Grenada Passport in 2026: The Only Caribbean Program With an E-2 Treaty — and Why the US Investor Visa Isn't Issued Immediately After Buying Citizenship

What is a Grenada passport and how it differs from four neighboring programs

The Grenada passport is issued under the 2013 citizenship by investment law and differs from the other four Caribbean programs by one feature — a bilateral investment treaty with the USA. Everything else — the amounts, timelines, checks, and family composition — is arranged similarly among the five countries and follows a common intergovernmental agreement.

The Grenada program has operated since August 2013 under Act No. 15 of 2013 (Grenada Citizenship by Investment Act). An application for a passport is submitted only through a licensed agent; you do not need to visit the country before submission or after approval.

This treaty is the reason for the premium added to the Caribbean minimum price. A detailed analysis of all five programs, their thresholds and fees is covered in our separate article on Caribbean citizenship by investment; here we focus on this difference and what it provides.

E-2 visa after three years of domicile: what the US law changed in December 2022

The right of a Grenada citizen to apply for an E-2 investor visa has been conditioned by US law since December 23, 2022 on three years of continuous domicile in the country, if citizenship was acquired for money. This is the main detail absent from the top ten results in Russian-language searches for Grenada passport information.

The rule exists in the definition of the visa category — INA 101(a)(15)(E), codified as 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(E). The provision was added by Pub. L. 117–263, div. E, title LIX, §5902(b) of December 23, 2022 and reads literally as follows: a foreign national "who acquired the corresponding citizenship through financial investments and to whom status has not previously been granted under this subparagraph" must be a national of a treaty country "in which he was domiciled continuously for no less than 3 years at any time before applying for a nonimmigrant visa under this subparagraph."

For a buyer of Grenada citizenship, the text implies three things commonly lost in retellings:

1. The rule is tied to the method of acquiring citizenship, not the country. It applies to any citizenship purchased through investment — Caribbean, Turkish, or any other.
2. Domicile is not the same as having a Grenada passport in hand. It is actual residence with intent to remain, not possession of a document or payment of a contribution.
3. Three years are counted "at any time before application" — meaning the period does not have to be immediately before the application, but it must exist.

Myth: "Get a Grenada passport and apply for E-2 right away." This claim directly contradicts the text of the law from December 2022. One of the competitors we reviewed states that documents can be submitted "immediately upon receiving a passport at any city with a US embassy," another that Grenada citizens "can obtain an E-2 investor visa and legally live, work and do business in America," without a single caveat. The requirement itself is not hidden: Henley & Partners — the firm hired by the Grenada government in 2016 to relaunch the program — mentions it in their program description.

A separate detail for those who will verify this themselves. In the State Department's Foreign Affairs Manual — 9 FAM 402.9 as of February 17, 2026 — the section on applicant citizenship does not contain this provision, nor does the implementing regulation 22 CFR 41.51. The requirement for applicants with Grenada citizenship is established by law, and this is a case where the statute is stricter than the agency rule.

What is an E-2 visa and what it does not provide

The E-2 visa is a nonimmigrant status for an investor who invests substantial capital in a US enterprise and comes to manage it; it does not grant permanent residency rights. The requirements are described in 22 CFR 41.51(b), and there is no specific amount among them.

The treaty on which the Grenada option rests is a bilateral investment treaty with the USA, signed on May 2, 1986 and entered into force on March 3, 1989. In the official list of treaty countries (9 FAM 402.9-10, as of February 17, 2026), Grenada is listed with E-2 classification and the date 03/03/1989. Dominica, Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Saint Lucia are not on this list — meaning the claim about the uniqueness of this option is verified against the official list and confirmed.

How much a Grenada passport costs in 2026

A Grenada passport costs a minimum of $235,000 as a non-refundable contribution to the National Transformation Fund or $270,000 for purchase of an approved property plus a $50,000 non-refundable contribution. Both amounts cover the primary applicant and family members up to four people.

At the Central Bank of Russia exchange rate on September 3, 2026 — 86.9963 RUB per dollar and 100.8287 RUB per euro — the passport through the fund option costs approximately €202,800, through the property option — from €233,000 without fees.

What we could not confirm and why we say this directly. Sections of the official Citizenship by Investment Grenada website on September 3, 2026 returned a 404 error: unavailable were both the "Schedule of Fees," the fund page, and the "Becoming a Citizen" section. Only the homepage opens, and it still shows the line "Minimum contribution of USD 150,000" — a sum that stopped being legal on July 1, 2024, when five governments fixed a common minimum of $200,000. The amounts above are taken from Henley & Partners' program description — the firm with a government mandate; we do not cite verification and processing fees in the text because the official tariff is unavailable, and agent data diverge.

