Sometimes businessmen think about buying a flat or even a cottage by the sea somewhere abroad in order to obtain a residence permit or even a passport of that country. However, you cannot get a residence by investment in real estate just anywhere.
Fortunately, there are government programmes in several jurisdictions for those who are interested in investing in real estate. They allow obtaining a residence or citizenship within a reasonable timeframe.
Vasily Kluev, a Client Services Director of Imperial & Legal, tells us about 10 countries where you can get a second passport or a permanent residence card after buying a house, apartment or a share in a holiday resort under construction.
As a rule, to obtain Spain residence, investors buy houses and apartments in holiday resorts of the country, which cost €500,000 or more. It is also possible to invest in commercial property and land. The purchased property can be sold after 5 years and you will get your money back or it will be kept for renting and living.
Not only the main applicant, but also their family members (a spouse, minor and financially dependent children and parents) can obtain Spain residence by investment.
A property must be held for at least 5 years. After that, you can sell it and recover your investment.
You can include your spouse, minor children and financially dependent children in your application for Portugal residence by investment.
In order to obtain Latvia Golden Visa, you need to purchase real estate in the country, which costs at least €250,000. You can become the owner of a great flat in a prestigious part of Riga or an apartment in the resort town of Jurmala.
The main applicant, their spouse, minor children can obtain Latvia residence by investment.
The answer to this question depends on your circumstances and preferences. For immigration purposes, people traditionally invest in Spanish real estate, but in recent years, Portugal has become increasingly popular, where houses and flats are cheaper and you can buy a more interesting object for the minimum investment amount.
If you need residence in Europe for a visa-free travel, we recommend considering Latvia. An additional advantage of this Baltic state is moderate prices for accommodation.
If you aren’t satisfied with an EU residence permit, it’d be worth considering the passport programmes of Cyprus and Malta, which offer investors citizenship by investment that is the same as a normal EU citizenship. If you have a Maltese or Cypriot passport, you are free to live, work, study or do business in EU countries. EU citizenship allows you to cross the borders of over 170 jurisdictions around the world without a visa.
Investment consists of three parts:
You can include your spouse, minor children, financially dependent children under the age of 26, parents and grandparents on your application for obtaining Malta Citizenship by Investment. The amount of government contributions and government fees for due diligence checks depend on the number of people.
Investment in the economy of the Republic of Cyprus can be made in a number of ways. We will look at the option, which is directly connected to investment in residential construction or real estate:
The total amount of obtaining a Cyprus passport is €2,200,000, you can sell €1,500,000 worth of assets after 5 years of ownership. As Cyprus Citizenship by investment program becomes more popular, over time your investment will increase in value enough to recover some of your costs.
The main applicant, a spouse, minor children and even financially dependent adult children up to the age of 28 can be included in the application for Cyprus citizenship by investment.
An investor can also obtain passports for parents over the age of 55 if you purchase a property in Cyprus that costs at least half a million euros. If a spouse’s parents are included in the application, the additional cost is €1 million.
Important!
Cyprus citizenship by investment programme stopped accepting new applications from 1 November 2020. We will let you know if the Cypriot government launches a new citizenship program whereby foreign investors can get a European passport.
If your priority is free-visa travel within the EU and other countries, and a purchase of real estate is only an investment vehicle, then the Caribbean citizenship by investment program is the right option for you.
Country
Amount of investment in real estate
St Kitts & Nevis
from $200,000
Dominica
Antigua and Barbuda
from $400,000
Grenada
from $220,000 if you invest in a share along with other investors and from $350,000 if you invest alone
Saint Lucia
from $300,000
Buying real estate in the Caribbean is one of the most affordable ways to obtain a second passport, which is comparable to an EU passport in terms of travel opportunities and tax optimisation.
You don’t have to buy a whole house or a flat, you will be tempted to buy a share in a resort or spa complex under construction in the vast majority of cases because of the remoteness of the region and a low investment threshold.
The standard procedure involves you not only obtaining a second passport with the help of an intermediary law firm, but also selecting a property to invest in from a list of government-approved projects. When you make the investment and obtain citizenship, a contract is signed with a management company which takes care of your property, as well as finding clients and renting it out. The proceeds from the commercial use of your purchase, minus a fee, are regularly transferred to your bank account.
Regardless of which investment immigration programme you choose, the experienced specialists at Imperial & Legal are ready to advise you on any questions, which you may have, and provide full legal support at all stages of obtaining residence permit or citizenship in the chosen jurisdiction, as well as help with organising your move to another country.
Formally speaking, no Europeancountry will give you a passport if you only buy an expensiveproperty there. This schemeis offered only to participants of the Caribbean citizenship by investment programmes who enjoy visa-free travel to Schengen states and the UK.
Now, with Cyprus having suspended its citizenship by investment programmes, only two European countries are ready to issue a second passport in exchange for a combined investment in the national economy. What does “combined” mean? It means that your financial contributions would not be restricted just to buying a house, an apartment or a plot of land.
In our article above, we talked you through the process of acquiring EU citizenship by investment in the economy of Malta, including investment in real estate. Another country offering a similar option is Montenegro, a picturesque country on the Adriatic coast. Your investment in a property and donation to the national fund will secure you a second passport in 6-7 months. Though Montenegro is not currently anEU member state, you will still be able to travel to the Schengen countries without visas. Bear in mind that the price of citizenship by investment in this country may soar several years later, when Montenegro becomes a member of the European Union.
Additionally, 100,000 EUR must be invested in the national fund of economic development. At least 22,000 EUR (subject to the number of your dependents) must be paid in extra fees necessary for processing your application. In 5 years, you will be able to sell your real estate in Montenegro and get part of your money back.
Please bear in mind that, if you plan to get a second passport, you can invest only in the properties that have been approved by the authorities of Montenegro. Usually, the list of such properties is not very extensive. If you prefer to buy outside of this list, you will only be able to get a temporary residence permit. As a resident of Montenegro you will have to wait 10 years before you can become a citizen instead of 6 months.
Unfortunately, not. You are a resident of the country where you invested. However, if you have a Latvian residence permit, you can travel around the EU without restrictions and even stay in any of the Schengen countries for up to 90 days in any 6 months. But a residence permit does not give you the right to relocate and find a job in another EU country.
You can relocate to France or any other European country only if you have acquired Latvian citizenship which automatically means that you have become an EU citizen. However, you will need to live in the country for at least 10 years and learn the language in order to obtain a Latvian passport.
Out of all the examples we have listed, the Portuguese Golden Visa appears to be the most attractive option. It allows investors to get Portuguese residence by investing in a property. The programme allows an investor to apply for permanent residence after having lived in Portugal for five years and become a proud holder of an EU passport a year later.
The applicants are expected to live in Portugal on the permanent basis as well as:
The Portuguese investment programme has a variety of advantages including preferential taxation regime during the first 10 years of residing in the country and a wide choice of real estate properties you can invest in.
We will work with you to find a customised solution for your immigration, second citizenship, business, tax and other needs.
Residence by investment
Malta citizenship
Cyprus citizenship
Residence permit in Latvia through investments
Spain Residence
Portugal Residence
Caribbean passport
European passport
Citizenship by Investment