Where to get Golden visa?

We are lucky to live in the world where borders do not prevent us from choosing where to live, most of us at least. It can be even several countries or towns at a time. You can have multiple homes and alternate between where you live based on a season, work and personal circumstances.

To do this, most of us would need to follow some necessary legal and administrative procedures. It might be easier if you get a European passport. There is more than one way to obtain it. However, the easiest and fastest is to apply for residence or citizenship by investment. These schemes are often called Golden Visa.

Many European countries offer such programs. You just need to choose which one works for you. Immigration lawyers from Imperial & Legal will tell us about terms and conditions of obtaining a required permit.

Spain Golden Visa

Beautiful country with a mild climate, high living standards, developed infrastructure and safe environment. You will be given a choice to invest either in securities, business or real estate.

The last one is the most common. To qualify for a residence permit, you must buy a property for at least €500,000. It does not have to be one place; you can buy several properties with aggregate value starting at half a million euro. You can also invest in commercial real estate.

Who can apply for Golden Visa

Your family members can apply with you, even your children over 18 though they must not be older than 26 years old and be financially dependent on you. Besides, all of you can study and work in Spain.

Permanent residence in Spain

You can apply to become permanent resident after 5 years. That’s how long your money must be held in the form of investment. In 10 years, you might be eligible for Spanish citizenship. But bear in mind that you will have to rescind your first nationality because Spain does not allow dual citizenship.

Comment from Imperial & Legal: “Spain Golden Visa program is relatively flexible. They are not as strict about source of funds as for example in Portugal or Cyprus. However, the country has been introducing some reforms lately. It means that immigration rules can also be changed in 2020. Be aware and check latest news and updates”.

Portugal

Benefits of Portugal Golden Visa are huge for entrepreneurs. New tax residents are given tax-free holidays for the first 10 years. All this time you don’t have to pay income tax on income received outside Portugal.

How to invest in Portugal

Investors have a lot of options of contributing to the local economy. They are buying shares of Portuguese companies, starting a new business (with 5 jobs to be created), acquiring stocks in investment and venture funds.

Bear in mind that the government cares a lot about social value of your investment. Therefore, they encourage people to invest in research and development, cultural heritage, supporting arts and talents, etc.

Investing in real estate

You can also get Portugal residence permit by buying a property. And again, they strive to preserve national identity. If you purchase a listed property with the aim to refurbish it, you will be required to invest less. If it is a normal building, with no historic value, you would need to pay from €500,000 to qualify under Portugal Golden Visa program; if it is a period flat or house, the minimum threshold is going down to €350,000.

You can apply for Portugal permanent residence after 5 years of living in the country and Portuguese passport after 6 years. But for this you must be able to speak the language. Considering what benefits a EU passport provide, it is worth it. besides, dual citizenship is allowed.

Comment from Imperial & Legal: “Portuguese economy is booming. They have almost managed to pull through the crisis of 2012. Housing prices have been rising steadily by 6-7% a year. Therefore, Portugal is an attractive investment destination both for investing in business and real estate”.

Latvia

One of the cheapest routes to EU passport is offered by this beautiful Baltic country with turbulent history, unique architecture and delicious cuisine.

How to get Latvia visa

The most common way of obtaining Latvia residence permit is through real estate by investing anything from €250,000. This money will buy you a big 150m2 apartment in the downtown Riga. If you want, you can buy more than one property, but only if they in the countryside. Commercial properties will also do while agricultural land will not be accepted for Latvia Golden Visa program.

EU citizenship

It is possible to extend Latvia residence permit without living there. However, if you want to get permanent residence and then European passport, you must spend time there. You can apply for residence permits for your spouse, minor children and other dependants such as parents.

Comment from Imperial & Legal: “Since 2016, when the Saeima announced war on money laundering and imposed stricter measures on the control over the source of investment funds, more people have been refused Latvia Golden Visa. However, if you comply with all requirements and can confirm legal source of money, you should not have any problem”.

United Kingdom

This country does not have a Golden Visa program, but they do have a Tier 1 Investor visa. It is a legal way of moving to the UK with minimum requirements. you don’t even need to speak English. The main thing is to invest the required amount and prove that the source of funds is legal.

How much to invest in the UK

Investment amount starts at £2,000,000. In this case you can apply for UK permanent residence in 5 years and British passport in 6 years. If you can invest more, this will happen faster. Once you become permanent resident you can recover your money.

UK citizenship is one of the most prestigious even in Europe. Neither Brexit nor the fact that the country is not part of Schengen cannot change that.

What will change in the UK after Brexit

Comment from Imperial & Legal: “The UK has left the European Union which has caused changes in the immigration rules. Main changes will affect work visas. Wealthy people bring value to the country because they invest money in the economy. The government does not want to lose them, so it is unlikely that the rules will become more stringent”.

There are more countries in Europe that offer citizenship by investment programs. We focused your attention on the most interesting offers so that you understand how such programs work. Each one has many factors and aspects that must be compared and considered when choosing the right solution. We recommend doing it with professional help when experts can talk you through all the details and pitfalls that you might fail to notice.