South America’s Strongest Passports

Chile holds South America’s strongest passport in 2026 at 43rd globally, while Bolivia sits lowest in the region at 129th.

The La Vida Passport Value Index ranks 199 passports across 227 destinations, weighting each destination by its share of world GDP and its share of international visitor arrivals rather than counting destinations equally.

Access to France and access to a small island economy carry the same weight in most indices. They do not in ours. The June 2026 edition draws its economic data from the World Bank and its travel data from the UN World Tourism Organisation.

South America’s Strongest Passports

Chile ranks 43rd globally, reaching 189 of 227 destinations, 78.7% of world GDP and 93.4% of global travel. It is the only South American passport reaching more than three quarters of world GDP.

Uruguay ranks 53rd on 192 destinations, the highest destination count in the region, with 66.0% GDP reach and 85.4% travel reach. Peru follows at 55th with 186 destinations, 65.4% of world GDP and 82.9% of global travel. Venezuela ranks 58th, reaching 162 destinations, 64.4% of world GDP and 75.2% of global travel.

Paraguay and Argentina rank 74th and 75th. Paraguay reaches 189 destinations, matching Chile’s count, but converts that into 50.4% GDP reach against Chile’s 78.7%. That gap is the point the Index exists to show.

An Argentine passport reaches 183 destinations, made up of 137 fully visa-free destinations and a further 46 available on arrival or through an eTA or eVisa, covering 50.2% of world GDP and 85.2% of global travel. Germany, Japan, India, the UK and France sit among the destinations it opens. The USA and China do not, which accounts for most of the difference between its travel figure and its GDP figure.

Brazil ranks 80th, reaching 171 destinations, 45.4% of world GDP and 83.1% of global travel.

South America’s Weakest Passports

Bolivia ranks 129th, the lowest in the region, reaching 95 of 227 destinations, 17.8% of world GDP and 25.6% of global travel. Guyana sits at 123rd on 129 destinations, 22.5% GDP reach and 31.2% travel reach. Colombia completes the regional bottom three at 101st, reaching 146 destinations, 38.9% of world GDP and 70.0% of global travel.

Suriname and Ecuador rank higher on GDP reach, at 89th and 97th, but hold the two weakest travel figures in South America at 36.0% and 38.1%. Suriname also reaches the fewest destinations of any South American passport after Bolivia, at 125.

The EU Schengen Area and the USA fall outside the reach of the region’s lower-ranked passports. For holders whose business or family interests run through Europe or North America, that gap is where the case for a second citizenship starts.

South America’s Passports Ranked In 2026

Argentina’s Planned Citizenship By Investment Program

Argentina established the framework for South America’s first citizenship by investment program under Presidential Decree 524/2025, signed in July 2025. The structure grants citizenship directly rather than through a prior period of residency, which sets it apart from a golden visa or residency by investment route. Reported investment routes cover a business investment from an estimated USD 500,000 and a government bond subscription from an estimated USD 1,000,000.

Implementing regulations remain pending and the no-residency structure sits under Supreme Court review. Current guidance points to a launch in the second half of 2026 or early 2027, though that timing is subject to change. Investors looking to act now are working with the programs already open.

Golden Visa Routes Open To South American Investors

The Portugal Golden Visa is now the principal European route for South American investors. A minimum investment of €500,000 into a qualifying private equity or venture capital fund secures residency for the main applicant and their family, with a stay requirement of seven days a year.

A Portuguese passport ranks 15th in the Index, reaching 214 destinations, 99.4% of world GDP and 99.6% of global travel. Permanent residence is available after five years. Following Lei Orgânica 1/2026, in force from 19 May 2026, it is possible to apply for citizenship after ten years, or seven years for nationals of CPLP countries, which includes Brazil.

The Greece Golden Visa offers three investment tiers. €250,000 applies to qualifying commercial-to-residential conversions and restoration projects, €400,000 to most regions, and €800,000 to Athens, Thessaloniki and the larger islands. A Greek passport ranks 6th in the Index on 215 destinations, 99.4% of world GDP and 99.6% of global travel. The permit carries Schengen travel rights and no minimum stay requirement.

The Panama Golden Visa suits investors who want to keep their base in the Americas. The Qualified Investor route grants permanent residency on a real estate investment from $300,000, and it is possible to apply for citizenship after five years of residency. Panama’s proximity, time zone and Spanish-language administration make it the most practical relocation option in this list for South American families.

The Malta Permanent Residence Program, the Hungary Golden Visa and the Turkey Citizenship by Investment program complete the residency and citizenship options La Vida works with in this bracket. Maltese and Hungarian passports rank 7th and 12th in the Index, each reaching more than 99% of world GDP.

Citizenship By Investment For South American Citizens

Caribbean citizenship by investment delivers a second passport without a residency requirement, which is what most South American applicants are asking for.

Grenada ranks 63rd in the Index on 179 destinations, 59.6% of world GDP and 79.4% of global travel, and holds an E-2 treaty with the USA. Antigua and Barbuda ranks 65th on 186 destinations, 58.8% GDP reach and 80.1% travel reach. Dominica ranks 68th on 183 destinations, St Kitts and Nevis 85th on 191 destinations, and St Lucia 99th on 179 destinations. Programs start from a $200,000 donation or a qualifying real estate purchase, with processing measured in months rather than years, and each grants full citizenship for the applicant and their family, transferable to future generations.

For a Bolivian or Guyanese holder, any of these passports adds Schengen access and a substantial share of the world’s most-visited destinations to a document currently reaching under a third of global travel.

Round-Up

A passport’s value comes down to what it adds to the one already held, not what it scores on its own. A Chilean passport already reaches 78.7% of world GDP, so the destinations worth paying for are the ones it misses. A Bolivian passport starts at 17.8%, and the gain from a second citizenship is correspondingly larger.

La Vida’s free Passport Value Report models exactly that. It compares an existing passport against any program La Vida offers and returns the additional destinations, GDP reach and travel reach the combination unlocks, personalised rather than generic. Contact our expert advisers to run the report and find the program that adds the most for your situation.