Greece has amended golden visa scheme to include more investment options such as Government bonds, shares, and bank deposits for a minimum of €400,000. The amendments expands the number of options under the scope of the golden visas, diversifying from real estate, which remains the same at €250,000
The investment options were approved by the Ministry and published in the Government Gazette B’4155 on Nov 12, 2019
Third country nationals from outside EU are eligible for five year permanent residence permits by investing in the following.
Since 2018, Greece has become the most popular and friendliest golden visa scheme in Europe competing with Portugal. A number of investors from China, Russia, Turkey have purchased properties in the Attica region.
Existing investments
- Real estate property ownership €250,000 (residential or commercial) qualifies for 5 year visas
- Strategic investment €300,000 qualifies for 10 year visas
New investment options
Both legal persons and entities are eligible for the following investments under the new criteria. The important thing to note here is bank deposits required to be deposited in a Greek bank for ONLY one year and investing in non-interest bearing Government bonds fully returned after 3 years, in exchange for a five year visa.
- Bank deposits: €400,000 need only to be kept for one year
- Government bonds: purchased for a minimum €400,000 must be maintained for only 3 years
- Legal entities: Invest in securities or bank deposits under special cases for a minimum €800,000 or a minimum €400,000 in shares. Further legal entities can invested in Government or Corporate bonds for atleast €800,000 and the investment is doubled for the number of residence permits issued.
- Alternative investments: worth €400,000 euros worth of shares or shares in an Alternative Investment Agency (AIF), set up in Greece or in another EU Member State
- Mutual funds: a minimum of €400,000 worth of equity shares in a mutual fund
*Financing is possible for certain investments such as Govt bonds or securities.
Greece will also implement new citizenship by investment scheme, currently in the pipeline with the scope of offering immediate citizenship to 200 investors every year. The scheme is expected to launch by mid 2020
Greece recently approved credit/debit card payments making it easier to pay with plastic cards for property payments and legal fee for golden visas.
