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For decades, having a U.S. passport symbolized freedom, but as more countries tighten entry rules and reciprocity reform visa policies, and in the face of rising political instability, a growing number of Americans are quietly preparing backup plans abroad, and new indices from Henley & Partners identify the most reputable programs in 2026.
More and more Americans are looking for new passports
In 2025, the world of second passports and citizenship-by-investment turned upside down, and for the first time ever, residents of advanced economies, especially Americans, began hunting for a second passport.
Henley & Partners saw a 183% increase in applications between the first three months of 2024 and 2025, and this translated into applications. 2024 was a record year, but by the end of September 2025, applications had increased 67%, and Americans were the largest group, accounting for 30% of the company’s applicants.
New indices for golden visas score high for Greece, Italy and Portugal
In Europe, Portugal’s golden visa program was a big recipient. The Portuguese immigration agency AIMA reports that 50% more Americans became residents of Portugal in 2024 than in 2023. Other hotspots in Europe are Greece and Italy. Have applications doubled in Italy over the past two years. And Greece is also attractive because it does not have the administrative backlog that Portugal’s golden visa program is known for.
Henley & Partners recently published the 2026 edition of the Report on Residency and Citizenship Programswhich includes two indices for Americans looking for the best golden visa and citizenship programs abroad.
The Global Residence Program Index confirms these figures, with Greece in first place, Italy, Switzerland and the UAE in second place and Portugal in third place.
In terms of citizenship programs, Henley’s Global Citizenship Program Index Malta is ranked first, Austria is second, and Grenada and St. Kitts and Nevis are tied for third.
New Zealand and Panama are also big favorites for Americans. In New Zealand, Americans currently account for 40% of all applications for the golden visa program, and Panama has long been a favorite among American retirees because its economy favors dollars and is geographically close to the US.
Americans seek second passports for political stability, affordable health care and travel freedoms
Americans are looking for political stability, affordable health care and greater freedom of travel. There are also suggestions that this sentiment runs high among LGBTQ+ Americans who worry about their safety and the continuation of their rights, hindering their ability to plan for the future.
A 2025 Harris poll found that nearly half of all Americans and two-thirds of Gen Z and Millennial respondents were interested in dual citizenship. And it’s not just the super-rich or high-net-worth individuals anymore.
A recent one Wall Street Journal This article discusses how America in its 250th year is welcoming negative net migration due to deportations and new visa restrictions, but it is also true that Americans are leaving in record numbers, “replanting themselves and their families in countries they find more affordable and safer.”
There’s also the proposed Exclusive Citizenship Act of 2025, which would ask Americans to renounce any additional citizenship within a year, and sources suggest that “paradoxically, it appears to be accelerating rather than deterring applications.” While it is high unlikely that this bill will come to power, it shows how out of step some parts of the US are with the rest of the world, according to the MACIMIDE Global dataset for dual nationality expats maintained by Maastricht University, which tracks 200 countries from 1960 to 2020, 75% of countries allow their citizens to acquire a second nationality without losing their original nationality.
The US does not keep track of who has dual nationality. Unofficial estimates for dual US citizens vary widely from 500,000 to 10 million, often around 7-10 million (about 2-3% of the US population). Up to 30 million U.S. citizens may qualify for ancestry passports in other countries, although obtaining them requires complicated paperwork to meet increasingly strict eligibility requirements.
The American passport loses its power
CTraveler reports that travel restrictions imposed upon arrival in the US are now catching up with the country, stating that ‘the US has lost visa-free access to seven countries in the past year.’ One of these is Brazil, which has reintroduced visa requirements for Americans in reciprocity for U.S. restrictions — a sign that the country believes the U.S. passport is losing its power.
In the Henley Passport Index 2026The US passport ranks as the tenth most powerful country in the world, behind 38 other countries, including Malaysia, Lithuania, Iceland, Slovakia, Canada and the United Arab Emirates. Last year it ranked at its lowest level in history, number 12, down from the previous twenty years when it was consistently in the top ten.
And so the weakening passport and increasing interest in dual citizenship are capturing a shift in the way some Americans see their place in the world. Once defined by global dominance and mobility, the US is increasingly seen as restrictive – both for those who want to enter and for those who want to leave.
More and more of the world is embracing multiple citizenship, and people are increasingly seeking broader freedoms, partly through golden visa programs. As global interconnection deepens and political instability increases, some Americans are finding that holding a single passport now feels more like a limitation than a privilege.
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