St Lucia visas, from Pakistan.

Saint Lucia issues one non-immigrant visa covering holidays, family visits and business travel such as meetings, conferences and site visits. Pakistani nationals have neither visa-free nor visa-on-arrival access, so this must be obtained before you travel. Issued as single entry (three months' validity) or multiple entry (one year). It never permits paid local work — that needs a work permit.

• Completed and signed Saint Lucia non-immigrant visa application form
• Passport valid at least six months beyond travel, with two blank pages
• Two recent 2" x 1.5" photographs, certified on the reverse
• Confirmed return air ticket and a dated day-by-day itinerary
• Hotel booking confirmation, or an invitation letter from the Saint Lucian host or company with a copy of the host's ID or business registration
• Six months' original bank statements stamped by the bank, plus salary slips or business registration documents

Granted by the Immigration Department to visitors who wish to remain beyond the period stamped on arrival, renewed in 30-day blocks. This is the mechanism behind Saint Lucia's long-stay and remote-working arrangements — there is no separate digital nomad visa. It confers no right to work for a Saint Lucian employer.

• Application lodged at the Immigration Department in Castries before the entry stamp expires
• Passport showing the current, unexpired entry stamp
• One 2" x 1.5" passport photograph
• A Saint Lucian host or reference who attends in person with valid national identification
• Onward or return ticket, plus bank statements or evidence of foreign employment and remote income covering the extended stay

There is no standalone Saint Lucian study permit. Students enter on the non-immigrant visa endorsed for study and are kept lawful by extensions of stay sponsored by the institution and renewed through the Immigration Department. Used mainly for the offshore medical schools (International American University, American International Medical University, Spartan Health Sciences University) and for Sir Arthur Lewis Community College and UWI Open Campus. There is no post-study work or graduate route — employment afterwards requires an employer-sponsored work permit, and most graduates move on to residency in the US or Canada.

• Unconditional acceptance letter on letterhead from a Saint Lucia-registered institution
• Receipt for tuition paid, plus bank statements covering living costs for the academic year
• Health insurance valid in Saint Lucia for the duration of the course
• MOFA-attested degrees and transcripts, and a police character certificate
• Passport valid six months beyond the course end date, and two 2" x 1.5" photographs
• Institution's sponsorship letter supporting each extension of stay

The only route to lawful paid employment in Saint Lucia. Applied for by the Saint Lucian employer to the Work Permit Officer at the Labour Department and granted by the minister responsible for labour. Issued for each year of employment and renewed annually; assignments of up to one month attract a reduced permit fee. You may not work in any capacity while the application is pending.

• Employer's application to the Work Permit Officer, Labour Department, with the signed job offer or contract
• Copies of the newspaper advertisements showing the post was first offered locally
• MOFA-attested degrees, transcripts and professional registration certificates
• Police character certificate from the country where you last resided, attested
• Passport bio-page copy, two passport photographs, and the employer's business registration
• Treasury receipt for the permit fee before the permit is issued

A foreign national running their own business in Saint Lucia still needs a work permit issued in their own name, on top of registering the company. Many activities also require a Trade Licence for non-nationals, and buying land or premises requires an Alien Landholding Licence. Three separate approvals, three separate timelines — plan them together.

• Certificate of incorporation from the Registry of Companies and Intellectual Property
• Business plan with three-year projections, plus bank-certified or audited proof of the capital
• Trade Licence application where the business activity requires one
• Alien Landholding Licence obtained before any land or premises is purchased in your name
• MOFA-attested proof of qualifications and a police character certificate
• Annual renewal of the work permit in your own name

A non-refundable contribution to Saint Lucia's National Economic Fund in exchange for full citizenship and a passport, with no requirement ever to live in or even visit Saint Lucia. The simplest and most commonly used of the four options, and the cheapest at entry level because nothing is held or resold.

