Buying Citizenship: The Rise Of ‘Golden Passports’ And ‘GoldenVisas’ Across 60 Countries

Officially titled Investor Citizenship or Residence Schemes, this system allows individuals to purchase the right to live in a country, whether through a real estate project or a donation to the host country’s government. Some golden passport and visa holders never even visit the country they’ve invested in.

A research study by Dr. Kristin Surak found that these systems are more popular than many realize. Across the globe, over 60 countries have adopted the program. The cost of golden visas and passports varies from five to six figures. 

Thailand’s “elite visa” program which offers a “Privilege Entry Visa” valid for up to 20 years, demands a minimum application fee of about $19,000. In contrast, acquiring citizenship in North Macedonia, as reported by Henley & Partners, necessitates a €200,000 investment in a private investment fund or a €400,000 investment in “new facilities,” excluding restaurants or shopping centers, which must generate at least 10 local jobs.

In the European Union, these schemes are present in half of the member states, with more than 130,000 people having obtained citizenship or residence through them, contributing a substantial €21.4 billion to the EU in the process.

Golden passports hold greater appeal than golden visas due to the enhanced rights they confer. Approximately 12 countries worldwide offer such schemes, primarily smaller island nations like Saint Kitts and Nevis in the West Indies, as well as Malta in Europe.

Securing citizenship in an EU member state, such as Malta, also means obtaining citizenship rights across all 27 EU countries. To qualify for residency by investment, a minimum of €98,000 must be contributed to a government-approved fund, and residence in Malta is not mandatory to maintain participation in the permanent residence program.

For citizenship by investment, you can pursue the one-year route by investing €750,000 in a government-approved national development fund. Alternatively, a three-year program is available with a minimum investment of €600,000 in the same fund.

Dr. Surak explained, “What people want is not so much the benefits that citizenship gets them in that country, but the rights that citizenship secures in third states.” 

Once citizenship is obtained, individuals can work, travel, and study freely within the entire European Union. “These schemes are about gaining mobility and options in an uncertain world, where there are huge inequalities between citizenships,” says Dr Surak.

China leads as the top market for these schemes, followed by the Middle East and Russia. For countries offering citizenship and residence, these programs can significantly impact their GDP. 

In Cyprus, the program has accounted for nearly 5 percent of GDP in recent years.

Dr Sunak said, “It has been credited with bailing out the real estate sector after 2008 in Cyprus.”

Dr. Surak traveled to over 16 countries and interviewed local citizens, government officials, and intermediaries involved in the buying and selling of golden passports and visas to gather their opinions on the schemes.

“Many people I’ve spoken to in the Global South separate citizenship from nationality quite clearly. For them, it’s just a pragmatic insurance option in a difficult world,” says Dr. Surak.

In the study, Dr. Sunak notes that financial “injections are one-off,” and new residents are not expected to continue contributing to economic growth as migrant workers might. They are just required to maintain the original investment, which indicates “a short-term calculation by states” to fill economic gaps, rather than a long-term focus on crafting a middle-class national identity.

Dr. Surak highlights the political challenges associated with citizenship, as it can be closely linked to identity. “There are also political and ethical questions surrounding possibilities for corruption or buying new identities,” she says.

In the twentieth century, there was a shift from screening immigrants based on racial origins to screening based on human capital contributions, explains Dr. Surak in the study’s conclusion. The spread of golden passport and visa schemes in the twenty-first century introduces a new dimension: “screening new residents based solely on economic capital contributions.”