A recent stiffening of conditions for granting “Golden Visas” by the Greek state apparently hasn’t dented interest by third country nationals seeking to purchase property – or make investments – in the east Mediterranean country in return for a temporary residence permit.
In pointing to burgeoning housing shortage in some urban areas, especially the Athens-Piraeus agglomeration, the Greek government earlier this year increased the minimum “Golden Visa” real estate outlay to a pricey 800,000 euros for Athens, Thessaloniki, the islands of Mykonos and Santorini, and in general, isles with a permanent population of more than 3,100 residents.
The previous minimum figure was 250,000 euros.
The minimum property purchase rate for elsewhere in the country was set at 400,000 euros.
Another condition that applies as of March 2024 is that the property linked with a Golden Visa” must exceed 120 square meters in size.
One category of properties list at the 250,000-euro threshold are units in preserved buildings undergoing restoration and spaces being transformed into dwellings – i.e. industrial or warehouse lofts.
According to figures released this month by the relevant migration ministry, “Golden Visa” applications in October 2024 were up by 12% compared to the same month of 2023 – 12,577 to 11,229 in absolute terms. Once again, PRC nationals were the top applications, with more than half, 51.8%. Applicants from Turkey were far behind in second place, 8.9%, followed by citizens of Lebanon, the UK and Iran.
Chinese citizens also filed more than half renewals and re-issues of such temporary residence permits (54%), followed by citizens from Russia, Turkey, Iran and Egypt, all below 10% of the total.
Another significant figure is the fact that new applications over the first 10 months of 2024 reach 5,890, with throughout 2023 the figure was 4,772. Overall, nearly 11,000 applications for a first-ever “Golden Visa” are pending, along with 2,953 applications for renewals.
To date, nearly 29,400 “Golden Visas” have been issued by Greek authorities, a figure that translates into a whopping 7.5 billion euros in property sales in the country.
According to international analysts, the Greek program’s “pros” include the prospect of more than one owner per property, meaning multiple residence visas. Another plus is the fact that an owner doesn’t not have to designate the property in Greece as the “primary residence”, allowing the owner or owners to live elsewhere and exploit the property as they wish, such as listings on short-term lease platforms.
The third country investor can, after remaining for six months in Greece, become a tax resident in the country by paying a one-off 100,000-euro payment, regardless of his income and the place where the income is generated (outside of Greece).
Another benefit is that a “Golden Visa” recipient in Greece can travel freely within the Schengen zone and can repeatedly renew the visa as long as the property is held.
According to Montreal-based financial adviser Arton Capital, the most popular “Golden Visa” destinations in the world are Greece, Hungary, Italy, Antigua and the UAE.
