The Grenada passport and the E-2 visa: the long way into the USA

Grenada is one of the five Caribbean countries that have granted citizenship in return for an investment for years. How citizenship by investment works in general, and which programmes exist worldwide, is explained in Buying citizenship. The figures for every open programme side by side are in the comparison. With Grenada, two things deserve a close look: what the passport costs, and what it really opens up for you in the USA.

Grenada citizenship: the programme at a glance

The programme's official name is Grenada Citizenship by Investment. It rests on the Citizenship by Investment Act No. 15 of 2013 and the Regulations S.R.O. 17 of 2013, which have been amended several times since, most recently by S.R.O. 15 of 2024 and S.R.O. 21 of 2025. The Investment Migration Agency Grenada is in charge. It accepts applications through licensed agents, carries out the vetting and publishes fees, legislation and notices on its own website.

The key points for you:

• Dual citizenship: Grenada expressly allows it. You do not have to give up any other nationality or passport.
• No visit needed: According to the authority, you need not visit Grenada before, during or after the application.
• Interview: The vetting includes an online interview.
• Speed: The authority states that approval comes within 60 working days of submission, provided the vetting raises no issues and the funds have arrived.
• Passport: Grenadian passports are valid for five years.

The law does provide for a residence requirement, but it is tied to a regional framework. Under the authority's Circular No. 2 of 2026, it only applies once the Eastern Caribbean Citizenship by Investment Regulatory Authority is operating and all participating states have formally set a common start date. Where things stand is covered in the update Grenada: the residence requirement waits for the regional regulator. Every detail of the programme is on the Grenada page.

What does Grenada citizenship cost in 2026?

Grenada offers three investment routes. The amounts are set out in the regulations and on the authority's website:

The fund is the fastest and leanest route. You pay a fixed contribution, and the money is spent. Real estate ties up more capital, but it stays yours as an asset that you can keep, let or sell after five years. What buying property in Grenada involves for foreigners beyond the programme, from the licence to the purchase costs, is covered in Buying property in Grenada (in German). For the investment types across all programmes, see Donation, real estate or government bonds.

Fees per person

On top of the investment come the government fees:

On your own through the fund, that comes to 245,000 USD in contribution and fees. For a married couple with two children under 17, it is a 235,000 USD contribution, 6,000 USD in application fees, 4,000 USD in processing fees, 2,000 USD in interview fees and 12,000 USD in due diligence fees, 259,000 USD in total. The overall costs of every programme are compared on the Costs page.

Family in the application

When it comes to family, Grenada is among the most generous programmes. You can include your spouse, children, parents, grandparents and siblings. Adult children count until they turn 30 if you support them. Siblings can join from the age of 18 if they are unmarried and have no children.

In the fund, the base amount covers you and up to three dependants. Each additional dependant costs 25,000 USD, parents and grandparents up to the age of 55 cost 50,000 USD, and siblings 75,000 USD. How other programmes treat families is shown on the Family page.

Grenada and the E-2 visa: why this passport stands out among Caribbean passports

The E-2 visa is the visa for investors who start or buy a business in the USA and run it themselves. It is only open to nationals of countries with which the USA has a qualifying treaty. The US Department of State keeps the list in its Foreign Affairs Manual, section 9 FAM 402.9.

Grenada has been on that list as an E-2 treaty country since 3 March 1989. Among the Caribbean countries with an investor programme, it is the only one: St Kitts and Nevis, Dominica, Antigua and Barbuda and St Lucia are missing from the list. Beyond the Caribbean, other programme countries hold E-2 status too, among them Türkiye and Jordan:

What the Turkish passport can do in this respect is described in Turkish passport: visa-free countries and E-2 access to the USA. The Jordanian route is explained in Jordan: citizenship by investment.

What the E-2 requires beyond the passport

Treaty status on its own does not get you a visa. Among other things, the Foreign Affairs Manual requires:

• A substantial investment in a business in which you have already invested or are actively investing.
• A real, operating business that is active in the market.
• More than a living: The business must, now or in the future, generate more than a modest living for you and your family.
• Control: You must be able to develop and direct the business, as a rule through at least 50 percent of the shares.

The nationality of the business follows that of its owners. At least 50 percent must be nationals of the treaty country. Dual nationals choose one nationality as owners, and all of the company's E employees must hold that same nationality. Spouses and children receive derivative E status, and their own nationality usually plays no part in that.

How large the investment should be, which documents the consulate wants to see and how the interview works is explained in The E-2 visa: requirements and process.

The three-year rule: what US law has required of investor passports since 2022

This is the point you need to know before you plan on the Grenada passport as your ticket into the USA. With Pub. L. 117-263, § 5902(b), of 23 December 2022, Congress added to the E visa provision of the immigration law, 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(15)(E).

The rule applies to anyone who acquired the relevant nationality through a financial investment and has never held E status. For that person, the treaty country only counts if they maintained their domicile there for at least three years without interruption, at any point before applying for the visa.

