Astons clients are among the first successful applicants to receive Sao Tome and Principe passports under the country’s Citizenship by Investment Program. However, completed cases remain limited at this stage.

The passports of our first investors have already arrived at Astons’ Dubai office and will shortly be delivered to their owners. The physical issuance of passports marks an important milestone that applicants and licensed agents have been awaiting for many months.

Astons began working with the program shortly after its launch last autumn and became one of its first licensed agents. Today, we represent one of the largest groups of applicants under the program and have successfully secured the issuance of the first passports while maintaining continuous communication with the Citizenship by Investment Unit. It is worth noting that these clients completed their government contribution payments as early as January.

At the same time, it would be premature to conclude that the program has reached stable processing timelines or fully established operational procedures.

Like many newly launched citizenship by investment programs, São Tomé and Príncipe has faced significant administrative pressure, coordination challenges between government authorities and the additional impact of the country’s presidential election period. As a result, actual processing times have been considerably longer than the 2-month timeframe initially announced.

Our team remains in daily contact with the Citizenship by Investment Unit regarding each individual application, working to move cases forward and achieve their successful completion.

What Are the Current Processing Times?

The Citizenship by Investment Unit has recently issued its first official update on current processing timelines.

According to a memorandum circulated to licensed agents:

  • Applications are generally reviewed within approximately two months before a decision is made.
  • Following approval, payment of the government contribution and submission of all required documentation, the citizenship process takes at least 12 additional weeks.

However, based on our practical experience assisting clients throughout the process, we currently recommend planning for a realistic overall timeframe of at least eight to nine months.

Many of our applicants are still awaiting passport issuance, application approvals or authorisation to proceed with the government contribution payment.

What If You Need Citizenship More Quickly?

For investors whose primary priority is speed and greater predictability, Vanuatu citizenship currently remains the more established option.

The program has been operating since 2017, with mature administrative procedures and well-established processing practices. In most cases, passports are issued in approximately four months.

In practice, the overall processing timeline for any citizenship by investment program largely depends on the work of the relevant government unit, including application review, decision-making and passport production. Our role is to provide investors with transparent information about current processing conditions, expected timelines and any operational challenges that may affect their applications.

We will continue to share important updates as the program develops.