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Henley & Partners
HEThe firm behind the passport ranking everyone quotes
Henley & Partners is the largest and longest-running citizenship and residency by investment advisory firm, and it publishes the Henley Passport Index, the ranking most media and other resources cite for visa-free travel scores. It works with high-net-worth clients on formal introducer agreements rather than running a public affiliate program, so it belongs here as the authoritative reference point rather than a commission opportunity.
What is Henley & Partners
Henley & Partners is one of the biggest citizenship and residency by investment advisory firms. It is best known for publishing the Henley Passport Index, the visa-free travel ranking most news outlets and travel tools quote as the standard. The firm started in the late 1990s and now runs offices in dozens of countries, advising high-net-worth clients on getting a second citizenship or residence permit through legal, government-approved investment programs, from Caribbean citizenship by investment (Grenada, St Kitts and Nevis, Dominica) to European golden visas.
Why it shows up in nomad research
Most digital nomads never become Henley clients, but almost anyone researching passport strength or visa-free access runs into the Henley Passport Index first. The current edition ranks 199 passports across 227 destinations using IATA Timatic data, with Singapore in the top spot and visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to more than 190 destinations. If you want to compare passport power before choosing a citizenship by investment route, or just check where your current passport sits, the index is the reference everyone else quotes. That is why it is in this directory, even though the firm itself is not an affordable, self-serve tool.
The honest caveat
This is expensive, and it is not built for the typical remote worker. Henley works through a formal introducer-agreement model rather than a public affiliate program, and service fees for a full citizenship by investment engagement commonly start around EUR 30,000, before government investment and due-diligence costs. Those costs run from roughly USD 100,000 to well over a million depending on the country. Some competitors, such as Global Citizen Solutions, advertise lower fees for comparable programs. Henley has also drawn documented criticism, including OCCRP investigations, over past due-diligence and conflict-of-interest issues in some Caribbean programs, and the 2025 European Court of Justice ruling against Malta's citizenship by investment scheme shows the regulatory ground is moving. Treat a second passport as an expensive purchase that needs real due diligence, not a quick fix.
Pricing reality
There is no free tier and no published price list on the site. Expect a consultation, a proposal scaled to the specific program and country, and total costs from the low six figures for the cheapest Caribbean programs to seven figures for premium European residence or citizenship routes.
What works
- Publishes the Henley Passport Index, the visa-free travel ranking most media and travel tools cite as the default reference
- One of the largest and longest-established firms in citizenship and residency by investment, with decades of experience across dozens of countries
- Handles the full process end to end, from program selection through application and due-diligence liaison, rather than just pointing clients at a government portal
- Global office network means in-person advisory is available in most major hubs
What to watch
- Expensive relative to competitors: advisory fees alone commonly start around EUR 30,000, with some rivals charging significantly less for comparable programs
- Not built for typical remote workers or budget-conscious nomads; it targets high-net-worth applicants with six or seven figures to invest
- Has faced documented due-diligence and conflict-of-interest criticism in past Caribbean program work, and the legal ground under citizenship by investment is shifting (see the 2025 EU court ruling against Malta's scheme)
Questions at the counter
Is Henley & Partners worth it for a digital nomad?
For most digital nomads, no. Henley's core service is citizenship and residency by investment for high-net-worth clients, with advisory fees alone starting around EUR 30,000 plus a much larger government investment. Nomads chasing visa-free travel or a second passport on a normal budget are better served by researching cheaper residency by investment programs or standard immigration routes, and using Henley's free Passport Index purely as a research reference.
What is the Henley Passport Index and how is it calculated?
It is Henley & Partners' ranking of the world's passports by visa-free and visa-on-arrival access, built on IATA Timatic data covering 199 passports and 227 destinations. Singapore currently ranks first, with visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to more than 190 destinations, and the index updates quarterly.
How much does Henley & Partners charge for citizenship by investment?
Service fees commonly start around EUR 30,000, separate from the government-mandated investment or donation, which ranges from roughly USD 100,000 for the cheapest Caribbean programs to well over a million dollars for premium European routes. Total cost depends heavily on which country's program the client chooses.
Is Henley & Partners legitimate, or is citizenship by investment a scam?
Henley & Partners is a legitimate, long-established firm, and citizenship by investment is a legal, government-run process in the countries that offer it, not a scam. That said, the firm has faced real, documented criticism over past due-diligence lapses in some Caribbean programs, and regulatory scrutiny of the industry is increasing, including a 2025 EU court ruling against Malta's scheme.