Schengen with a Vanuatu passport: how to travel to Europe

What happened to visa-free entry

The regime changed in stages, and exact dates are more useful than old online advice. First came a partial suspension: from 3 March 2022 it affected passports issued from 25 May 2015. From 4 February 2023 the suspension became full under Council Decision 2022/2198. Since 3 February 2025 Vanuatu has been on the visa list under Regulation 2025/11.

For a traveller the conclusion is simple: plan a Schengen trip as a trip with a visa obtained in advance. Nobody can promise that visa-free entry will return, and it is not something to build plans on.

Where in Europe you can go without a visa

Europe is more than Schengen. Under the index of 4 October 2026, European countries outside the Schengen area are open to a Vanuatu passport without a visa. That suits short trips, family visits and business talks that are not tied to one country.

Russia is also on the visa-free list. The UK is not: a visa has been required since 19 July 2023 and is obtained in advance.

Travelling to Schengen in practice

Treat the visa as a separate item in the trip, not a last-minute formality. You have to apply in advance, so allow time before your departure date and hold off on non-refundable tickets until you have the visa.

If you also keep another passport, a Russian one for instance, compare which of them makes this particular trip easier. Vanuatu and Russia both allow dual citizenship, so a Vanuatu passport does not replace your other documents. It adds options.

If you travel to Europe often and for long stretches, separate visas quickly become tiresome. That is the point to look at residence.

The route to Europe through Greek residence

The main European opportunity of a Vanuatu passport is residence. It lets you apply for Greek residence through a home purchase, which is not possible on a Russian passport at present. This is why families treat the two steps as one route.

The purchase threshold depends on location: 400 000 € for most of Greece, 800 000 € for Attica, Thessaloniki and the large islands, and 250 000 € for commercial premises converted to housing and listed monuments after restoration. A reservation and deposit can come before the passport, while the purchase and the residence filing are done on the Vanuatu passport.

There is also a time factor. The purchase tax is 3% today. The government has announced 15% for non-EU buyers from 1 July 2027. There is no law yet, but it is wise to close the purchase before that date.

If you would rather not buy a home

For people with steady income, Greece has income-based residence: from 3 500 € a month, plus 20% for a spouse and 15% for a child, a 3-year card, and 6-12 months of income history. For Russian citizens, Greek lawyers check whether the application will be accepted, so test this route against your situation first.

Hungary is considered a second residence option. Under Greek property-based residence, children under 21 live with their parents, so a family plan is easier to build around that route.

What else the passport gives while you decide on Europe

As of 4 October 2026, the passport gives 85 destinations without a prior visa: 49 visa-free, 7 with an electronic authorisation and 29 with a visa on arrival. A further 41 are open by e-visa, and 100 require a visa in advance.

The visa-free group includes Hong Kong for 90 days, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines for 30 days, Panama for 90 days and Peru for 180 days. The US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and China need a visa in advance. So the honest picture is this: the passport works well for Asia and Latin America, and for Europe it serves as the basis for residence.

What Russian citizens should bear in mind

Russia allows a second citizenship, so you keep your Russian passport. The Interior Ministry (MVD) must be notified of the new citizenship within 60 calendar days, counted from the certificate date, or within 60 days of entering Russia if you are abroad. Each Russian citizen does this personally, and a parent does it for children, through Gosuslugi or in person.

In March 2026 the Commission confirmed that Russian citizens are accepted on the general terms. Payment from Russia does not go through banks in Russia or Belarus: the applicant pays personally from their own account abroad, in rubles through a broker, in cryptocurrency or from their own company account. Another company or someone else's card will not work.

The passport itself does not change your taxes. They follow your tax residence, a question worth assessing separately before a move to Europe.

How to decide whether you need this route

If you only travel to Europe now and then, visas in advance and the visa-free countries outside Schengen will do. If your goal is to live in Europe, cost the Vanuatu program and residence together. The contribution program with fee is $135 000 for one and $155 000 for a couple, and the fund with fee is $165 000 for a family of 1 to 4.

The passport usually takes 2 months, 3 at most. You do not fly to Vanuatu: the oath is online and biometrics are given in Moscow, St Petersburg, Dubai, Hong Kong or Port Vila. The preliminary check is free, takes 1-2 working days and happens before any contract.

Common questions