• Filed only through a CIU-licensed Authorised Agent — the Unit accepts no direct applications
• Forms SL1 to SL4 under the Citizenship by Investment Regulations, with certified photographs (SL3)
• Main applicant aged 18 or over, with a fully documented source of funds: bank statements, tax returns, sale deeds or audited accounts
• Police clearance certificates for everyone aged 16 and over, from Pakistan and every country lived in for 12 months or more in the past 10 years
• Medical certificate, plus MOFA-attested NADRA birth, marriage and identity documents
• Due diligence clearance for every applicant and dependant aged 16 and over; an interview may be required under the 2024 regional CBI reforms

Citizenship through the purchase of a share or unit in a government-approved development, typically a branded hotel, resort or boutique property. The capital is in principle recoverable on resale after the holding period, but resale depends on finding a buyer — do not assume it behaves like cash.

• Purchase of at least US$300,000 in a project approved by the Citizenship by Investment Unit
• Signed sale and purchase agreement with the deposit held in escrow
• Property retained for the minimum holding period (five years) before resale
• Full source-of-funds file and due diligence clearance for everyone aged 16 and over
• Filed through a CIU-licensed Authorised Agent

Citizenship in exchange for the purchase of non-interest-bearing government bonds, registered in the applicant's name and redeemed after five years. Suits applicants who want their capital returned rather than donated — but it earns nothing for five years, so weigh the lost return against the lower headline cost of the fund route.

• US$300,000 invested in National Action Bonds, which are non-interest-bearing
• Bonds registered in and kept in the applicant's name for a five-year holding period from the date of first issue
• Non-refundable administrative fee of US$50,000
• Due diligence clearance for every applicant and dependant aged 16 and over
• Filed through a CIU-licensed Authorised Agent

Direct investment in a business project approved by the Citizenship by Investment Unit — tourism, agri-processing, ports, offshore education and similar sectors — with binding job-creation commitments. The most document-heavy and least used of the four options, and the only one where the underlying project itself must clear approval.

• Investment in a project approved by the Citizenship by Investment Unit
• Creation of the prescribed minimum number of permanent jobs for Saint Lucians
• Business plan, feasibility study and audited financial statements for the investing entity
• Non-refundable administrative fee paid to the CIU
• Full source-of-funds and source-of-wealth evidence for every applicant
• Filed through a CIU-licensed Authorised Agent

Family members added to the main CBI file receive the same citizenship and passport on the same timeline, for a fixed additional contribution each. The definition of a qualifying dependant is unusually wide and has covered spouse, children, dependent parents and grandparents and, at times, unmarried siblings — but the Unit has revised the age limits more than once, so eligibility is confirmed for each person before filing rather than promised in advance.

• Separate Dependent Applicant Form SL2B for each family member
• Spouse: MOFA-attested nikah nama and marriage registration certificate
• Children: NADRA birth certificate (Form B or CRC), school or university enrolment letter, and proof of financial support for anyone over 18
• Dependent parents or grandparents: proof of age plus documented evidence that the main applicant supports them
• Police clearance and due diligence at US$5,000 for every dependant aged 16 and over
• Current age limits for children, parents and siblings confirmed with the CIU before filing

Outside the investment programme, Saint Lucian citizenship can be applied for by registration — most commonly by the spouse of a Saint Lucian citizen, or by a Commonwealth citizen (Pakistan qualifies) after a long period of ordinary residence on the island. It is granted at ministerial discretion, not automatically on marriage, and it requires genuine residence. This is a settlement route for people who have actually built a life in Saint Lucia, not a shortcut.

• Subsisting, legally valid marriage to a Saint Lucian citizen, or seven years' ordinary residence in Saint Lucia as a Commonwealth citizen (confirm the current statutory period)
• Evidence of a genuine shared life: joint tenancy agreement or utility bills, joint bank accounts, photographs and travel history
• Continuous lawful status throughout, with every extension of stay and work permit kept current
• Police clearance certificates from Pakistan and from the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force
• MOFA-attested marriage and birth certificates with certified English translations
• Oath of allegiance sworn on approval