schengen, Hong Kong, Singapore and most of Latin America. You do not gain easier entry to the US or Canada: Saint Lucia is not named in US Proclamation 10998, but the passport creates no new US visa category, and Canada's eTA works only if you held a Canadian visa in the last ten years or hold a valid US visa, arriving by air.
Tell us your nationality, who is applying and which route interests you. We reply with a written cost estimate and a realistic processing timeline.
Video forthcoming
From US$240,000 for the National Economic Fund donation, covering a single applicant or a family of up to four. Add due diligence from US$7,500 for the principal and US$5,000 per dependant aged 16+, processing of US$2,000 plus US$1,000 per dependant, and about US$1,950 in passport and other charges. A single applicant pays about US$251,450 before our fees; a family of four with young children at about US$259,450.
18 months on average, with a range of 12 to 26 months according to the IMI Processing Times Tool for Q4 2025. It is the slowest of the five Caribbean programmes because applications rose 424% in FY2024 and the unit did not scale with them. Quotes of 60 to 90 days reflect processing times from before 2023.
No. The UK ended visa-free entry for Saint Lucian nationals on 5 March 2026, citing asylum claims rather than the citizenship programme. Schengen, Hong Kong and Singapore remain visa-free. If UK access is a priority, Grenada, Antigua and Barbuda and St Kitts and Nevis still have it.
Only to a limited extent. Saint Lucia was not named in US Proclamation 10998, so nothing is taken away, but you still need a US visa. For Canada, an eTA is available only if you have held a Canadian visa in the last ten years or hold a valid US non-immigrant visa, and only when flying. Otherwise you apply for a visitor visa.
You buy US$300,000 of non-interest-bearing government bonds and hold them for five years, after which the capital is returned. A US$50,000 administration fee is charged on top and is not returned, and normal due diligence and processing fees apply. Your real cost is the fee plus five years of forgone interest, which is why it suits people with idle capital rather than people who would otherwise invest it.
No residency today; a 30-day presence rule within the first five years is being drafted under ECCIRA, and applications filed before it takes effect are grandfathered. Schengen is intact today, but in July 2026 the European Commission asked all five islands to phase out CBI by 1 June 2028. We treat Schengen access as a current benefit that is uncertain after 2028.
Compare them side by side: citizenship by investment programmes and Caribbean passport programmes. Prefer residence to a second passport? See Hungarian residency by investment or investor residence in Panama.
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.