The $35,000 premium over the Caribbean minimum: what the extra payment covers

The contribution is $35,000 above the region's lower bound, and this entire difference pays for one right — the possibility to apply for an E-2 visa in the future, not the visa itself. The cheapest regional option is the Dominica fund at $200,000; here the minimum is $235,000, which is 17.5% more expensive.

What the premium buys and what it does not:

• buys: membership in a country with which the USA has an investment protection treaty and the associated right to apply for E-2 upon meeting conditions;
• does not buy: a visa, expedited processing, the right to live in the USA, or exemption from the three-year domicile requirement;
• does not buy: visa-free entry to the USA — neither Grenada nor any other Caribbean program has it.

The $35,000 difference is comparable to relocation expenses and three years of living on the island — and without those three years, the passport is in hand, but the right paid for is not activated. For a family of four, the premium remains the same: both options apply to the family, not per person.

Tourist visa and bond up to $20,000: what changed on April 2, 2026

A Grenada passport holder enters the USA only with a visa, and since April 2, 2026 a bond may be required when applying for B-1/B-2 — up to $20,000 inclusive. The island nation is included in the State Department's list of visa bond countries, and in its case this is a working restriction, not theoretical: there are no visa issuance suspensions like those for Dominica.

The program became permanent by final rule on August 3, 2026 (91 FR 48757). The mechanism is as follows:

The selection criteria for countries in the rule text are formulated literally as follows: high level of overstay, insufficient information exchange, weak identity and criminal background checks, and the need for improvements "in document and citizen security checks, including in the granting of citizenship." The last seven words are a direct reference to citizenship by investment programs, and this is the wording of the rule itself, not an outside interpretation.

Where you can travel without a visa and where conditions changed in 2025–2026

A Grenada passport grants visa-free entry to the Schengen zone for 90 days in each 180-day period, but travel to the United Kingdom since January 8, 2025 requires prior authorization via ETA. The visa-free list is a strong point of this document, but two items in it read differently than in marketing tables.

A note on the number of destinations: different publications in the top ten search results cite it differently — 130, 140, 141, 144, 145, 147 countries — because they count by different indices and on different dates. We do not cite a total number: it has no single official source, and a spread of seventeen positions shows what such a figure is worth.

Myth: "Visa-free Schengen equals the right to live in Europe." Annex II of Regulation (EU) 2018/1806 exempts Grenada citizens from a visa for short-term travel — 90 days in any 180-day period. The document grants no right to work, study, or stay longer than this period; for that, you need a residence permit from a specific EU country.

Can Russian citizens participate in the program

Grenada has not accepted applications from Russian and Belarusian citizens since March 31, 2023 — confirmed by the program's official press release. The document, dated December 15, 2023, was issued by the Executive Office of Citizenship by Investment Grenada and directly refutes a claim made in parliament about the program's openness to all nationalities.

The press release text contains three verifiable facts: the policy rejecting applicants from Russia, Belarus, North Korea and Iran has not changed; the acceptance of applications from Russian and Belarusian citizens ceased on March 31, 2023; the long-term ban for North Korea and Iran remains in effect. It is separately noted that Grenada adheres to six principles of Caribbean program operations agreed with the US Treasury on February 25, 2023.

What this means in practice:

• for a person with only a Russian passport, the Grenada program is closed, and no thresholds, fees, or timelines matter;
• the press release mentions applicants from Russia and Belarus, but does not describe the case of dual citizenship — unlike, for example, the 2024 Italian note, where the suspension explicitly extends to persons with dual citizenship. How the Grenada unit applies the policy to a holder of dual citizenship does not follow from the published document, and we will not speculate: the status is verified by written inquiry to the unit before any payments.

How the application process works: agent, interview, and vetting

An application for citizenship is submitted exclusively through a licensed agent, and an interview is mandatory for all applicants as of September 1, 2023. The procedure itself does not distinguish the program from the four neighboring ones — only the treaty with the United States does.

The process in five steps: select an accredited agent → gather documentation and verify the source of funds → vetting with a mandatory interview → preliminary approval → make the investment and receive the registration certificate, on the basis of which the passport is issued. The requirement for a mandatory interview was introduced by Circular No. 9 of September 1, 2023, published on the program's official website.

Personal presence in Grenada is not required at any stage. The only stage where presence is actually needed is for the domicile requirement for the future E-2 visa, and it is not part of the citizenship acquisition procedure.

