Where Can Bitcoin Buy You Citizenship? Citizenship By Investment

January 4, 2022

What you'll learn 👉

Intro

By now you must be aware of the fact that you can use Bitcoins to purchase stuff — all the way from weird stuff to something that is actually useful. But did you know that if you’ve got enough of those digital coins, you may be able to call some countries your new home?

Yes, that’s right. While some countries have outright banned Bitcoin, there are some that are willing to grant you residency or even citizenship for those coins.

Which countries offer you residency or citizenship for Bitcoin?

Let’s take a look at these crypto-friendly countries:

Portugal

Portugal is becoming one of the most economically innovative countries in Europe, and the same is true when it comes to cryptocurrencies. It is one of the most crypto-friendly countries.

Portugal’s Golden Visa is a great way to gain residency in the country through a qualifying investment, and if you hold your investment for at least five years, you will also be eligible for citizenship.

Crypto is tax-free in the country, making it a fantastic option for you to realize your cryptocurrency gains without being heavily taxed.

El Salvador

Many of you must already be aware that El Salvador has been making it in the news recently for being Bitcoin-friendly; so much that they went ahead and made it their legal tender, becoming the first country to do so.

The President of the country recently announced plans of “Volcano bonds” where investors with investments greater than $100,000 will qualify for permanent residence which can lead to citizenship.

Malta residency for Bitcoin

This archipelago in the central Mediterranean is another one of the most crypto-friendly countries around with infrastructures encouraging crypto trade.

Malta has a strict set of rules and Bitcoin is not directly accepted for investment, but the benefits of having this passport can be worth it. Benefits include visa-free travel to 183 countries worldwide and special tax schemes for new citizens.

Vanuatu

Invest $130,000 into a local development fund and you can apply for citizenship in this nation made up of around 80 islands in the South Pacific Ocean.

The nation has one of the fastest processing times when it comes to citizenship, and there are no requirements to visit or stay to retain a passport.

As for Bitcoins, the government will not directly take Bitcoins but authorized agents are able to take them for a fee.

Conclusion

Today it is not only possible to obtain residency and citizenship in many countries using Bitcoins (directly or indirectly), it can be of great benefit to someone looking for a better place to trade crypto or just get a more powerful passport.

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FAQs

Here are answers to some of the frequently asked questions:

What is the best citizenship for Bitcoin traders?

The answer depends greatly on your requirements but in general, countries that have the potential for future innovation and have crypto-friendly legislation in place when it comes to things like taxes, are the best bets. Some countries offer low-income tax rates on capital gains from cryptos. There are a few that don’t even tax the crypto gains.

If you are looking to trade Bitcoin seriously, having to pay no tax can be a huge advantage. But you should do your research carefully before undertaking a daunting task like moving to a completely new place.

Can you buy citizenship with Bitcoin?

Yes. The actual process may differ depending on the country you choose, but you can definitely use Bitcoins to buy citizenship.

Countries like Vanuatu and El Salvador make it very easy to buy citizenship using Bitcoins. Moreover, El Salvador even has Bitcoin as their legal tender, making the process even easier.

Many countries, however, don’t directly accept Bitcoins for their citizenship-by-investment programs but you can always convert those digital coins to fiat in your country of choice and use that. It’s a bit of work but certainly doable.

Can you buy citizenship with cryptocurrency?

The answer is yes and no.

With a few exceptions, it is not possible to pay with crypto directly for citizenship-by-investment programs, however, as said above, there is always an option of converting your crypto to that country’s fiat and using that instead. (Some countries may not have fiat converted from crypto as the valid source of funds for these programs.)

If, however, by cryptocurrency you mean Bitcoin, Vanuatu and El Salvador have citizenship-by-investment programs where you can pay directly in Bitcoins.

How to buy second citizenship using crypto?

The process differs depending on whether crypto is directly accepted as payment or not. Today most countries don’t accept crypto directly, and you have to go through the process of conversion yourself through exchanges.

Before you can pay for the citizenship-by-investment program, you will most likely be asked to prove the legality of the income from the cryptos. This process can vary greatly but in general, these processes may help you prove the legality.

Crypto traded in a regulated exchange that has the user fill out KYC forms.
Proof of taxes paid before purchasing and capital gains taxes paid after selling the cryptos.

Once you have the money in the form needed, you can go through the process of investing, which also differs greatly depending on the country. You’ll need to look up the citizenship-by-investment program of the specific country you’re interested in.

What is the most crypto-friendly country?

Apart from a few countries that have completely banned cryptos, most others have a more or less positive attitude towards them. That being said, however, there are some cryptos that are being banned in a lot of countries, especially the privacy-focused ones like Monero.

As for tax purposes, most countries see cryptocurrencies as assets, and you’ll be required to pay capital gains tax once you sell them or exchange them or even use them to buy something.

Some countries, however, have very low taxes or are even tax-free when it comes to profits from crypto, making them the most crypto-friendly countries. El Salvador, Portugal, Switzerland and Malta are some of those countries.