Looking to gain full citizenship in another country?
Well you can, and now you can pay for it via Bitcoins!
Wouldn't it be ideal to have several different passports so that you could escape to another country any time your local government does something you don't agree with?
Well, now you can add another country to your list, and you can purchase your way in using a cryptocurrency.
What am I talking about you may be wondering?
A tiny island in the South Pacific announced that it will be granting full citizenship in exchange for $200,000. What makes this situation unique is the low price for citizenship and the option to pay for it in Bitcoins.
The country announced they would accept USD or Bitcoin.
At the current price of Bitcoin ($4802), it would cost you roughly 41.6 Bitcoins in order to purchase full citizenship.
What country is doing this?
Vanuatu.
Haven't heard of it? Me neither.
It's a very small island neighboring Fiji in the South Pacific.
Vanuatu is a member of the Commonwealth, which is an intergovernmental organization of 52 member states, most of which are former British Colonies.
The purchase of citizenship would also allow for visa-free travel to 113 other nearby/neighboring countries.
Vanuatu is trying to put itself on the map in the minds of technology enthusiasts.
Vanuatu is very tax friendly.
In fact, that may be an understatement.
Vanuatu has very low tax rates in general and does not require capital gain or income taxes to be paid.
Sounds like my kind of place!
A big reasoning for their tax friendly nature has to do with their stated goals of becoming a leader in technology adoption.
Specifically they stated this:
"The Government of Vanuatu has explicitly expressed a desire to be at the forefront of adopting new technologies, officially encouraging the VIC to receive payments in Bitcoin."
This would mark the first time a country accepted Bitcoin or any other cryptocurrency as payment in exchange for full citizenship.
Many other countries offer citizenship for a price, though usually that price must be paid in local currency and usually that price is higher than what is being discussed here.
Citizenship in St. Kitts and Nevis costs about $250,000 while citizenship in the EU will cost you about 650,000 euros ($766,967).
The cheapest option to gain citizenship is in Dominica, where a passport will cost you $100,000.
With these measures, Vanuatu is quickly putting itself in the hearts and minds of technology and cryptocurrency enthusiasts around the world!
Looking forward to hearing about more countries taking similar actions.
Stay informed my friends.
Sources:
http://fortune.com/2017/10/10/vanuatu-accepts-bitcoin-for-citizenship/
Image Sources:
http://www.businessinsider.com/vanuatu-accepts-bitcoin-for-citizenship-payment-2017-10
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-06-03/buying-your-st-kitts-citizenship-may-get-more-expensive-soon
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