In the past two decades, several countries have introduced what is called the ‘Golden Visa’ Program. The Golden Visa is a long-term residency visa that seeks to attract high-net-worth individuals (HNIs) to invest. Some of the European nations that introduced the Golden Visa include Spain, Portugal, Greece, and Malta. Ireland had also introduced a Golden Visa in 2012. Spain, Hungary, Greece, and Portugal had started offering Golden Visas over a decade ago.
Among non-Western countries, the Golden Visa of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which has sought to attract not just investors but individuals with specific skills as well as researchers, has emerged as an attractive option for individuals from several nations. The Gulf nation had introduced the Golden Visa program in 2019. It has expanded the eligibility for the Golden Visa to also include categories like digital creators.
In the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, several HNIs from developing countries, such as India, have been showing greater interest in Golden Visa opportunities overseas.
US Gold Card
The US under Donald Trump has introduced its own version of the Golden Visa, referred to as the ‘Gold Card,’ removing the earlier EB5 visa. Those interested in the Gold Card need to invest $5 million. While commenting on the Gold Card, the US President, Donald Trump, had said:
“It’s a road to citizenship for people and essentially people of wealth or people of great talent, where people of wealth pay for those people of talent to get in.”
The waitlist for the US Gold Card is now open, and a website has been set up for the same purpose. While commenting earlier this month on the US Gold Card, the US President said:
“Thousands have been calling and asking how they can sign up to ride a beautiful road in gaining access to the greatest country and market anywhere in the world,” referring to the United States.
Vietnam has also announced that it would be starting a 10-year Golden Visa program soon. Like the UAE, the ASEAN country is not restricting the Golden Visa program to investors but also includes skilled professionals and tourists.
Other ASEAN nations—Indonesia and Thailand—do not offer a Golden Visa per se but retirement visas, which are becoming increasingly popular.
Recent developments pertaining to Golden Visas
While in Europe, countries have either made the requirements for a Golden Visa more stringent, or some, like Spain and Malta, have ended their Golden Visa programs due to growing domestic opposition arising out of housing challenges. If one were to look at the case of Portugal, there was a staggering 72 percent rise in applications, and it has been attempting to make its Golden Visa Program.
New Zealand has recently made important revisions that could make its Golden Visa—referred to as the ‘Active Investor Plus Visa’—more attractive. These include the introduction of two categories (growth and balanced). For the Growth category, the minimum investment required has been reduced to $3 million. The minimum residency requirement for the Growth Category has been reduced to 21 days. The English language proficiency requirement has been removed for New Zealand’s Golden Visa Program.
Conclusion:
There are several interesting aspects of the Golden Visa. While at the peak of globalization, several countries—including those like the US, Canada, and Australia—had eased out their immigration policies, and getting residency and citizenship was far simpler than it has been since a decade ago. Today, the ‘Golden Visa,’ especially the one introduced by the UAE and possibly in the future by countries like Vietnam, is attractive for professionals who want overseas experience. Countries are likely to compete with each other to ensure that their program is more competitive.
