Golden Visa demand grows

New applications for five-year residence permits through the Golden Visa program continue unabated, as 1,299 new applications were submitted in the first two months of this year, compared to 1,248 applications submitted in the corresponding two months last year.

In total, it is estimated that since the beginning of the program until today, 24,000 properties have been acquired with a minimum investment value of 6 billion euros.

This figure is based on active permanent investor permits, which amount to 15,865 (12,529 initial permits and 3,336 renewals), but also the 8,137 initial permit applications currently pending.

Based on data from the Migration and Asylum Ministry, during 2023, 4,444 permits were approved, corresponding to real estate sales with a minimum value of €1.1 billion. During the first two months of this year, another 664 permits were granted.

In the next period, specifically for almost six months, a large amount of investment is expected to be observed for the acquisition of homes that meet the criteria for granting a residence permit through the program. 

The recent vote on the amendment, which changed the terms of the program, gives a grace period until August 31, instead of September 30, which was originally planned.

Until then, those interested will be able to secure the right to receive the residence permit based on the previous regime, as long as they have concluded a private agreement or preliminary agreement for the purchase of a property (with a 10% down payment in both cases) by the end of August. After that, time is given until the end of 2024 to sign the definitive sales contract.

According to Ilias Papageorgiadis, head of MORE Group, “the market was not taken by surprise with overnight changes. This is bad, since for another year we will live with the side effects of the wrong way the Golden Visa institution works, but it is also good, since a serious state does not change the facts overnight.”