FlagSageWhat this covers
A golden visa, or residence by investment, is a national residence permit that a country grants to a non-EU national because they make a qualifying investment, such as buying property, buying government bonds, funding a company or donating to a public project. It gives the right to live in that country, usually with some minimum stay rules, and the permit lets the holder travel in the Schengen area for short stays. It does not give citizenship, although lawful residence can count toward naturalization under that country's nationality law.
Understand what a golden visa gives and what it does not
A golden visa is permission to live in a country. It is a type of residence permit, not a passport. Some permits can later lead to permanent residence or to naturalization, but only by meeting the separate conditions in that country's law.
The European Commission has flagged risks in these schemes since its January 2019 report, which cited security, money laundering, tax evasion and corruption. In March 2022 it asked member states to establish and conduct strict checks before issuing any residence permit by investment. Several countries have since closed or narrowed their routes.
For citizenship routes based on payment, see citizenship by investment, which is a different legal category. The golden visa entry gives a short definition, and the living base flag covers other ways to gain the right to live abroad.
Compare the status of European investor residence routes
The table summarizes what each official page said when checked. Every route has extra conditions on funds, documents, background checks and insurance. Fees are not shown.
| Country | Status | Investment routes listed | Stay or permit terms stated |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portugal (ARI) | Open, narrowed in 2023 | Creating at least 10 jobs; €500,000 for research; €250,000 for arts or national heritage; €500,000 in Portuguese non-real-estate investment funds; €500,000 to set up or recapitalize a company with jobs | At least 7 days in Portugal in the first year and 14 days in later years. The investment cannot go, directly or indirectly, into real estate. |
| Greece | Open, thresholds raised in 2024 | Real estate: €800,000 in Attica, Thessaloniki, Mykonos, Santorini and islands over 3,100 residents; €400,000 elsewhere; €250,000 for listed buildings and industrial buildings converted to housing | The listed-building route gives a five-year permit with no right to employment. Residential property must be at least 120 square meters and cannot be used for short-term rentals. |
| Spain | Closed from 3 April 2025 | None for new applicants. The investor visa articles of Law 14/2013 were left without content. | Permits already issued keep their validity, and renewals follow the rules in force when the first permit was granted. |
| Ireland (IIP) | Closed to new applications from 15 February 2023 | None for new applicants | Existing approved projects and individuals are not affected. Applications on hand are still being processed. |
| Italy (Investor Visa) | Open | €2 million in government bonds; €500,000 in a company; €250,000 in an innovative start-up; €1 million donation to a public-interest project | Two-year investor residence permit, renewable for three-year periods while the investment is kept. Suspended for Russian and Belarusian citizens. |
| Malta (MPRP) | Open | Government contribution of €37,000, an administrative fee of €60,000, and a property bought for at least €375,000 or rented for at least €14,000 a year | Permanent residence. The qualifying property must be kept for at least five years. |
Check what changed in Portugal's ARI in 2023
Portugal's residence permit for investment activity, known as ARI, has been in force since 8 October 2012, according to the immigration agency AIMA. Law 56/2023 of 6 October 2023, part of a housing package, changed it. The law states that one of its aims is to revoke residence permits for real estate investment.
Article 42 of the law says no new applications are admitted under subparagraphs i), iii) and iv) of Article 3(1)(d) of the Foreigners Act from the date the law entered into force, the day after publication. Article 53 revokes those subparagraphs. Permits already granted can still be renewed, and renewal converts them into a residence permit for entrepreneur immigrants with a minimum stay of 7 days in the first year and 14 days in each later two-year period. Applications already pending stayed valid under Article 43.
AIMA now lists the remaining routes shown in the table and says the investment cannot be directed, directly or indirectly, to real estate. Holders can apply for permanent residence under the Foreigners Act and for naturalization under the Nationality Law. Portugal amended its Nationality Law by Organic Law 1/2026 of 18 May 2026, which sets a residence period of seven years for nationals of Portuguese-speaking countries and EU citizens and ten years for others. Check how residence on an ARI counts before planning around citizenship. See Portugal.
Check the thresholds in Greece and the routes in Italy
Greece raised its real estate thresholds under Article 64 of Law 5100/2024. The Greek housing policy portal says the minimum rose from €500,000 to €800,000 in the Attica Region, the Thessaloniki Regional Unit, Mykonos, Santorini and islands with more than 3,100 residents, and from €250,000 to €400,000 everywhere else. Enterprise Greece reported in April 2024 that the changes took effect on 31 March and that a €250,000 threshold remains for converted industrial buildings and listed buildings. The Ministry of Migration and Asylum handles applications through its e-services. See Greece.
Italy's Investor Visa uses financial routes rather than property. Italian consulates list €2 million in government bonds, €500,000 in Italian company shares or bonds, €250,000 in innovative start-ups and €1 million for public-interest projects. The Italian embassy in Pretoria says the visa leads to a two-year investor residence permit, renewable for three-year periods for as long as the investment is kept, and that the program is suspended for Russian and Belarusian citizens under EU Recommendation C(2022) 2028. See Italy.
Know that Spain and Ireland closed their investor routes
Spain ended its investor residence visa on 3 April 2025. Final provision 21 of Organic Law 1/2025 of 2 January left Articles 63 to 67 of Law 14/2013 without content from that date, according to the consolidated text in the Official State Gazette. The Spanish government said the change abolished residence visas for investors, including the property route of more than €500,000. A transitional rule lets investors who applied before the change receive a decision under the earlier rules, and permits already valid keep their validity. See Spain.
