Spain has stopped issuing “golden visas”: Russians used this scheme most often
4 April 01:15
The Minister of Housing and Urban Development of Spain, Isabel Rodriguez, has announced that starting from April 3, 2025, Spain will stop issuing so-called “golden visas” – residence permits granted for investments in the country’s economy. This is reported by the press service of the department, Komersant ukrainskyi informs
“Golden visas were granted for real estate investments worth more than 500,000 euros. They made it possible to obtain a residence permit for investments in government securities (from 2 million euros) or in shares of Spanish companies (from 1 million euros).
Rodriguez explained that the abolition of this program will be useful for Spaniards who cannot afford to buy a home due to high prices and a shortage of offers. She emphasized that this step is part of the Spanish government’s commitment to supporting the right to affordable housing.
In April last year, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced the country’s intention to abandon the issuance of so-called “golden visas” for real estate investors. This scheme was most often used by the Chinese and Russians.
The decision made by the executive branch, similar to those made by other countries such as Ireland and Portugal, is in line with the European Commission, which in 2022 called on member states to abolish any existing investor nationality system.
In 2023, Italy, following the recommendations of the European Commission, announced that it would not issue “golden visas” to citizens of the Russian Federation and Belarus.
In addition, citizens of Russia and Belarus who are also citizens of another country can no longer obtain Czech visas and long-term residence permits.
