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Pathway

Vanuatu Citizenship After Residence

Vanuatu Citizenship
Pathway overview

At a glance

People who have made Vanuatu their legal and continuous home for the previous ten years may apply for citizenship. Immigration must confirm the qualifying residence, and the application also involves language, character, support, citizenship-test, and oath requirements.

Residence
Ten years of ordinary, lawful, continuous residence immediately before applying
Residence records
Immigration must confirm which periods qualify
Other requirements
Good character, self-support, language, cultural respect, and civic knowledge

Summary

Long-term residents may apply to become Vanuatu citizens through ordinary naturalization. The ten-year residence period must fall immediately before the application, rather than being a lifetime total assembled from older stays. The Citizenship Commission's Form A process also examines continuing-residence intent, good character, language ability, respect for Vanuatu's culture and way of life, likelihood of relying on public funds, civic knowledge, the written Bislama test, and the required oath or affirmation.

Immigration confirms the residence history; the Citizenship Office and Citizenship Commission receive and decide the Form A application. Vanuatu recognizes dual citizenship, but ordinary naturalization provisions still contain renunciation and foreign-passport restrictions. Confirm with the Citizenship Office how these rules apply to you. This route differs from investment-linked citizenship and from documenting citizenship already acquired through a citizen parent.

Applying for citizenship after living in Vanuatu
  1. Have Immigration check your ten-year residence history Resolve absences, expired permission, and missing records.
  2. Prepare Form A and the required evidence Meet the language, Bislama test, character, support, and other requirements.
  3. Complete the decision and citizenship steps Approval is followed by the required oath, certificate, identity, and passport processes.

Ten years of residence does not automatically make you a citizen.

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Eligibility

The ten-year period is only the starting point. Under the Citizenship Act and its amendments, the applicant must also show that they:

Other reasons an application may be blocked include unpaid government fees, certain criminal convictions, prior removal, and some pending Citizenship Commission complaints.

The current Immigration page describes the ten-year residence as lawful residence in compliance with the Immigration Act. Residence visas, passports, entry and departure history, addresses, and any gaps should therefore be reconciled before requesting Immigration's certification.

The application may request citizenship for the applicant's spouse and named children. The spouse must state personally that they want citizenship. Family inclusion is not automatic if a person is omitted, the relationship is not documented, or the main application is refused.

Vanuatu recognizes dual citizenship, but the rules for naturalization still contain restrictions about giving up other citizenship and using foreign passports. Ask the Citizenship Office how the dual-citizenship provisions apply to your application before making nationality or travel decisions. Check the other country's rules too.

What This Route Allows

After the Commission grants the application and issues the naturalization certificate, the person becomes a Vanuatu citizen on the date stated in the certificate. They can then register as a new citizen, apply for the National Identity Card and passport, and live in Vanuatu without an immigration visa.

The Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Department says a newly granted citizen must apply for a National Identity Card within 28 days. Citizenship and passport processing are separate: the certificate establishes the grant, while the passport is a later travel document.

Citizenship gives you national status, but particular rights still depend on the Constitution and other laws. Voting registration, land, public office, regulated work, and business activity should be checked under the rules that apply to the particular citizen and activity.

What This Route Is Not

Ten years in Vanuatu does not make citizenship automatic. The applicant still needs Immigration certification, a complete Form A application, the language and Bislama test requirements, checks on your character and connection to Vanuatu, a Commission decision, and the oath and certificate steps.

It is not enough to count calendar years from first arrival. The published standard is the ten years immediately before the application, during which Vanuatu must have been your usual home and your stay must have remained lawful and continuous. Long absences, expired status, or unresolved entry records may affect certification and should be addressed with Immigration before applying.

This is not the two-year spouse route. A person legally married to and living with a Vanuatu citizen in Vanuatu may have a separate Form B route. Nor is it the investment route, which uses separate programs, recognized agents, background checks, and financial requirements.

Next Steps

  1. Request your full immigration record and make a ten-year timeline of every residence visa, passport, address, entry, exit, and absence.
  2. Ask Vanuatu Immigration whether it can certify that the residence was ordinary, lawful, and continuous for the full period. Resolve expired permits or record gaps before submitting Form A.
  3. Obtain the true current Form A and checklist from the Citizenship Office. The Office advises applicants to collect official forms directly or through a recognized consultant.
  4. Prepare identity, birth, marriage, family, police, residence, income or support, and good-character evidence with the required certifications.
  5. Obtain current instructions for the Bislama citizenship test and be ready to demonstrate the language, cultural respect, knowledge of citizens’ rights and responsibilities, and continuing-residence elements.
  6. If including a spouse or children, list them correctly and obtain each person's signed statements and civil records before applying.
  7. After a grant, complete the oath, certificate, National ID registration, and passport application, and review the consequences for any other citizenship.

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Other routes in Vanuatu.

Sources