The latest status symbol for rich people? A foreign passport collection

While some people take pride in their stamp collection, many high-net-worth individuals bask in the glory of a different type of collection: passports.

Through citizenship by investment programmes (CIPs), wealthy individuals are investing in a country in exchange for citizenship. Once they have citizenship, they then have the basic rights of any other citizen of that country – like owning a passport, Nuri Katz, president of international financial firm Apex Capital Partners, tells Business Insider.

Common types of investments include real estate, an enterprise project, or significant donations to a country’s fund – and they don’t come cheap. While the six-figure cost of a CIP can vary, it’s usually around US$200,000, Business Insider previously reported.

But those who are racking up citizenships and passports aren’t the “ultra rich”, Katz says. Most have a net worth of US$1 million to US$10 million.

To them, a second passport buys much more than a travel document – it also buys them status.

Passports offer status, freedom and a good investment

“It’s a status symbol – it shows friends you can afford it,” Katz says. “I call it the black American Express syndrome.”

Becoming a global citizen has become a status symbol for the world’s elite, Armand Arton, president of Arton Capital, a global financial advisory firm that specialises in investor programmes for residence and citizenship, tells Business Insider.

But there are physical advantages to owning more than one passport beyond external perception. According to Arton, investors primarily seek increased global mobility, better security and education, diversified business opportunities and tax planning strategies, and an overall improved quality of life.