Argentina's 5,000-Slot Citizenship by Investment Program
From zero to 5,000 citizens: Argentina is outsourcing its entire CBI program to one Firm
Welcome Avatar! After several months of radio-silence, there is finally more news on Argentina’s citizenship by investment (CBI) program. The Milei government just launched an international public tender to hire one single global firm that will literally design the entire program from scratch. That includes investment amounts, qualifying routes, due-diligence standards, processing times, everything.
When the Milei administration initially created the Citizenship by investment program in May by decree, there was some speculation regarding the price tag for the investment required in the media, but no direct investment requirements were released at that time.
The decree text, which we dissected in detail in Argentina’s Official CBI launch and can be downloaded in full here, created the CBI agency under the Ministry of Economy:
Furthermore, it was established that the Agency for Citizenship by Investment Programs, a decentralized agency operating within the Ministry of Economy, would intervene prior to granting these citizenships.
Within this framework, the Decree published today in the Official Gazette indicated that, upon request from the investor, the Agency will assess whether the investment made by the applicant qualifies as significant and will issue a report recommending that the National Directorate of Immigration approve or reject the application.
No further details around requirements or application procedures were given at that time, and it looks like that this process will now finally accelerate.
This morning, IMI Daily founder and friend Christian Nesheim posted that the Argentine government had published the tender of building its new Citizenship by Investment (CBI) Program. In his words:
I haven’t seen anything like this in more than a decade in this sector. They are essentially outsourcing the ENTIRE program architecture to the private sector.
Bidders must propose:
- Qualifying investment types
- Minimum investment thresholds
- Fees charged to applicants
- Their own compensation structure
- Operational + due diligence systems
Argentina will score bids by:
- Technical quality (60%)
- Economic competitiveness (40%)
Govt seeks ONE global firm to design, implement, launch, promote, and operate the CBI program.
This tender from the Ministry of Economy is a 51-page tender outlining the blueprint for Argentina’s inaugural Citizenship by Investment (CBI) program, which provides a comprehensive roadmap that delegates the entire design, launch, and management of the program to a single international consultancy firm.
What makes this tender particularly intriguing is its transparency about the unknowns. While the core goal is clear—attracting foreign investment through fast-track citizenship—the details on investment thresholds, application processes, and promotional strategies are left open for the winning bidder to propose.
This document is the closest thing to a crystal ball for what will almost certainly become one of the most sought-after citizenship programs once it finally launches.
Below we’ll dive into every section of the tender — together with a PDF download for those interested —, from the high-level objectives to the granular technical specifications, revealing how this capped-at-5,000 program could reshape global mobility options.