In a time of political volatility and the increasing global uncertainty, a growing number of Americans apply for second passes as a safety net against future instability.
According to advisory companies of citizenship and residency counseling such as Latitude Group and Arton Capital, the demand from the American citizens has increased dramatically after second passes or long-term residence in other countries through investment programs of this country in recent years. The choice of Donald Trump as US President seems to have this trend towards turbocharger.
In the first three months of 2025, Arton reported an increase in the number of his US customers in the first three months of 2025, compared to the same period in 2024, while Latitude has increased applications for the second citizenship or control of 1000 percent since 2020, directly after the Covid pandemy and the travel restrictions.
There are no official records about the number of American citizens looking for second passes.
However, the industry estimates shared with Al Jazeera suggest that around 10,000 global applications for second passes have come from Americans in recent years who are looking for a second citizenship. While the total number of applications has remained consistent for many years, the proportion of unit applicants from US applicants has increased significantly since pandemic.
What was once seen as a domain by billionaires and business owners is now increasingly attracting experts and politically concerned citizens who are looking for a “plan B” – an exit route if they find it more difficult to live in the USA.
“It is better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it,” said Christopher Willis, managing partner of the Latitude Group, who helps the customer to secure the second citizenship and residence through investment programs.
What are passport-for-for investment programs?
These programs, which are often referred to as “Golden Visa” or “Citizenship-by investment” programs, enable individuals, long-term residence residence or even citizenship in exchange for a financial contribution-normally through real estate investments, a donation to a national development fund or the purchase of government bonds.
Depending on the program and location, the investment requirements vary between only 10,000 euros (10,700 US dollars) and more than one million euros (USD 1.2 million).
Not all programs necessarily lead to a complete citizenship or a passport, but offer the right to Residency.
Residency-by investment programs such as the golden visa of the Portugal or the equivalent program in Greece offer long-term residence and the right to freedom in the EU Schengen zone, but do not immediately grant citizenship. In Portugal, however, the program offers a five-year way to citizenship with minimal demands on the residence-average 14 days every two years.
The citizen male investment programs offered by Malta and several Caribbean countries can lead to full passes in just 16 months.
According to the latitude, 50 percent of US customers now choose the golden visa in Portugal as a top election, followed by Malta (25 percent) and Caribbean nations (15 percent). About 80 percent of these customers state that they have no direct plans to move. You just want to know the comfort that you have the opportunity.
Most countries that offer citizenship also have opportunities to transfer this to the next generations of children and grandchildren.
Who applies for second passes?
Second passes are now being sought from a much wider area of society than only billionaires and business owners with a high network.
David Lesperance, an international international tax and immigration consultant based in Poland, said that his American customers include LGBTQ people, large political donors and people who are concerned with what they see as authoritarian trends in the US government.
“I’ve never been more busy,” he said to Al Jazera and added that people who have never thought of leaving the United States suddenly “very seriously” think about it.
Professor Kristin Surak, a political sociologist at the London School of Economics and author of the Golden Pass, said that she had an increase in the number of Americans described as the “Armageddon” – those who believe that the country’s instruction is so uncertain that a second citizenship is a rational security service.
Willis said that the Americans now have Latitude in China and India. Arton Capital also confirmed a strong increase in the US state-related daring, both individuals with a high network and experts who deal with the current political climate.
What are the main reasons why people want second passes?
Donald Trump’s return to the US presidency in 2025 and a wave of executive regulations that are directed against civil freedom, immigration protection and minority rights have triggered concern for many groups.
“I received nine applicants in seven days after one of these commands,” said Lesperance, quoting a wave of fear among LGBTQ customers, especially according to an implementation regulation in connection with the “gender ideology”, which recognized male and female as only two genders and reversed several protective measures for transgender people.
Some people, says Läsperanz, are worried that they are added to political awake lists, which were put together by allies of the President such as Kash Patel, to lead Trump’s choice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Others, such as supporters of the propalestinian protests of the past year led by students, say that in the middle of the trump government’s experiment, they are increasingly vulnerable to pro-pale activities in the US locations and to deport several participants.
Läsperanz also indicates the increase in the frequency of natural disasters such as the latest California forest fires, mass shootings and deepening of the ideological separation as an additional driver of fear.
“The USA will become a forest fire zone,” he said. “Mass shootings, a dramatic increase in … racism. And if they are politically active, this means that half of the country does not like them,” added Lesperance.
The second citizenship is a financial decision for some families. Some choose real estate investments in Caribbean nations such as Grenada and Antigua and Barbuda, which are delivered with passports in just six months.
One of the Latitude customers decided to invest 300,000 US dollars in real estate in Antigua and Barbuda instead of buying a holiday home in Florida and receiving a second pass.
Global mobility is another appointment. Armand Arton, CEO of Arton Capital, said that his customers often combine “bundle” residences. For example, a golden visa of the United Arab Emirates with a European visa to ensure broader access to travel.
In order to obtain a golden visa in the United Arab Emirates, people usually have to invest around 545,000 US dollars, either by buying real estate or a deposit in an approved financial institution.
Another key factor for some individuals with a high network value is taxation.
The United States is one of the few countries in the world that control its citizens and constant residents – also known as Green Card owners – over their global income, regardless of where they live. This system, which is referred to as tax taxation, means that even Americans who live abroad have to submit US tax returns and may owe taxes on their global income.
This system has prompted some Americans with a high network to consider their US citizenship as a whole, and the owners of Green Card to give up their place of residence.
It rarely remains that people take this step, but a serious consideration for some customers.
“I had several hundred customers over the decade,” said Lesperance. “We still believe that the number of dispensed citizens is increased significantly,” he said, referring to economic, political and social uncertainty.
Arton, whose customers are mainly individuals with a high network, found that 53 percent of American millionaires actively examined options abroad before the US elections.
More Americans also apply for citizenship through descent?
Yes. The US citizenship through ancestry – often more affordable – has risen by 500 percent since 2023. According to companies that facilitate the process, 80 percent aimed at Italian descent.
This path is pretty new in the industry, but is growing “so quickly,” said Willis, especially because no investments have to be made.
These applications enable individuals to regain citizenship in countries in which they have traditional relationships. Italy, for example, enables people to apply if they can prove an descent of an Italian citizen who often goes back several generations, provided that the ancestor did not do without their own Italian citizenship before the birth of its child.
Ireland, Poland and Germany have similar laws.
Each country has its own rules – Italy does not lay a limit for how far you can trace your ancestors to claim citizenship, while Ireland usually enables applicants to return up to three generations.
In contrast to some investment -based programs, this citizen can often be easily absorbed by offspring, which makes it an attractive option for families that can prove themselves as an descent. Applicants usually have to provide birth certificates, marriage certificates and other documents including a family tree.
Will the demand for second passes continue to increase?
Most experts believe that the trend is far away.
“Americans will visit their lives in the future,” said Willis. Customers sell assets that restructure finances and make “courageous lifestyle decisions” to secure a second citizenship.
Basil Mohr-Ezeki, managing director of Henley and Partners, a specialist in residence and citizenship, also said that the US members also think in general. “When a citizenship is preserved, it often goes away by descent,” he said. “This creates a plan B not only for the customer, but also for your children and grandchildren.”