For your planning, that means:

• The passport alone is not enough. If you acquire a Grenada passport today and want to apply for an E-2 in the USA tomorrow, you do not meet the rule.
• The route runs through life on the island. If you live in Grenada with your family for three years, you can then base your E-2 on the Grenadian passport, provided the other requirements are met as well.
• If you have held E status before, the additional rule does not apply to you. The law expressly targets people who have never been granted that status.

So the fast track turns into a genuine detour: three years in the Caribbean, then the USA. For some families, that is exactly the plan. A quieter life on a Caribbean island, and a passport that then opens the door to the E-2. How Grenada compares with its neighbour in everyday life is set out in Moving abroad: Grenada or St Vincent and the Grenadines? (in German).

What the Grenada passport does for you as a German

Germany itself has been on the E-2 list since 14 July 1956. So for you personally, the Grenada passport opens no new door to the E-2: you apply on your German passport. Its value lies elsewhere.

For your partners and your family. Brazil, India, China, Russia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates are not on the list of treaty countries. A co-owner from one of these countries cannot get an E-2 of their own through your business. With a Grenadian passport and three years of residence on the island, they have a nationality to base it on. If your business is owned in equal shares by nationals of two treaty countries, say Germany and Grenada, employees of either nationality can obtain an E visa under the Foreign Affairs Manual. Your spouse and children, on the other hand, come along on your E-2. They only need an E-2 of their own if they want to run a business themselves.

For your business. A business that counts as Grenadian for E-2 purposes can bring specialists and managers with Grenadian passports to the USA. Setting up family and team around a shared passport gives you room to shape things.

For your freedom to travel. According to the German Federal Foreign Office's list of countries, Grenadian nationals need no visa for short stays in Germany. How the EU debate about Caribbean passports affects that freedom is explained in The EU visa suspension. The visa rules of the major destinations for programme passports are compared in USA, UK, Canada, China: which second passport travels visa-free where.

For your security. A passport is a right, not a permission. A visa can be refused or revoked; citizenship stays. Since 27 June 2024, acquiring a foreign nationality by application no longer costs you German citizenship, so you keep both. Why a second passport matters far beyond travel is shown in Why a second passport.

The Grenada passport and US travel: what the entry rules say

With a proclamation of 16 December 2025, in force since 1 January 2026, the USA restricted entry from a number of countries. Two Caribbean countries are on that list: Antigua and Barbuda and Dominica. The proclamation expressly cites investor programmes without a residence requirement as the reason. For nationals of both countries, entry on immigrant visas and on visitor, student and exchange visas is suspended.

Grenada is not on that list. The restriction does not apply to the Grenada passport. If you are choosing between the Caribbean programmes with the USA in mind, that gives you a second reason to look at Grenada more closely.

As a German, you keep travelling to the USA on your German passport. In your ESTA application, you declare every other nationality truthfully. How that works with two passports is explained in ESTA with a second citizenship. If you want to make the USA your long-term home, all the way to citizenship, you will find the route in Naturalisation in the USA. How a second passport opens markets and room to act for entrepreneurs is shown in A second passport for entrepreneurs.

Who the Grenada route works for

The Grenada passport is not a shortcut into the USA, but a strong second passport with a clear extra option. It suits these profiles best:

Entrepreneurs with international partners and families. If your co-owner, your spouse or your children hold a passport without an E-2 treaty, Grenada gives them a nationality of their own with treaty status. Parents, grandparents and siblings can join the application.

Entrepreneurs who want to live in the Caribbean for a while. If you want to spend a few years in Grenada anyway, you meet the three-year rule along the way and then have a second route to the E-2.

Investors who want to hold capital in tangible assets. Through the real estate project, your money stays tied up in a property that you are free to use as you see fit after five years.

Anyone looking for a plan B for the whole family. Quite apart from the E-2, Grenada brings you a second passport with generous family rules, no mandatory visit and approval within 60 working days. How fast other programmes are is compared in How soon will your second passport be in your hand?.

And keep the long road in mind. Citizenship by investment and naturalisation do not exclude each other. In the end, naturalisation is the free and often better route, but it takes years and requires real residence. The investor passport buys you the time for it. How the two work together is explained in CBI and naturalisation.

The process: from application to Grenadian passport

The application follows clear steps:

1. Choosing the route: fund, real estate project or share in a holiday property, plus the decision on who comes with you.
2. Documents: You put together the documents for yourself and every dependant.
3. Submission through a licensed agent to the Investment Migration Agency Grenada, together with the fees.
4. Vetting: due diligence and online interview.
5. Investment and approval: According to the authority, approval comes within 60 working days of submission, provided the vetting raises no issues and your funds have arrived.
6. Passport: According to the authority, passports are issued within a few days of application.

The steps in detail, and how they differ between programmes, are described on the Process page. Which tax questions a second passport raises, and why the passport alone changes nothing about your German tax liability, is covered under Taxes. If you are planning an E-2 on a nationality other than German, the rules on dual nationals and on the nationality of the business are set out in Treaty country nationality for the E-2 visa.

Frequently asked questions