Ireland closed its Immigrant Investor Programme to further applications from 15 February 2023. Ireland's immigration service says the closure does not affect existing projects or individuals already approved, and that processing the applications on hand is expected to take a number of years. It cited concerns raised by the European Commission, the Council of Europe and the OECD about border security, money laundering, tax evasion and circumvention of EU law. See Ireland.
Separate Malta's residence programme from its citizenship scheme
Malta runs the Malta Permanent Residence Programme, which Residency Malta says was established in 2016. It is set out in subsidiary legislation S.L. 217.26. The agency lists a government contribution of €37,000, a non-refundable administrative fee of €60,000 and €7,500 for each adult dependant other than a spouse, plus a qualifying property bought for at least €375,000 or rented for at least €14,000 a year, kept for at least five years.
This is a residence route. It is separate from Malta's 2020 investor citizenship scheme, which the Court of Justice of the EU ruled unlawful on 29 April 2025. See Malta.
Keep the residence permit and tax residence apart
A golden visa decides whether you may live in a country. It does not decide whether that country taxes you as a resident. Spain's tax agency says a person can hold a residence permit or administrative residence in a state and still not be tax resident there. Tax residence follows each country's own tests, such as days present, a home or the center of economic interests. See the 183-day rule and tax residence.
The reverse also holds. Living in the country for most of the year on a golden visa can make you tax resident there under its normal rules, even if the minimum stay for the permit is only a week or two. Some countries offer separate tax regimes to new residents, with their own conditions. See special tax regimes for new residents. People who move often should also read digital nomads and tax residency.
Short trips around Europe on a permit still count against Schengen limits in other countries. A Schengen residence permit lets you travel for short stays, but other member states apply the 90 days in any 180-day rule. See the Schengen 90/180 rule and the Schengen calculator.
Common misconceptions
Questions to take to a professional
- Is the investor route I am considering still open to new applications, and under which law?
- What minimum stay does the permit require, and how does that compare with the days that would make me tax resident?
- How and when can the permit be renewed, and what happens if I sell the investment?
- Does time on this permit count toward permanent residence or naturalization, and under what conditions?
- Which country would treat me as tax resident after I move, and is there a special regime for new residents?
- How do family members qualify, and do their permits depend on mine?
- What background checks, source-of-funds documents and translations will the authority ask for?
Questions people ask
Which European countries still have golden visas in 2026?
On official pages checked on 9 November 2026, Portugal, Greece, Italy and Malta still listed investor residence routes. Spain ended its route on 3 April 2025 and Ireland closed its programme to new applications on 15 February 2023.
Does the Portugal golden visa still allow real estate?
No. Law 56/2023 stopped new applications under the real estate routes in October 2023. AIMA lists job creation, research, culture, investment funds and company capital routes, and says the investment cannot go into real estate.
What is the minimum investment for the Greece golden visa?
Under Law 5100/2024, the real estate minimum is €800,000 in Attica, Thessaloniki, Mykonos, Santorini and islands over 3,100 residents, and €400,000 elsewhere. A €250,000 threshold applies to listed buildings and converted industrial buildings.
Did Spain end the golden visa?
Yes. The investor visa and residence articles of Law 14/2013 were left without content from 3 April 2025 by Organic Law 1/2025. Applications filed before that date and existing permits are covered by transitional rules.
Does a golden visa make me a tax resident?
Not by itself. Tax residence follows each country's tax tests, such as days present and where your home and interests are. Spain's tax agency says a residence permit is not the same as tax residence.
Can a golden visa lead to citizenship?
Only through the country's normal naturalization rules. Portugal's Organic Law 1/2026 sets residence periods of seven years for some nationalities and ten for others, plus language and other conditions.
Where this guide stops. The national immigration authority decides each permit, sometimes after an investment committee or agency approves the investment. An immigration lawyer in that country can explain the conditions and renewals. A tax adviser deals with where you become tax resident. FlagSage does not recommend programs or investments, or prepare applications.
Sources
- Autorização de Residência para Investimento – Art. 90.º-A (AIMA)Official guidance
- Lei n.º 56/2023, de 6 de outubro (Portal das Finanças copy)Primary law
- Lei Orgânica n.º 1/2026, de 18 de maio (Diário da República)Primary law
- Increase of the minimum real estate investment for a Golden Visa (Greek Housing Policy Portal)Official guidance
- Greece adjusts Golden Visa program amid rising outlook for property market (Enterprise Greece)Official guidance
- Golden visa programme (investment in a listed real property): Initial issuance (MITOS)Official guidance
- Ley 14/2013, de 27 de septiembre, consolidated text (BOE)Primary law
- El 3 de abril entra en vigor el fin de las Golden Visa (La Moncloa)Official guidance
- Why has the IIP closed and what happens now? (Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland)Official guidance
- Investors (Consulate General of Italy in London)Official guidance
- Visa for Italy Investor Program (Embassy of Italy in Pretoria)Official guidance
- Legal framework: Malta Permanent Residence Programme (Residency Malta Agency)Official guidance
- Investor Citizenship Schemes (European Commission)Official guidance
- Commission urges Member States to act on golden passports and golden residence permits schemes (28 March 2022)Official guidance
- Agencia Tributaria: Persona física residente en EspañaOfficial guidance
- Your Europe: Travel documents for non-EU nationalsOfficial guidance
- Court of Justice of the EU, Press Release No 52/25, Judgment in Case C-181/23 Commission v MaltaPrimary law
Related
- Countries covered
- Portugal, Greece, Spain, Ireland, Italy, Malta
- Sources
- 17 sources listed above
- Tax year
- Current rules as checked
- Review
- Not professionally reviewed
Sources checked November 9, 2026