Dear Readers, 

Alas, it’s another post which starts with an apology! I went on a weekend break with the family, which ate into Monday and Tuesday, and then I was too far behind with my post. Apologies dear Readers! Here I am now, on a Friday night, trying to get it ready to post! 

If you’re reading this, I guess I’ve managed it! And today, we talk about the Greek Golden Visa program. 

I’m writing about this topic because a bunch of people I know have asked me about how to get a Golden Visa for Greece (a visa made of Gold?).

The first time I was asked was years ago, when it was a new thing (in Greece at least). I was then asked again recently, since there are discussions in Greece to expand the program (though nothing has happened yet). And so, here I am writing about it. If you’re curious about this… if you want to buy yourself a 5 year visa to Greece for you and your family/dependents (which in turn provides access to Europe/Schengen), then read on!

The Greek Golden Visa Program

The Greek Golden Visa Program started in 2013. Since the Greek crisis, there have been efforts from many sides for Greece to “make more money”, and this was one of the ideas that came about as a result. The idea itself is not a new one, as many countries have golden visa programs from many years ago (or similar programs to encourage investment). 

In Greece though, the program is still new-ish and kinda goes like this:

A non-Greek citizen who buys (or intends to buy) real estate in Greece, worth at least €250,000, can get a Golden Visa. This Golden Visa is essentially a 5 year residence permit for the buyer and his whole family (including parents, spouses, parents of spouse, and children up to 21 years of age). 

Terms and Conditions

Of course, there’s a bunch of terms and conditions, but nothing too bad. The applicant must be in the country to make the application. He must have entered the country legally (so he must have some kind of visa to begin with or right to be there). At the time of the application, he must prove that he has purchased a property (or multiple properties) worth €250,000 (before taxes and expenses – so probably close to €300,000 if you include taxes and expenses).

If he has not yet purchased the property, then he must prove that he’s got enough money to do so. He must also bring additional paperwork related to himself (proving for example, that he’s healthy, he’s got no criminal record etc). 

Is That The Only Way?

Well, there are some additional way to do this (though no avoiding the usual paperwork). For example, if you and your brother have bought a property worth over €500,000, then both you and your brother (and families) can get Golden Visas, even though you’ve only bought one property. 

If you own a company (100% shareholding), and that company purchases a property over €250,000, that also works. 

Duration and Benefits

The Greek Golden Visa lasts 5 years. However, as long as you still own the property, you can renew the Golden Visa, each time for another 5 years. The main benefit of this Golden Visa, is that you get to live in Greece (and it is a nice place to live if you can afford a €250,000 property). You can also travel to all the Schengen countries, though I think there’s a limit of 3 months/6 month period (so total of 6 months per year, but interrupted). You can also travel freely to other EU states. So all in all 28 countries in the EU, plus a number who are Schengen (but not EU), I think 32 in total. Additionally, the Greek Golden Visa program is the cheapest one in the EU.

The last big plus for many is that you don’t have to live in Greece if you don’t want to. As long as you have the property, you have the residence permit (though you’ll have to come back every 5 years to renew). And this means that you can go straight from wherever you live, to the EU/Schengen country of your choice. 

Downsides?

Well, the main downside is that with this Golden Visa, you do NOT get a work permit too. This perhaps though, is not such a big issue, because with unemployment at current levels, you’d probably have a super hard time finding any work…!

The other downside, is that it’s only a Golden Visa, it does NOT give you a passport. If you want a passport, you have to live in the country for 7 years, and then do a few tests (e.g. learn Greek). The Greek passport itself is pretty good, in that you can travel freely to lots of countries (over 170 countries including the US without visas). You can also live and work anywhere in the EU (which is pretty cool too). 

Taxes

Well, as part of the Greek Golden Visa Program, your existing tax status does not change (unless you move to Greece in your entirety). The only thing that you can’t escape is an annual return of your investments in Greece (i.e. the property you bought), on which you’ll have to pay the property tax. On a €250k property, the tax will almost certainly be under €1,000 annually. 

How Simple Is The Whole Thing?

Well, it’s not that simple, but not too complicated either.

(Helpful eh?)

I’ll explain! You’ll need to purchase the property, so first you’ll have to find it and then you’ll have to pay for it. In order to pay for it, you’ll need a Greek tax number and a Greek bank account. If you don’t speak Greek and you try to do all this stuff, you’ll probably be fine, but there’ll be a lot of running around. So, it’s not THAT simple.

If you’ve got a little bit of extra money though (which you probably do if you want a Greek Golden Visa), then you can get it all done through local law firms who’ll undertake the lot, and it won’t cost that much (maybe add another 2% to your overall expenditure).

So What Can I Get For €250,000?

Oh, you can get a good deal. If you buy a flat from the 1980s, you can probably get close to 200 square metres for that money in most Athenian neighbourhoods (including several nice ones, walking distance from the sea). For those who want a newer flat, you can get something smaller with the same money (maybe 100 square meters, depending on exactly how new). If you are happy to be out of Athens, then you’ll almost certainly get more for your money (though not in Santorini or Mykonos!). You can do a search here if you like and see for yourself.

So How’s The Program Going?

Well, not as well as you might think. Whereas other countries (e.g. Portugal) get 10,000 people a year on this program, Greece only manages around 2,000. This despite Greece having the cheapest program. This could well be because the Greek Golden Visa program does not naturally lead on to a passport and there’s no alternative route to a passport (though of course, you can live in Greece for 7 years, learn Greek and then apply for a passport).

Portugal, Cyprus and a number of other EU “competitors”, all make more money from their programs. 

What? By Selling Passports?

Well, not in all cases, but certainly in a few. For example, in Cyprus, you can invest €2m (yes, that’s right, 2 mil) and get a proper passport. No need to learn Greek, do military service or anything like that. Just show up with your cash. You’ll have lifetime citizenship, which can then be passed on to your children too, all of whom can live and work anywhere in the EU. 

Having said that, you can buy a decent passport for much cheaper than that. For example, you can get a Dominica passport (not Dominican Republic) for US$100,000. OK, you don’t get to live and work in the EU, but still. You get visa free travel to a whole bunch of places including the UK and Germany. Nothing wrong with that…!

Conclusion

Well, it seems like, if you have lots of money, the world is happy to sort you out with whatever you may need. This post is mostly about the Greek Golden Visa program (hence the title!). However, you can buy residencies in most countries worldwide, including the more prestigious ones, such as the US ($1.8m), Canada (C$800k) and the UK (£2m) to name but a few. Of course, the more prestigious countries charge more and put more conditions (e.g. in the US, you must have a job creation investment), but still…

What does that mean for all us ordinary folk…? I’m not quite sure. Nothing if you’ve already got a decent passport. If not though, I guess we need to make more money…!

And with that, dear Readers, another post comes to an end! Hope you enjoyed it and are now thinking about what kind of passport would go with your new suit or handbag…!

All the best,
SJ

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