Spain’s golden visa may be one of the few reputed programs offering a route to EU permanent residence in 2023.
Greece is set to double its golden visa investment requirement from €250,000 to €500,000. Portugal has already barred golden visa investors from buying homes in Lisbon and Porto and is seriously considering terminating its program.
Investors are likely to respond to these changes by shifting their focus to Spain’s golden visa program.
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Qualifying for Spain’s Golden Visa
Investors can choose between multiple asset classes and investment options to qualify for permanent residence in Spain.
The safest, but most expensive option is to purchase Spanish public debt securities or bonds. Investors must shell out €2 million to qualify through this route.
Buying stocks or shares of Spanish companies or investing in VC funds or investment funds incorporated in Spain or a bank deposit in a Spanish financial institution requires minimum investment of €1 million.
Spain also offers investors the option of qualifying for EU permanent residence by buying a property in the country. The applicant must buy unencumbered real estate for at least €500,000.
This puts the Spanish golden visa on par with Portugal and Greece once the 100 percent hike in investment requirement comes into effect.
Investors are likely to prefer Spain because Portugal does not allow golden visa investments in its most-attractive destinations for real estate – Lisbon and Porto. Further, there are reports that the government is seriously considering ending the program. Such uncertainty always acts as a dampener on investor sentiment.
Demand for the Greek program may lag because investors will be wary of further negative news as the government tries to make real estate more affordable for its citizens.
Spain, on the other hand, does not have an overheated real estate market and is as safe and attractive, in terms of real estate investments, as the other two countries.
Investors with higher risk tolerance have the option of setting up a business project of general interest. To qualify, the business must create jobs, have the potential for significant socio-economic impact, or must contribute to scientific or technological innovation.
This option does not have any minimum investment requirement. This means that an investor can, at least in theory, qualify for EU permanent residence by investing less than €500,000 in Spain.
Spain also has a minimum net worth requirement for its golden visa investors. The applicant must have an income, financial means or net worth of at least four times Spain’s Public Multiple Effects Income Indicator (IPREM).
IPREM for 2022 is around €7,000, which means the investor must have a minimum net worth of €28,000 plus an additional €7,000 for every family member added to the application.
Successful applicants can be accompanied by the following people without any additional visa requirements.
- Spouse or unmarried partner.
- Minor children
- Financially dependent adult children who don’t have their own family unit.
- Relatives in the investor’s care.