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TL;DR
The Marshall Islands completed the first year of Enra, its quarterly payment to resident citizens, with the final 2026 installment reaching 40,714 people. Lawmakers approved $32.5 million for the program’s second year, but the payments depend on a trust fund and officials have not published an evaluation of Enra’s effects.
The Marshall Islands completed Enra’s first year, paying four quarterly installments to resident citizens, and parliament has approved $32.5 million for the program’s second year. The nationwide payment reaches nearly the entire resident population, but no public evaluation yet shows what it has changed for households or the economy.
Enra, officially the Individual Support Distribution, provides an equal share of a set annual budget to eligible Marshallese citizens living in the country. It has no income test or work requirement and covers children as well as adults. The first payment went out on November 26, 2025; the fourth was paid in August 2026. MISSA’s administrator told the Marshall Islands Journal that the final installment was $215.85 per person to 40,714 people. President Hilda Heine has said the recipients represent more than 95% of residents.
The payment amount has not been fixed. Enra divides a budget among the eligible list, so the per-person share fell to about $160 in March as registration grew. A $3.2 million World Bank grant helped raise the next two installments to about $200; the August payment was reported at $215.85. The source estimates that a resident received roughly $780 across the first year, though individual totals may depend on eligibility and payment timing.
On September 2, the US–Marshall Islands trust fund committee approved $32.5 million for year two. Parliament passed a budget on September 18 that included that amount for Enra and a separate $3.2 million top-up. The previous year’s budget allocation was $27.6 million. The program is funded through a trust fund established under the Compact of Free Association with the United States, rather than through a new tax on residents.
Infographic 01 · Enra, the first year
Four payments, one fixed pot
How the Marshall Islands paid a basic income to almost every resident citizen between November 2025 and August 2026.
- Nov 2025First payment: $201.92 to more than 33,000 people. MISSA had enrolled 33,119 by 30 Sep 2025.Launch ceremony in Majuro, 26 Nov
- End Mar 2026About $160. Delayed a month to vet new registrations and residence. More than 37,000 registered, same fixed budget.Citizens away more than 3 months are removed from the list, with exceptions
- End May 2026About $200 again, thanks to a $3.2 million World Bank grant ($1.6 million per quarter). More than 41,000 on the eligible list.Pushed by the president over fuel and food prices
- Aug 2026$215.85 to 40,714 people. Fewer paper checks than in earlier rounds.MISSA administrator to the Marshall Islands Journal
Payment per person, year one
US dollars per quarter · March and May rounded as reported
Why the amount moves
- Enra is a fixed annual budget shared equally among everyone eligible that quarter.
- More registrations mean a smaller share unless the budget grows.
- Roughly $780 per person in year one, about 12% of GDP per person (IMF: $6,417, FY2023). My arithmetic.
Sources: Marshall Islands Journal (27 Nov 2025, 26 Feb, 22 May, 6 Aug, 27 Aug 2026) · IMF, 10 Sep 2025. March and May amounts as reported (“about”).
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A Nationwide Payment, Without Outcome Data
Enra has moved basic income from a limited trial into a national policy covering most residents. That makes its reach unusual: the first-year record documents repeated payments to tens of thousands of people, rather than a short experiment involving a selected group. For readers following how governments might respond to economic disruption, including potential changes in work linked to AI, the program offers a real-world case of broad cash support.
But the record so far is stronger on coverage and administration than on results. No evaluation has been published showing whether the payments reduced hardship, changed employment, affected prices or improved access to services. The installment amounts also varied as enrollment changed, while a one-time grant supplemented payments. Those factors make it premature to treat the first year as proof of a particular social or economic effect, or as a ready-made model for wealthier countries.
The financing question matters as much as the payment itself. The International Monetary Fund estimated Enra’s fiscal 2026 cost at 8.1% of GDP and urged the government to replace it with a targeted program at the first feasible opportunity. That is the IMF’s policy position, not evidence that the payments have failed. It does underline the trade-off between a simple, broad benefit and the long-term cost of maintaining it.
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How Enra Reached the Outer Islands
Enra is administered by the Marshall Islands Social Security Administration, which maintains the eligibility list, while the Ministry of Finance oversees funding. Eligible people can receive money by check, direct deposit or Lomalo, a phone wallet. The wallet has attracted international attention because it can deliver a digital token called USDM1. The finance ministry describes USDM1 as a US-dollar sovereign bond backed one-to-one by short-dated US Treasuries, and says it is not a cryptocurrency, central bank digital currency or stablecoin. Those are the ministry’s descriptions; the number of Enra recipients using the wallet has not been published.
Payment access is a practical concern across the Pacific nation. The source reports that major bank branches are concentrated on Majuro and Ebeye, while mailed checks can take weeks to reach some outer islands. Digital delivery is intended to offer another route, but available material does not establish how widely the wallet is used or how it has affected access.
Enrollment expanded after launch, reaching more than 37,000 by the second payment period and over 41,000 on the eligible list by May 2026. Authorities delayed the second installment while checking new registrations and residency. According to the finance minister, the immigration office reviews departures, and citizens away for more than three months are removed from the list, with exceptions including diplomats, students and people sent abroad for medical treatment.
What One Year Cannot Yet Show
The main evidence gap is the absence of a published Enra evaluation. Payment records indicate how many people were paid and how installments changed, but they do not establish effects on poverty, household spending, work, health or prices. The source also does not provide a breakdown of results by age, island or payment method.
Questions remain about the program’s longer-term affordability and funding. The trust fund was valued at about $1.77 billion at the end of July 2026, according to the source, but that figure alone does not establish how long it can support Enra or what other commitments it must meet. Nor is it clear whether future installments will include outside grants or keep varying with enrollment.
Coverage figures also need care: the president’s estimate that recipients exceed 95% of residents and the reported count of 40,714 paid people describe reach, not measured impact. The exact number of people who used Lomalo, and how many eligible residents did not receive a payment, has not been stated in the source material.
Year Two Funding and Public Evaluation
The immediate next step is delivery of the second-year allocation approved in September. The supplied information does not give a schedule for each upcoming installment or say whether the separate $3.2 million top-up will be repeated. Future payment amounts will depend in part on the budget, the eligible population and any additional funding.
For a clearer assessment, readers will need updated payment and enrollment figures alongside a public evaluation of household and economic outcomes. The IMF’s recommendation also leaves open whether the government will keep Enra as a broad payment or consider a more targeted alternative. No decision to replace the program is reported here. Until further evidence is published, the confirmed account is that Enra has completed one year at national scale and has funding approved for another, while its effects remain unmeasured.
Key Questions
Who is eligible for Enra?
Marshallese citizens who live in the Marshall Islands qualify, including children. Citizens living abroad are not eligible under the rules described in the source.
How much did recipients receive in the first year?
The installments varied. The final August 2026 payment was $215.85 per person; the source estimates that a resident received roughly $780 across the year, but totals can depend on eligibility and payment timing.
Where does the money come from?
Enra is funded through a trust fund established under the Compact of Free Association with the United States. The approved second-year budget is $32.5 million, with a separate $3.2 million top-up in the budget passed by parliament.
Has Enra’s impact been evaluated?
No public evaluation is identified in the source material. Payment counts show the program’s reach, but do not establish its effects on poverty, employment or other outcomes.
Is Enra a response to AI-related job losses?
The program is discussed as a case relevant to debates about income support and possible AI-driven changes to work, but the source does not say Enra was created in response to AI. Its documented funding and rollout are specific to the Marshall Islands.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
