Argentina is preparing to launch a citizenship-by-investment programme that would grant passports in exchange for a non-refundable donation of around $500,000 or the purchase of zero-coupon sovereign bonds worth $1 million, according to officials cited by the Financial Times. The scheme, which could be introduced this year, is designed to attract dollars to help service tens of billions of dollars in sovereign debt repayments due in the coming years, without resorting to prohibitively expensive international borrowing after the 2020 default. If implemented, Argentina would become the largest economy to offer such a direct route to citizenship, with its passport providing visa-free access to nearly 170 countries — more than any existing investment-citizenship programme.

Viewed from London, the plan reflects the Milei government’s broader push to draw foreign capital into an economy still scarred by recurrent crises. Consultants advising Buenos Aires, including Arton Capital and Latitude Group, note that the absence of a residency requirement and the relatively low entry price — far below New Zealand’s $3 million investor visa — could appeal to wealthy Americans and Europeans unsettled by political polarisation and tax pressures at home. The government has already tightened general migration rules in 2025, a move officials link partly to preparing the ground for the investment-citizenship framework.

In parallel, Buenos Aires has moved to activate idle dollar liquidity already inside the banking system. On 12 June, a regulation dating from the 2001 crisis was amended to allow companies without export revenues to borrow in dollars, provided they secure a guarantee from an exporting firm. The change aims to channel a portion of the record $39 billion in private-sector dollar deposits into productive credit, offering firms lower interest rates than peso loans. Analysts in Buenos Aires describe the measure as a sensible step toward deeper financial intermediation, though credit rating agency Moody’s, in a report seen from New York, warns that the scheme’s soundness will be tested if exchange-rate volatility intensifies, as the primary borrower’s repayment capacity would depend on the financial strength of the guarantor exporter.

Both initiatives face scrutiny over risks of money laundering and reputational damage. The European Union banned citizenship-by-investment programmes in 2022, and the UK scrapped its own investor visa the same year, citing security concerns. Within Argentina, critics point to the absence of broad public debate and potential constitutional questions. The government has not commented officially on the passport plan, while the dollar-lending rule is already in force. The next milestone to watch is the formal announcement of the citizenship programme’s parameters, expected later this year, which will determine whether the scheme can attract the targeted billions without triggering the governance and security pushback that has halted similar efforts elsewhere.