Spain has decided to abolish the option of purchasing a property worth at least €500,000 from its Golden Visa program.
Confirming the new changes, the President of the Government, Pedro Sanchez, said that Spain will take the necessary measures to guarantee that housing is a right and not “a mere speculative business”, VisaGuide.World reports.
I want to announce that tomorrow’s Council of Ministers is going to study a report submitted by the Minister of Housing and Urban Agenda to modify the law, approved by the Popular Party in 2013, which allows obtaining a residence visa if you invest in housing in our country.
Yet, it is still unclear if other options will continue to remain effective or not.
Spain’s Golden Visa scheme allows internationals to acquire residency in this country in an exchange of financial contribution. Among the most sought after options of this scheme is the real estate investment one, with cities like Madrid, Barcelona, Málaga, Alicante, Palma, Valencia being the most famous ones.
However, the scheme is often criticized for being an open door to irregular affairs such as money laundering, tax evasion and corruption.
Recently, the Minister of Culture, Ernest Urtasun, said that Spanish Golden Visas are “European shame” emphasizing that it cannot be that someone is given a residence permit for the fact of being rich.
This is staging first- and second-class citizens. We are glad that they listen to us by eliminating this measure.
Besides, last year, the Spanish left-wing political party, Más País, introduced a bill to lift the real estate investment option from the Golden Visa Program, stressing that it does not bring any benefits to Spain.
6,200 Golden Visas Issued in Spain Over a Decade
Since its introduction in 2013 until 2022, a total of 6,200 golden visas were granted, based on the government’s estimations.
During the same period, Spain granted a total of 2,712 visas to nationals from China, of them 99.33 percent have been issued under the assumption of the acquisition of real estate, followed by those from Russia, a total of 1,159 visas granted, of which 94.65 per cent being granted for buying a house.
In addition to Chinese and Russian nationals, citizens of the following countries were also the top beneficiaries of Spain’s Golden Visa Program: Iran (203 visas), the United States (179), and the United Kingdom (177).