BUENOS AIRES, Oct. 5 (UPI) — Argentina will allow foreigners to apply for citizenship in exchange for a contribution of at least $350,000 to the government under a new program by President Javier Milei’s administration aimed at attracting international capital.
The program, announced Friday by Economy Minister Luis Caputo and Cabinet Chief Diego Santilli, also offers applicants the option of purchasing $800,000 in government debt.
The measure will allow investors seeking to settle in Argentina to include family members by making additional contributions. A married couple with two minor children, for example, could apply for citizenship for a total of $500,000.
The government presented the program during Argentina Week, a series of events held in Paris last week to promote the country as a destination for foreign investment.
The initiative is part of Milei’s economic liberalization policies, which seek to attract foreign capital and reduce barriers to doing business in Argentina.
The government said the program will include safeguards to verify the source of funds and prevent money laundering and terrorist financing. Applicants will be required to undergo a screening process before obtaining citizenship.
Citizenship by investment allows a foreign national to obtain citizenship after meeting specific financial requirements.
In Argentina, the proposal has drawn criticism from immigration and nationality experts, who question how the government created the program and its potential consequences.
Paula Carello, an attorney specializing in immigration, asylum and nationality law, told UPI that the main concern involves the initiative’s legal basis.
Carello said the possibility of obtaining citizenship through investment was established by decree without prior debate in Congress.
She said Argentina’s Constitution gives Congress the authority to establish general rules governing nationality and naturalization. For that reason, she said using a decree to create the mechanism raises constitutional questions.
«It is a matter that, because of its nature and institutional significance, necessarily required a broad legislative debate,» Carello said.
She also criticized the lack of prior public consultation with experts, universities, civil society organizations and other groups involved in migration, security and money laundering prevention.
Carello also expressed concern about the involvement of foreign companies linked to the residency-and-citizenship-by-investment industry.
She said their participation could create conflicts of interest if companies that profit from such programs also are involved in designing or implementing them.
«Those who participate in or advise the government on designing the rules are, at the same time, commercial actors in an industry that derives economic benefits from promoting and processing these types of programs,» she said.
Pablo Serdán, an attorney and academic at the University of Buenos Aires, criticized the program because, in his view, it allows wealthy individuals to obtain Argentine citizenship without making a productive investment in the country.
«What the government is doing is turning Argentine citizenship into a commodity for wealthy international investors,» Serdán told UPI.
He said foreign applicants can provide the required funds without being required to create jobs, establish a business or finance a productive project.
Serdán also warned that an international industry exists to offer residency and citizenship programs to wealthy individuals. He said companies in the sector already are promoting Argentina to prospective clients, highlighting the Argentine passport, the country’s G20 membership and its natural resources.
In that context, he cited Wamani, a private project in Mendoza promoted by businesspeople seeking to create a community with housing and its own resources as protection against potential global crises. Serdán said such projects illustrate the interest of wealthy individuals in Argentina as a place to acquire land and seek security.
He also linked the issue to government-backed changes to rules governing land purchases by foreigners. In his view, facilitating access to citizenship while easing restrictions on land ownership could expand wealthy foreign investors’ access to resources such as water, energy and land.
«The debate goes beyond any short-term calculation and directly concerns sovereignty because Argentine citizenship cannot be reduced to a price,» Serdán said.
