Sierra Leone Citizenship by Investment Program – apply with an official partner

What are the benefits of the Sierra Leone CBI program?

• Efficient processing time: between 30-60 days for approval and 60-90 days for passport issuance following approval
• No unreasonable bureaucratic hurdles or exhaustive documentation
• Visa-free access and simplified residency in the ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) community
• Can apply and receive approval entirely remotely. There is no need to travel to Sierra Leone, or even visit an embassy
• Once a citizen, you can open non-CRS bank accounts in Sierra Leone – the program office can assist with this.
• Investment and application fees can be payable in cryptocurrency
• Ability to add an broad range of dependents including children, siblings, multiple legal spouses and grandparents
• Citizenship is inherited by your future generations
• Ability to add a business partner or co-investor as a plus one for an additional fee 
• Name changes allowed for an additional fee
• Program fees for each successful application include the option for a limited liability company and bank account in Sierra Leone

Visa-free access to ECOWAS

ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) consists of 15 member states: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Cote d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.

Documents Required

To apply for citizenship by investment in Sierra Leone you must obtain the following documents:

1. Completed application form
2. Copy of passport data page
3. High-quality biometric passport photo
4. Birth certificate
5. Marriage certificate
6. Proof of residential address
7. DNA test results proving African ancestry from Living DNA (for Heritage Citizenship option applicants only)
8. Signed and notarized Oath of Allegiance to Sierra Leone (physical copy must be mailed at end of application process)
9. Signed and notarized Section 9 declaration of financial self-sufficiency (physical copy must be mailed at end of application process)

Important Notes:

• There is no need to notarize or apostille any documentation (except for the Oath of Allegiance and Section 9 declaration which are submitted at the end of the application process). They simply need to be certified as true copies by a competent authority. There is a list of eligible professions who may perform the certification in the application form.
• Translations of documents to English should be certified as true translations by a translator.
• Everything can be submitted entirely remotely and you do not have to travel to Sierra Leone in order to receive your naturalization documents and passport.
• If you do visit the country and wish to obtain a local identification and residency card, you will be required to submit fingerprints that will be embedded in your biometric profile.

Application Process

1. Gather all the relevant documentation listed above
2. Certify the documents as true copies using an appropriate authority or using the online portal provided by the program office
3. Sign the Confirmation of Enclosures to confirm the completeness of your application
4. Submit all documentation via a custom, fully-automated online application system
5. Receive request for funds and escrow agreement
6. Wait for due diligence and background checks to be completed
7. Receive your passport, naturalization certificate and tax number by mail within 90 days of submission

Eligible Dependents

Normal Dependents – $10,000 program fee per applicant

• Spouse
• Children under the age of 18
• Parents of main applicant
• Grandparents of main applicant

Special Dependents – $20,000 program fee per applicant

• Adult children of main applicant
• Additional multiple legal spouses
• Siblings of main applicant under the age of 30
• Spouse of main applicant’s included sibling
• Children of included sibling under the age of 18
• Last remaining relative of main applicant

Plus One Business Partner Option

As of October 2025, you are permitted to add a business partner or co-investor to your application. No family relation is required – in fact, you are not permitted to have a familial relation to this person.

+1 Business partner or co-investor – $30,000 program fee per applicant.

If you are two unrelated applicants, then the total price would be:

• $140,000 main applicant + $30,000 business partner + $5,000 due diligence = $175,000 for two
• If the main applicant is a Heritage applicant then $100,000 main applicant + $30,000 business partner + $5,000 due diligence = $135,000 for two

Costs & Processing Time

Their are two pricing options for the Sierra Leone CBI depending on your eligibility.

How does the escrow agreement for the Sierra Leone CBI work?

You have three options when choosing your escrow agent:

• Sierra Leone – USD and crypto accepted
• Client Attorney – USD and maybe USDT crypto accepted. It depends on your lawyer.

The escrow procedure is as follows:

1. The client completes and signs the Application Form which contains all the operating service terms.
2. The client then submits the signed form along with the supporting documents and indicates the preferred escrow option and the accompanying details
3. The application center then prepares a request for funds addressed to the client’s designated Escrow Funds Holder.
4. The three-party escrow agreement is executed. The client then dispatches the funds to the Escrow Funds Holder who then certifies their arrival, and the application office then proceeds to procure the agreed immigration status.
5. The application office then procures the naturalization certificate, which serves as the anchor document to solicit documents such as passports, ID cards and add-on services such as name changes. Upon issuance of the naturalization certificate, funds may be released from escrow.

In summary, your program fees are sent to the escrow agent while your application receives due diligence. Upon successful approval of your application and issuance of your naturalization certificate, the funds are released. In case of failed applications, 100% of the funds are returned from escrow. 

Video: A conversation with the Sierra Leone Chief Immigration Officer

Services in Sierra Leone:

• Sierra Leone Citizenship by Investment Program

Articles on Sierra Leone:

• Sierra Leone Citizenship by Investment - a conversation with the program architect
• Sierra Leone Citizenship by Investment program - Who should apply?

Transcript of “”The Sierra Leone CBI is not just about the passport” – Chief Immigration Officer“

LADISLAS MAURICE: Hello everyone, Ladislas Maurice of The Wandering Investor. Today we are in beautiful Freetown in Sierra Leone together with Dr. Baio, the Chief Immigration Officer of Sierra Leone. How are you, Doctor?

