Argentina’s new citizenship-by-investment programme is expected to become a status symbol among wealthy Americans, according to one of the consultants involved in its design.
Nuri Katz, founder of Apex Capital Partners, said he expected the scheme to attract significant interest from high-net-worth individuals when applications open in the fourth quarter of 2026.
“I expect that the Argentina program will become so popular with the American [high-net-worth individuals] that really wealthy Americans will be embarrassed if they do not have an Argentina passport,” Katz said.
How Argentina’s citizenship-by-investment programme will work
The programme was announced by Economy Minister Luis Caputo in Paris and is being promoted as South America’s first citizenship-by-investment scheme. It is intended to bring dollars into Argentina as President Javier Milei’s government seeks funding for the debt-saddled country.
Applicants will have two options. A single applicant can make a non-refundable contribution of 350,000 dollars, while a family of four is expected to pay 500,000 dollars.
The alternative is an investment of 800,000 dollars in a government security created for the scheme. The announcement did not set out the security’s maturity, yield or repayment terms.
Applications will be assessed by the Agency for Citizenship by Investment Programs, in conjunction with the State Intelligence Secretariat, the Financial Information Unit and the Ministry of Security.
Checks will cover an applicant’s identity, source of funds, criminal and reputational records, and immigration history. The money must pass through the formal financial system, while the National Directorate of Migration will make the final decision.
Apex is part of Argentina Mobility for Investment and Global Opportunity Limited, a group of five investment-migration firms that has advised the government. Katz previously helped create Antigua and Barbuda’s citizenship programme and draft Cyprus’s investor legislation.
Katz said Argentina’s position as a G20 country would make it particularly attractive to wealthy Americans seeking a second nationality and greater diversification of their assets.
“Argentina, as the first G20 country, offers American HNWI the first opportunity to quickly and easily acquire a citizenship of a country that is both a safe haven and a huge business opportunity,” he said.
He cited a June Apex survey of 1,733 Americans with household incomes above 200,000 dollars. Some 61 per cent said they would consider leaving the US within five years, with the cost of living and taxes the most commonly cited reasons, followed by the political climate.
Europe was the preferred destination among those surveyed, at 42 per cent, followed by Canada at 18 per cent and the Caribbean at 16 per cent. The survey measured stated intentions rather than actual moves.
Katz, who was born in the US and largely grew up in Montreal before moving to Moscow in 1990, now lives in Antigua. He has argued that wealthy Americans are too heavily exposed to dollar assets and has warned of the risks posed by inflation and the country’s national debt.
