How To Get Residency or Citizenship Via Investment Programs
There are several investment programs worldwide that offer the right to get residency or citizenship. Some of them are known as Golden Visa programs. Out of these programs, Portugal, Greece, and Spain provide investors with European residency.
Each investment visa country entails its own application requirements. Once you meet these requirements, you can benefit from several other rights as well.
You can find more about residency by investment and citizenship programs below. Let’s begin with the Golden Visa programs.
Residency By Investment Programs and Their Advantages
Residency by investment programs work in this way: You invest in a certain qualifying option. After you complete the relevant paperwork, the country entitles you to residency. In addition, you can work and study in that country. Portugal, Greece, Spain, and Malta provide such a program. However, Malta and Greece don’t enable the right to work.
Usually, such programs give you temporary residence. Then, you renew it periodically. Countries like Portugal even provide you the right to apply for citizenship at the end of five years of residency. To maintain your resident rights, you may need to stay for a certain period in that relevant country. However, it’s usually a few days and not more.
Residence by investment programs like Greece Golden Visa also offers you visa-free travel rights in Schengen countries. In addition, your dependent family members can join you. These members include your spouse and dependent children.
Residence By Investment Countries
Portugal, Greece, and Spain offer residency by investment programs, which are also known as Golden Visas. Investors from outside of the EU, EEA and Switzerland areas can apply for such programs. Each country provides different investment options for potential investors. Still, real estate investment is the most popular option. It may take a few months to get your residency after you apply for these programs.
In terms of stay requirements, Greece entails no requirement at all. On the other hand, Portugal requires an average of seven days of stay each year. Spain, on the other hand, requires only one entrance each year.
The minimum required investment amounts of Golden Visa countries are as follows:
- Portugal’s minimum real estate investment requirement: €280,000
- Greece’s minimum real estate investment requirement: €250,000
- Spain’s minimum real estate investment requirement: €500,000
- Malta’s minimum investment requirement: €150,000. It offers an investor citizenship program as well.
Let’s now get to know about citizenship by investment programs.
Citizenship By Investment Programs and Their Benefits
Country citizenship by investment programs offer you a faster way to become a citizen of a country. This means that you can get citizenship within months through such programs. Also, your spouse and dependent children can benefit from these schemes. In addition, your dependent parents or grandparents can be included as well.
Also, you don’t have to renounce your original citizenship status to get a second one. So, dual citizenship is available under investor citizenship programs.
Countries That Offer Citizenship By Investment
Typically, you don’t have to obey a stay requirement under the citizenship by investment programs. You can add your family members along with yourself. Usually, you’ll get your citizenship within three and six months. Under Malta’s program, you get this right within 12 or 18 months.
You can find the countries that offer citizenship by investment below. The minimum required investment amounts are as follows:
- Dominica: $100,000
- Antigua and Barbuda: $100,000
- St. Kitts and Nevis: $150,000
- Turkey: $400,000
- Malta: €690,000.
Are You Eligible To Apply For an Investment Visa?
You may now wonder whether you’re qualified enough to apply for these investment visa programs. Although each country requires different amounts and types of investments, some qualifications are common. For example, all countries expect you to have a clean criminal record. Also, you must be able to indicate the source of your investment. You also need to invest according to the ways that the relevant country entails.
In short, residency and citizenship by investment programs bring you the opportunity to open up to the world. Why wait if you want to become a world citizen and have additional benefits?
