European Visa Programs

European Visa Programs 

As you might all be aware, Hong Kong is experiencing challenging times at the moment which has spurred a growing demand for international property investments. There are many reasons to invest and obviously we all want the best deal. Visa programs are becoming a very popular way to invest and as more destinations offer attractive packages — not only are you investing your money in a property or a nation but you are also gaining entry and residency which comes with a wealth of other benefits too. As there are many countries offering visa programs, we thought we would start with Europe. Below are some of the most attractive visa programs outlining key comparables to make it easy to understand exactly what each program offers and how they differ from each other.

 

Ireland Immigrant Investor program (IIP)

Key Features:
• No requirements on language, education, work experience and body check
• Invest only after provisional approval
• Only 1-day stay requirement per year as Resident

Dependents:
• Spouse
• Children aged below 18
• Children aged 18 – 21 (unmarried with full-time education)

Key requirements:
• Net assets of at least EUR2 million
• Invest EUR2 million in an Approved Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) for up to 5 years; OR
• Invest EUR1 million in an Approved Investment Fund in Ireland for 3 years; OR
• Invest EUR1 million in Irish enterprise for 3 years; OR
• Make a non-refundable donation of EUR400/500K in a charity project in Ireland
To maintain as resident
• Stay 1 day per year
• Maintain the investment required

To become a Citizen:
• Stay 5 years in Ireland within 9 years and live in Ireland for the whole year before applying for citizenship

Processing time: 6 months

 

Portugal Golden Visa

Key features:
• No requirements on age, education and work experience
• No requirement on proof of source of funds
• Minimal stay requirement
• Get the Permanent Residency or Citizenship after 5 years of residency status subject to language test result

Dependent:
• Spouse
• Children aged 18 – 21 (unmarried with full-time education)
• Parents and spouse of investor

Key Requirements:
• Invest in property for 5 years at the amount of:
o EUR500,000 for new property, OR
o EUR350,000 for property older than 30 years and situated in urban regeneration areas.
• The property can be for self-use or rented out

To maintain as resident:
• Stay for 7 days in the first year and 14 days in each subsequent 2-year period
• Maintain the investment throughout the period but can change the property
To become Permanent Resident or Citizen
• Being Resident for at least 5 years
• Passing the Portuguese language test (CEFE A2)

Processing time: 6 months

 

Bulgaria Citizenship

Key features:
• No requirements on resident period, language, age, education and work experience
• Can get the permanent Citizenship in around 2 years

Dependents:
• Spouse
• Children
** procedures for becoming a Permanent Resident and Citizen for spouse and children aged 18 or above are different from the main applicant’s

Key requirements:
• Invest BGN 1 million (around EUR 512,000) in Bulgarian government bound to get 1 year after getting Permanent Residency.
• Fast Track route: Invest another BGN 1 million in Bulgarian government bound 1 year after getting Permanent Residency

To Become & maintain as Permanent Resident:
• Can get Permanent Residency in around half year
• Maintain the investment throughout the period
• No requirements on resident period

To become Citizen:
• Apply Citizenship after being Permanent Resident for 5 years. The bond can be sold once citizenship is granted; OR
• Fast Track route to citizenship): Apply citizenship after being permanent Resident for 1 year and further invest EUR 512,000 in Bulgarian government bond. The bond can be sold 2 years after citizenship is granted

Processing time: 2 Years

 

UK Investor Visa (Tier 1)

Key Features:
• No age limit and language requirement
• No education and work experience requirement
• No proof of source of fund, if the fund has been available for more than 2 years

Dependents:
• Spouse
• Unmarried children under age of 18

Key requirements:
• GBP2 million investment funds available and it belongs to either investor or investor’s spouse
• Has an account at a UK regulated bank
• Invest GBP2 million in share capital or bonds in active UK companies within 3 months of investor visa start date

To become Permanent Resident:
• Stay 6 months per year for 5 years (3 years if investing GBP10 million)
• Maintain the investments throughout the period

To become Citizen:
• Stay at least 1 year after obtaining permanent resident status
• Not leaving UK for over 90 days in the 1 year prior to application

Processing time: 1 month

 

Spain Golden Visa

Key features:
• No requirement in language, education, work experience or source of funds
• No stay requirement (visit only per extension)
• Visa-free to all 26 Schengen countries.

Dependents:
• Spouse
• Unmarried children under age of 18
• Unmarried children over age of 18 / parents of the investor

Key requirements:
• Only need to visit Spain once a year
• Maintain the investment threshold throughout the period, but can change the property
To become Permanent Resident:
• Being Resident for at least 5 years and has stayed in Spain for over 4 years and 2 months within the 5 years

To become Citizen:
• Being resident for at least 10 years and has stayed in Spain for over 4 years and 4 months within the 10 years

Processing time: 2-3 months

 

Malta Citizenship

Key features:
• Can get citizenship in around 1 year
• Can include dependents of 4 generations
• Full citizenship for life and can be passed on to future generations

Dependents:
• Spouse
• Children (unmarried and aged below 26)
• Dependent parents of both investor and both spouse
• Dependent grandparents of both investor and spouse

Key requirements:
• Invest ALL of the following 3 areas:
o A non-refundable contribution of at least EUR650,000 to the National Development and Social Fund (NDSF) (EUR650,000 for the principal applicant; EUR25,000 for the spouse, EUR25,000 for each dependent under 18; EUR50,000 for each dependent aged 18 and over)
o Property investment of EUR350,000 OR leasing of property with annual rental of EUR16,000 (both for at least 5 years); AND
o Investment in government bind of EUR150,000 (for at least 5 years)

To become a Citizen:
• Being a resident for at least 1 year
• Established genuine connection with Malta

Processing time: 12 months

 

Greece Golden Visa

Key features:
• No requirements on resident period, language and business experience
• Can get the 5-year residence in around 6 months

Dependents:
• Spouse
• Children aged below 21
• Parents of both the main applicant and the spouse

Key requirements:
• Purchase property of at least EUR250,000; OR
• Lease a property for at least 10 years with a minimum prepayment of EUR250,000
• The property can be either freehold or leasehold, commercial or residential, owned personally or through a wholly owned company

To become and maintain as Resident:
• Can get residency in around 6 months
• No requirement on resident period
• Must hold the investment for the entire period of residency

To become Citizen:
• Holding residency status for 7 years
• At least 180 days of stay in Greece per year
• Passing the naturalisation interview in Greek

Processing time: 6 months

 

Cyprus Citizenship

Key features:
• No requirements on resident period, language, age, education and work experience
• Can get the citizenship in around 6 months

Dependents:
• Spouse
• Unmarried children below 28 who are in full time university education
• Parants

Key requirements:
(a) First requirement
• Option 1: Invest EUR2 million in a single residential property used as a permanent residence, or where the residential units have been previously used for CIP, the minimum investment amount increases to EUR2.5 million; OR
• Option 2: Invest EUR2 million in multiple residential properties, including at least one property with a minimum value of EUR500,000 as a permanent residence; OR
• Option 3: Invest EUR2 million in commercial or mixed properties, plus at least one property with of EUR500,000 as a permanent residence
(b) Second requirement
• A donation of EUR75,000 to the Research and Innovation Foundation Development Corporation

To become Citizen
• Can get Citizenship in around 6 months
• No requirement on resident period
• Must own investment properties for at least 5 years
• Can sell part of the properties after 5 years but must retain the unit value of at least EUR500,000

Processing time: 6 months