What will happen to the program by 2028

On June 25, 2026, the European Commission required Caribbean governments to shut down citizenship-by-investment programs by June 1, 2028 — the requirement is addressed to all five. The proposed transition period is 24 months. This is not a ban on the program, but a condition for maintaining visa-free access to the EU.

The second process is regional: the single regulator agreement ECCIRA, signed in September 2025, transfers oversight of the five programs to a common body with the power to fine and revoke status. The regulator's headquarters is located on the island.

The practical takeaway for a buyer is simple: the planning horizon for Caribbean programs is now shorter than the holding term for the real estate option. The property is held for five years, while the decision on EU visa-free access is expected by June 2028.

Comparison: Caribbean contribution and Turkish real estate — where the money stays as an asset

Turkish citizenship by real estate costs more than a Caribbean contribution, but the invested $400,000 remains your property and is sold after three years — whereas $235,000 to the government fund is never returned. The comparison is also apt because Turkey is also on the list of E-2 treaty countries — classified as E-2 with the date of May 18, 1990 in the same official list.

The key takeaway from the table — the one not usually mentioned in industry comparisons — is that the three-year domicile requirement applies to the Turkish investor as well, because US law tied the condition to the method of acquiring citizenship, not to a specific country. In other words, "buy a passport for E-2" does not work for either the Caribbean or Turkish option.

What differs is the fate of the funds. At the Central Bank of Russia rate on September 3, 2026, $400,000 is €345,124. In our Turkey catalog on that date, there are 9,046 properties at that price point, of which 2,768 cost €345,124 and above, meaning they meet the citizenship threshold. The median price across the country is €203,698, the median per square meter is €2,046, and the minimum price is €33,300. Properties meeting the threshold are listed in the Turkish citizenship real estate section; the full list of countries with programs is in the citizenship by investment section.

Who this program suits and who it doesn't

A Grenada passport makes sense where the value is in the citizenship and mobility itself, and loses sense where the value is in quick access to the United States. Below is a breakdown by situation, without promises of legal outcomes.

Separately, on tourist access. The ten-year B-1/B-2 visa, which promotional materials highlight as the program's main advantage, as of April 2026 may require a deposit of up to $20,000 per person. For a family of four, this is up to $80,000 in frozen funds on top of the contribution — a sum comparable to the program premium itself.

How we verify the data

Every claim in this analysis is tied to a publication by a government agency or to a law text with an access date. No figure is taken from agency tables without attribution.

What we do not provide: total number of visa-free destinations (no single official source), program fee schedule (official page is unavailable), statistics on documents issued (figures published by agencies differ). Homzer is a marketplace for foreign real estate with transaction support; we do not arrange citizenship by investment and do not act as an agent for Caribbean programs.

Frequently asked questions about the program and E-2 visa

Does a Grenada passport give the right to live in the United States?

No. It gives the right to apply for an E-2 investor visa if the conditions of the law are met, including three years of continuous domicile in the country, if citizenship was acquired through investment. The visa itself is nonimmigrant and does not lead to permanent residence.

How much does a Grenada passport cost in 2026?

From $235,000 in nonrefundable contribution to the National Transformation Fund or from $270,000 for purchase of an approved property plus a $50,000 contribution. Both amounts are calculated for an applicant or family of up to four people; vetting and processing fees are paid separately.

Can a Russian citizen buy a Grenada passport?

No. Acceptance of applications from citizens of Russia and Belarus was discontinued as of March 31, 2023 — confirmed by the program's official press release of December 15, 2023.

Does a Grenadian need a visa to the United States?

Yes. None of the Caribbean programs offer visa-free entry to the United States. For a B-1/B-2 as of April 2, 2026, a passport holder may be required to deposit a refundable amount of $10,000, $15,000, or $20,000.

Is it mandatory to live in Grenada after obtaining citizenship?

No. The program has no residency requirement. The three-year domicile — this is a condition of US law for the E-2 visa, not a condition for maintaining citizenship itself.

What will happen to the program after 2028?

On June 25, 2026, the European Commission required Caribbean programs to be shut down by June 1, 2028 with a 24-month transition period. A decision on EU visa-free access is expected within this timeframe; the program continues to operate.

Grenada or Turkey — which to choose for E-2?

The three-year domicile requirement applies to both citizenships because US law tied it to the method of acquiring citizenship. The difference is elsewhere: the Turkish threshold of $400,000 remains your property and can be sold after three years, while the $235,000 contribution is not returned.