The United Kingdom has imposed visa requirements on Nauru nationals effective on 09 December, citing the Pacific nation’s citizenship by investment (CBI) programme as an unsustainable border security risk.
Mike Tapp, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Migration and Citizenship, announced the measure in a written statement to Parliament, describing the practice of granting citizenship through investment as “inherently high-risk” and one that “allows individuals access to a new identity with minimal ties to the issuing jurisdiction.”
Nauru nationals must now obtain visitor visas and Direct Airside Transit Visas for UK travel. Those who already hold Electronic Travel Authorisations (ETAs) with confirmed bookings made on or before 15:00 GMT on 09 December will receive a six-week grace period, provided they arrive in the UK no later than 15:00 GMT on 20 January 2026.
Almost one year has passed since Nauru launched its citizenship program at the UN Climate Change Conference in Baku, offering citizenship starting at US$105,000 through contributions to its Treasury Fund.
Tapp’s statement pulls no punches about the UK government’s assessment of the programme. Careful consideration has “highlighted significant risks to UK border and national security,” while the programme’s design “is particularly vulnerable to misuse and, in its current form, poses an unsustainable risk of exploitation by criminal actors or individuals seeking to circumvent UK immigration controls without genuine intent to comply with UK law.”
Britain’s lack of confidence extends beyond programme structure to fundamental operational concerns.
“Due to the programme set up, we also lack confidence in the legitimacy of any vetting and due diligence processes,” Tapp notes, concluding that “this model cannot operate without rapidly escalating the level of risk to the UK border.”
When the UK revoked visa-free travel for Dominica and Vanuatu in July 2023, the immediate implementation mirrored the 09 December approach.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman justified the departure from Parliament’s customary 21-day scrutiny period by citing the need to prevent “a wave of travellers” attempting to enter before restrictions took effect.
Isa Seow, the programme’s Director of Compliance, had emphasised during the November 2024 launch that rigorous due diligence processes and governance structures would “ensure that only individuals of the highest calibre participate in shaping Nauru’s future.”
Those assurances failed to satisfy UK border security officials.
Part of a broader Western crackdown on CBI programs, the decision follows the European Union’s permanent suspension of Vanuatu’s visa-free waiver in November 2024. EU member states finalised a visa suspension mechanism in June 2025, explicitly targeting countries operating citizenship programmes “without genuine ties” between investors and host nations.
Tapp stresses that national and border security concerns alone drove the visa requirement decision.
“This does not change the importance of our relationship with Nauru, a Commonwealth partner,” he notes, adding that “any decision to change a visa requirement status is not taken lightly.”
Regular reviews of the nation’s border and immigration system “continue to work in the UK national interest,” according to Tapp’s statement.
For Nauru, that review process concluded less than 13 months after programme launch.
