Application Process & Timeline
Your Path to Citizenship
Seven clear steps. 60 days on average. Fully managed by our team. No travel required.
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7
Clear steps, start to finish.
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60days
On average, submission to approval.
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100%
Remote process to approval.
One in-person biometric appointment is required at the passport-issuance stage.
How it works
From your first conversation to passport in hand
The Vanuatu citizenship application process is straightforward when managed by experienced professionals. Stanford Knight has processed thousands of applications and refined every step to minimise delays, prevent complications, and deliver results.
Here is exactly what happens from your first conversation to passport delivery.
Timeline
Seven steps, fully managed
Every stage is handled by your SKP team. The points where payment falls due are marked, so you always know what is owed and when.
- 1
Book Your Consultation
Your journey begins with a confidential conversation with one of our senior advisers. We discuss your situation, assess eligibility, recommend the right programme (DSP or CIIP), and answer every question. No commitment. No pressure.
Duration: 45–60 minutes
- 2
Engage Stanford Knight
If you decide to proceed, we formalise our engagement. You receive a clear engagement letter outlining scope, timeline, costs, and responsibilities.
$5,000 government due-diligence fee is paid at this stage.Duration: 1–2 days
- 3
Document Collection
We provide a comprehensive document checklist tailored to your circumstances. Our team guides you through every requirement — what’s needed, how to obtain it, how to format it. Nothing is left to guesswork. The full document set is available in advance on the Document Checklist resource page so you can begin gathering before you engage.
See the full Document Checklist
Duration: 7–14 days
*Duration depends on your responsiveness and document availability
- 4
Application Preparation
Our team compiles your formal application — every document reviewed, verified, formatted, and assembled to government standards. We check everything twice before submission.
25% of the government contribution is paid immediately before lodgement.Duration: 5–7 days
- 5
Government Submission
Your application is submitted directly to the Citizenship Commission of Vanuatu by our Port Vila team. Because our office is adjacent to the Commission, submission is immediate and any initial queries are handled same-day.
Duration: 1 day
- 6
Due Diligence & Processing
The Citizenship Commission conducts its due diligence — background checks, financial verification, sanctions screening. If government has questions, our team responds directly and immediately. Our proximity to the Commission means no delays waiting for intermediary communication.
Duration: 30–45 days (typical)
- 7
Approval, Oath & Passport
Your application is approved. You take the oath of allegiance — administered remotely via consulate or embassy — and your Vanuatu passport is issued and delivered securely to your specified address.
Remaining 75% is paid on approval. For CIIP, the $50,000 Impact Fund investment is confirmed.Duration: 7–14 days
Typical total timeline
- ~60 days
- DSP — submission to citizenship approval.
- ~60 days
- CIIP — submission to citizenship approval.
- +2–3 wks
- Plus a further 2–3 weeks for biometric enrolment and passport delivery (see below).
After approval
From Approval to Passport in Hand
Approval is the milestone. The passport is the deliverable. Here is what happens between the two — managed end to end by your SKP team.
Current enrolment locations
- Head Office
Port Vila
Vanuatu Passport Office
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Dubai
Vanuatu Consulate, UAE
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Hong Kong
Vanuatu Consulate
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Nouméa
Vanuatu Consulate, New Caledonia
Additional enrolment centres are coming online in the coming months as the Vanuatu Government continues to expand its consular biometric infrastructure. Your SKP advisor will keep you informed as new locations open.
Passport-stage fees
What the passport stage costs
Your headline citizenship cost is all-inclusive. The fees in this section apply only to the passport issuance step, after citizenship has been granted. There are two routes, and they are priced differently.
Billed separately · at passport issuance
Citizenship approved 
Passport issuance
Passport application fee
Paid directly to the Vanuatu Passport Office when your passport is issued.
No biometric capture fee.
VUV 100,000
per person
Biometric capture feeOverseas only
(Dubai, Hong Kong, Nouméa, or any future overseas centre):
Charged at the consulate when biometrics are taken outside Vanuatu.
Most cost-effective route
No fee in Port Vila. Complete enrolment at the Passport Office in person and this cost disappears entirely.
USD 1,000
for the principal applicant
and USD 800 / dependant
No agent markup, ever — both fees are government charges, not ours.
For families travelling together, completing biometrics in Port Vila is the most cost-effective route — and combines naturally with a few days in the country whose citizenship you have just acquired. We lay out both options in writing as part of your post-approval briefing — precise fees, available appointment dates, and travel logistics — so you can decide based on convenience, cost, or both.
Why it works
Why Applications Succeed With SKP
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Our proximity
Our Port Vila office is directly adjacent to the Citizenship Commission. When government has a question, our team answers it the same day — often the same hour. Other agents wait for emails across time zones.
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Our preparation
We check every document before submission. Incomplete or incorrectly formatted documents are the primary cause of delays in citizenship applications. Our preparation eliminates this risk.
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Our relationships
We work with the Citizenship Commission daily. Our team knows the officials, understands the process, and anticipates requirements before they become complications.
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Our track record
100%
Success on all properly submitted applications
That statistic reflects the quality of our preparation and the rigour of our eligibility assessment.
