Argentina announced a “golden passport” program on Oct. 2 to allow foreigners a chance to obtain citizenship in the country in exchange for cash or a government bond.
Argentine Minister of Economy Luis Caputo announced the passport program at the Argentine embassy in Paris on Oct. 2 as part of “Argentina Week.”
The passports can be purchased for $350,000, non-refundable to the Argentine Treasury or through a zero-interest $800,000 public bond with a seven-year term, Caputo said.
Spouses and children can be included in the application, with amounts varying by age and family size. A family of four could expect to pay $500,000, officials said.
“The Argentine passport is a highly useful one,” Caputo said. “It is accepted in over 140 countries precisely because Argentina is viewed as an independent nation, free from conflict.”
Destinations Argentines can visit without obtaining a visa in advance include China and Russia, Europe’s Schengen area, and most of Latin America.
Buying citizenship could make doing business easier for wealthy people from countries that face visa restrictions.
A consortium of investment firms advising the government estimated that the citizenship program could raise up to $2.5 billion if applications meet expectations.
The idea started more than a year ago after people from several sectors requested it, according to Caputo. He said the idea emerged during Argentine President Javier Milei’s 2024 visit to Sun Valley, Idaho, when tech executives expressed interest in getting Argentine citizenship.
Peter Thiel, co-founder of the software firm Palantir, temporarily moved his family to Buenos Aires in April. His company, Thiel Capital, owns a $13.5 million mansion in the city’s upscale Barrio Parque neighborhood.
In 2023, Milei repealed Argentina’s Land Law on the protection of national ownership, which restricted how much land foreigners could acquire in Argentina.
Argentine Minister of Economy Luis Caputo delivers a statement at the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development headquarters, ahead of the ”Argentina Week”, an event aimed at promoting investment and business opportunities, in Paris, on Oct. 1, 2026. (Teresa Suarez/AP Photo)
Argentina is a G20 nation of 46 million people and home to a vast Patagonian wilderness.
Argentina’s consistent dismantling of regulations and bold liberalization, from the housing market to air transport, and the reduction of customs duties and price controls in the past two years under Milei have spurred domestic and foreign companies to begin investing in the country again, according to the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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