São Tomé and Príncipe Citizenship by Investment in 2026: The Complete Guide

I always tell clients the same thing first: São Tomé and Príncipe is the cheapest entry I know into a second citizenship by investment, and also one of the youngest programmes. Both facts matter. All figures here are in US dollars and were checked on 25 October 2026 against the official programme site, the text of Decree-Law 07/2025 and BRIDGES data.

What the programme is

São Tomé and Príncipe is an island state in the Gulf of Guinea, a former Portuguese colony and a member of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP). Its citizenship by investment programme rests on two acts: Nationality Law 7/2022 and Decree-Law 07/2025, published in the Diário da República No. 33 on 1 August 2025 and in force from that day. Applications are handled by the Citizenship by Investment Unit (UCID, often called the CIU in English), which reports to the Minister of Justice.

There is one route: a non-refundable contribution to the National Transformation Fund. The decree lists the public projects it can finance, from energy and a deep water port to health, education and tourism.

How much it costs

Item	Amount
Contribution, single applicant	$90,000
Contribution, family of 2 to 4 people	$95,000
Each additional dependant beyond four	+ $5,000
Due diligence and processing fee, per application	$5,000
Citizenship documents (certificate, passport, ID), per person	$750

One person pays $95,750 in official costs. A family of four pays about $103,000. The first three lines come from Annex I of the decree. The $750 document fee is published by the CIU and is not in the decree text, so I treat it as the CIU’s current practice. Details and examples are in the cost guide.

Who can apply

The main applicant must be at least 18, have no criminal record, prove a legitimate source of funds and pass due diligence. BRIDGES adds two conditions it reads from the Nationality Law: no conviction carrying more than one year of imprisonment, and no more than two foreign citizenships at the time of filing. I have not checked the Nationality Law text myself, so treat the second point as BRIDGES information.

Russian citizens are not excluded. In the CIU report as of 1 September 2026, quoted by BRIDGES, Russia was second by number of applications after China.

The process in short

1. A licensed agent prepares the file. Direct applications are not possible.
2. The file is uploaded to the UCID platform with the $5,000 fee. A preliminary review takes up to 15 days.
3. An independent firm runs due diligence. An interview in person or online is possible.
4. The public prosecutor gives a prior opinion, then the UCID Director decides.
5. After approval you have 90 days to pay the contribution, then you take the oath and receive the documents.

Every step is in the application guide.

The family

One application can include a spouse or de facto partner, children up to 30, and parents and grandparents. Up to four people pay the same $95,000. See the family guide.

What the passport gives

Dual citizenship is allowed. According to BRIDGES the passport is issued for 7 years. The BRIDGES passport index of 4 October 2026 counts 58 destinations without a prior visa, including Singapore, Hong Kong, South Africa and Malaysia. Schengen, the UK, the US and Canada require a visa. The real extra is the CPLP link with Portugal, which I explain in the passport guide.

Open questions I watch

The programme accepted its first applications in September 2025 and issued its first passport in January 2026, according to BRIDGES. The figures on processing time and visa-free travel differ between sources, the decree lets the government change fees by joint order (without touching cases already admitted), and a court challenge is pending. The parliamentary election of 27 September 2026 left no party with a majority; BRIDGES expects steps that need cabinet sign-off to slow down while a government is formed.

My honest view

São Tomé fits when the budget is tight, the family is large and the goal is a second document plus a long route towards Portugal. If you need visa-free Europe today, it does not fit. I compare it with the alternatives in the comparison guide.