Golden Visas Lure Wealthy Chinese

Some 10,000 super rich Chinese are searching to emigrate after bad economy, zero covid that punish lockdowns and an economic slowdown. Chinese wealthy people bloomberg

China sees a big loss in its wealthy population, with a projected loss of 10,000. It is a huge emigration of Chinese Super rich that escape the country this could be more damaging to the Chinese economy than in previous years, but it is an Opportunity of other country , firms.

Why is this program so popular with Chinese citizens?

The Golden Visa is a citizenship by investment or residency by investment program. It is geared towards wealthy foreign nationals who want to acquire residency in a certain country by investing a substantial amount of money or by purchasing a property.

Applying to a Golden Visa grants the applicant and its immediate family members (spouse & children) the residence permit which can be renewed indefinitely as long as the investment is maintained. There is little to no requirement to actually be physically present in the country that issued the Golden Visa. This means that you do not need to relocate to another country unless you want to.

So far, the Chinese have been the biggest consumers of Golden Visas programs, which have also proved to be very popular among wealthy people from South Korea, Russia, and the Middle East. Many investors view the programs as a way to establish their families permanently abroad, particularly in popular destinations such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Others see them as an insurance policy.

According to immigration experts Chinese nationals are at the front of the line in order to acquire these golden tickets to Europe. Interest from Russia, the United Arab Emirates and South Africa is also stirring.

Golden visa regulations to attract Chinese investors

1. Can I work with a Golden visa ?

The investor residence permit also known as Golden Visa does not provide access to any type of employment. However, employment laws may vary depending on each country. In order to have a reliable answer, it’d be better to check the employment law regarding the targeted country during the application.

2. Which EU countries have golden visas ?

European countries offering Golden Visa programmes are :

• Spain : The most common method of getting a Spanish Golden Visa is by investing in real estate. You need to purchase a property amounting to at least €500,000.
• Portugal : The Portuguese Golden Visa has investment options which start at €250,000. Holders of a Golden Visa can apply for permanent residence and citizenship after as little as five years.
• Greece : You can get a Greek Golden Visa by purchasing real estate worth at least €250,000 or another type of investment. Although there is no required minimum stay to renew the visa, if you want to acquire citizenship, you have to live in Greece for seven years.

• Italy : Italy does not offer a path to residency or citizenship via the purchase of a property. To get an Italian Golden Visa (Investor Visa), you have to actually invest in a company or make a donation.
• Malta : Similar to Cyprus, Malta offers two types of so-called Golden visas. One leads to citizenship whereas the other to indefinite permanent residency.
• Switzerland : The Golden Visa program for Switzerland is much more rigorous than it is in most other countries. For one, to receive residency via investment in Switzerland, you would have to make one of the following investments :
  • Form a company which offers employment opportunities for Swiss nationals
  • Pay annual tax of between CHF 150,000 and CHF 1 million, depending on which canton you wish to settle.

• Austria : Similar to Switzerland, you cannot get an Austrian Golden Visa by purchasing real estate or similar non-active investments. In order to receive residency by investment in Austria, you would have to invest in something which would create jobs and have an impact on Austrian economy. The options include:
  • Investing at least €10 million directly into a business
  • Investing at least €3 million to the government development fund.
• Belgium :Belgium does not offer a Golden Visa on the basis of purchasing a property – in this case also, the investment must be more active. To be eligible for a Belgian Golden Visa, you have to create a company and invest €350,000 – €500,000 for a period of five years. You can only receive citizenship in Belgium after five years of residency.
• Cyprus : Cyprus offers two types of Golden Visas. One leads to citizenship whereas the other to permanent residency (indefinitely), and both have desired results. To get a Citizenship by Investment in Cyprus, you must make an investment of €2 million. You must also make an additional donation of €75,000 to the Cyprio Research and Development fund and €75,000 to the Land Development Organisation, for a total of €2,150,000. You can get Cypriot citizenship within six months via this program.

For more information regarding Golden Visa, Schengen Visa Info will provide you with further infos.

3. Can a student get PR in Portugal ?

As a non-EU citizen, the applicant will need to obtain a resident permit to live and work in Portugal. In order to apply for this permit (which is considered a temporary resident permit), the applicant will need to fulfill several requirements that the law demands, such as proof of address, proof of means and a resident visa (among others). Once it is granted, the same will be valid for a one-year period, renewable for successive periods of two years as long as the conditions necessary for it to be granted remain valid. After a five-year period, the temporary resident permit may be converted into a permanent resident permit (valid for five years and renewable for five years period) and after that the applicant may apply for Portuguese nationality.

4. Which country has the best golden visa program ?

A number of countries offer Golden Visas. They are attractive because most of them include the right to work and travel within the Schengen area. What makes a Golden Visa “good?”. The most important things to consider are :

• Low investment requirement.
• Small amount of time required to actually reside in the country.
• Short time required to gain full citizenship.
• Ability and ease of family members to also gain residency and/or citizenship.
• Potential to earn a high return on associated real estate investment.

• The following countries are often deemed as the best places for Golden Visa :
  • Cyprus
  • Greece
  • Malta
  • Portugal
  • Spain

5. How much is Spain’s Golden visa ?

The cost of getting a Golden Visa in Spain usually amounts to between 500,000€ to 600,000€. However the amount may vary depending on each applicant’s situation.

6. What allegations of fraud?

However, there has been an increase in fraudulent cases concerning the Golden Visa, the reason being that the agency (often a real estate agency) advertising the properties are not trustworthy. In most cases the victims are approached by an investment company, offering a very attractive purchase opportunity, following that the victims proceed to invest their savings into buying the property.

The scam is revealed once the buyers arrive in the country and realise that the property they’ve bought has nothing to do with what they expected. The scam can take various forms :

• The property doesn’t exist.
• The property actually exists BUT has been sold to another buyer.
• The property exists BUT doesn’t look like what it was supposed to.
• The property exists BUT it has been very much overpriced.
• The property exists BUT the location is not what it was supposed to be.

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