Spain introduced the “Golden Visa” system in 2013 (representative)
madrid:
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced on Monday that the so-called “golden visa” scheme, which allows foreign investors to obtain residency with a property investment of 500,000 euros, will be abolished in a bid to curb speculation that has ravaged many Spanish cities. .
During a visit to the southern suburbs of Seville, Sanchez said the government would “do away with the so-called golden visa system, which allows people to obtain residency in exchange for a 500,000 euro real estate investment.”
He said the measures, which are expected to be approved by cabinet on Tuesday, will allow the government to fight “speculative investment” in property that prevents “many young people and families” from accessing housing. .
The scheme was introduced in 2013, when the economy was in a downturn and Spain was looking to attract foreign capital, offering non-EU investors in exchange for at least 500,000 euros ($542,000) in property or investments. The idea is to grant work and residence permits for three years. Spanish company.
“Currently, 94 out of 100 visas of this type are related to real estate investment, which is concentrated in large cities,” he said, pointing to Barcelona, Madrid, Malaga and Alicante in the south, Valencia in the east and Spain's Mediterranean region. “I am doing so,” he said. Balearic Islands.
Sanchez said that in these areas, “the housing market is so tense that it's almost impossible for the people who live, work and pay taxes to find decent housing.”
In recent months, several southern European countries that instituted similar schemes during the financial crisis have tightened regulations or stopped offering them altogether to ease their own housing crises.
Portugal ended its golden visa program in February 2023, which had significantly boosted house prices, and late last month Greece tightened the rules for its own scheme, raising the required investment amount to a maximum of 800,000 euros.
These visas are “a disgrace to Europe. Just because you're a millionaire, you can't be given a residence permit,” said Culture Minister Ernesto Urtasun, who is also a spokesman for the radical leftist Xmal party in Spain's Socialist-led ruling coalition.
In 2019, Brussels urged member states to crack down on such schemes, saying they mainly benefit wealthy Chinese and Russian investors, and that the practice promotes corruption and money laundering. warned that it was likely to happen.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