DR BAIO:Yeah. Good morning. Thank God.

LADISLAS MAURICE: So, we’re here to discuss the Go for Gold citizenship and permanent residency program that Sierra Leone has developed to attract foreign investment.

Vision for Sierra Leone’s economic development

LADISLAS MAURICE: So, can you tell us, doctor, a little bit about the the vision for the country?

DR BAIO:I think um let me just draw attention to his Excellency, the retired Brigadier Julius Maada Bio’s vision, and if he recall, he also serves as the chairperson currently for the United Nations Security Council. And uh he has envisaged Sierra Leone where we move this country for a third world country to an immediate middle-income country. And uh what he has tried to do is part of his global leadership strategy to reposition Sierra Leone, which is once a destination for tourism and foreign direct investment. And as a result of that, um that gave birth to the initiative of the Go for Gold program, which is a special naturalization program designed to attract foreign direct investment, to be able to provide um address issues of youth employment, and um provide capital for private sector growth in different areas within the economy, most especially in agriculture, which has made this flagship program because part of taking the country to a million-income country, you should be able to feed ourselves. And that is a very corner, a central to part of his big game changer that he has envisaged for Sierra Leone.

Facilitating foreign direct investment to Sierra Leone

LADISLAS MAURICE: So, Doctor, how does the Go for Gold citizenship and permanent residency program attract foreign direct investment?

DR BAIO:First, the special citizenship program, the Go for Gold, is our partners with the Hong Kong Center for Invest, uh, for a Hong Kong center for citizenship. Uh, we are working with also other local partners, which is the National Investment Board. NIB actually is a one-stop center designed by the government under the leadership of President Bio to coordinate all investments, portfolios for people who are interested in investing in Sierra Leone. It’s a special purpose vehicle designed for that. So, the Go for Gold, the special naturalization program of Go for Gold initiative is already intertwined into the broader scope of the National Investment Board. So, what that means is that it also facilitates. It’s not only about giving you citizenship or a passport, but it also facilitates the would-be investors or potential investors, uh, take them into the, show them the various investment opportunities in the country, facilitate your business registration, and also provide for you aftercare services and investment protection as well. That is very fundamental and also very key. It’s not only about luring you to come and invest into Sierra Leone, but they have to give you the assurance how that investment is being protected.

How does the National Investment Board of Sierra Leone protect investors?

DR BAIO:And um, so that is actually the cornerstone for the the Go for Gold program. And that’s why we are, like I said, it’s a partnership program with the National Investment Board. So, first, we facilitate investment. Second, we enable you settle down the investment, and we also provide protection for you, and as well as aftercare services so that you’ll be able to not just bring your resources into Sierra Leone, but be able to to achieve your goal as an investor.

LADISLAS MAURICE: Thank you, Doctor. We also had an interesting conversation with the Executive Director of the National Investment Board, and he’s fully on board. He thinks it’s great. Um, and yeah, essentially when you go through the program, um, then you have full access to the National Investment Board that can then help you with your investments in Sierra Leone with full government support. So, it’s a very clever way. It’s a very visionary way for a small country to attract high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth individuals who want to invest large sums into an economy and feel very secure and understand that by doing this, they also have access to all the right contacts and support to make sure their their investments are are safe and secure and minimize also the the bureaucratic challenges.

Reducing red tape and bureaucracy in Sierra Leone

DR BAIO:Yeah, that is so true. And this is all fits into so again the one government concept envisioned by his Excellency, the President, retired Brigadier Julius Maada Bio. Um, you know, like you rightly said, you know, there are a lot of red tapes and bureaucracies across governance, especially investing in countries like third world countries like Sierra Leone. So, to minimize or cut all those bureaucracies or red tapes, that’s why they created the single window, that. the NIB, to serve as a single window platform to facilitate foreign direct investment to Sierra Leone. And that’s why this partnership is very important because having the Go for Good program, and this high-networth investors which we are trying to attract through the special citizenship program, so their investment protection is also very key, and how fast they could be able to settle down is also very important. So, basically, very much, you know, I’m not surprised by the sentiment or comments expressed by the Executive Director for the National Investment Board of Sierra Leone.

Sierra Leone is open and encouraging investment

LADISLAS MAURICE: Look, and as a foreign investor, and you you look at different markets in West Africa, and there’s a little country, beautiful Sierra Leone that says, come invest, and you know, unlike in other larger countries that I won’t necessarily mention here, but here they, you know, they’ll grant you citizenship, they’ll give you all the right contacts, they’ll give you the support from A to Z, the one-stop shop, like you say. It definitely makes one lean towards investing here in Sierra Leone than in other destinations.

We’re licensed agents for the Sierra Leone Special Naturalization Program and would be very happy to help you go through the whole process. There are more details below. And Doctor, thank you very much for your time. Really appreciate it.

DR BAIO:Thank you very much. I appreciate too. You’re welcome.

LADISLAS MAURICE: Make sure to download my free ebook, 12 Mistakes to Avoid When Investing in International Real Estate, which you can find on my website link below, and feel free to follow me on Instagram @thewanderinginvestor. I look forward to hearing from you.

FAQ

Apply for the Sierra Leone CBI