Spain dey plan to scrap dia so-called “golden visa” scheme, wey dey grant fast-tracked residency to non-European Union nationals in return for large financial investments, and dem go join a growing number of kontris wey dey get rid of di scheme.
Pedro Sánchez tok say di move aim “to guarantee say housing and not merely di subject of business speculation,” as dem add say “di housing market bin dey under enormous pressure and say finding affordable housing bin dey become impossible for pipo wey live and work in places on demand.”
Many investors see dis scheme as opportunity to start a fresh life somwia new, or escape political, social or economic risks for dia kontri of origin. But anti-corruption campaigners and politicians warn of criminals abusing di system for dia own interests and of rising real estate prices wey dey make di host kontri no dey affordable for locals.
Wetin be ‘golden visa’ or ‘golden passport’?
“Golden visa” schemes offer wealthy foreigners di right to live and work for anoda kontri, in exchange for a large investment.
Di amount wey dey required to obtain a golden visa range from investing $100,000 in real estate for Panama, up to $21.4m (€20m) in di form of a deposit wit a financial institution wey base for Luxembourg.
And den “golden passport” schemes dey – through dis, wealthy individuals gain all di rights and freedoms of citizens, including di right to work and vote for di kontri dem apply to.
Wia be di popular destinations?
E get around 60 kontris wey dey offer golden visas, Dr Kristin Surak tok. Im be Associate Professor of Political Sociology for di London School of Economics and di author of di book The Golden Passport: Global Mobility for Millionaires.
Around 20 kontris enable citizenship wit legal provisions by investment and half of dose kontris get more dan 100 applicants per year, she add.
“Turkey na di biggest seller of citizenship,” Dr Surak tell di BBC. Applications for Turkey golden passport scheme constitute around half of global annual citizenship sales, according to Dr Surak research for di field.
She tok say na di global south dey offer di largest residency by investment programmes and na Malaysia and di United Arab Emirates be popular destinations.
Saint Kitts, Dominica, Vanuatu, Grenada, Antigua and Malta also dey among di main issuers of golden passports.
Di European Union (EU) na one of di most desired destinations for golden visa seekers as di right to live and work for EU member kontri allow visa-free travel across di Schengen Area states.
E bin get 14 kontris for di EU wey dey offer golden visas for 2020. Greece, Latvia, Portugal and Spain bin account for more dan 70% of approvals for di bloc. But many of dis kontris don move to restrict di schemes.
For 2022, di UK goment bin end a scheme wey allow wealthy foreign nationals to settle for di kontri if dem bring assets wit dem.
Di following year, Ireland bin scrap dia golden visa, while Portugal revise dia own version of am, and dem no longer allow residency in exchange for property purchases but dem continue wit di practice through capital transfer in funds and investment for research activities.
Why dem dey in demand?
Golden visas and passports dey popular among wealthy individuals, wey dey look for business opportunities, lifestyle, education, or health services.
“Wit all di uncertainty for di world today, di need for a second residency or passport neva dey so strong pass as e be now,” Lizzie Edwards tell di BBC Turkish for one interview last year. She be marketing manager for one UK-based company, La Vida Golden Visas.
“Investor incentives dey vary, but di typical reasons for applying include security purposes, to expand visa-free travel and enhance global opportunities including education and business prospects.”
How you fit get golden visa or passport?
Di regulations depend on di destination and di type of investment. For example, Turkey dey offers golden passport for foreigners wey buy real estate worth $400,000 or more.
Some oda kontris like Luxembourg dey offer various paths to golden visa. Options vary from investing at least $536,000 (€500,000) into existing Luxembourg company, to depositing $21.4m (€20m) into a financial institution.
Many kontris also accept donations or investment in research and development activities.
One of di most significant motivations for goments to run dis schemes na to enable transfer of capital into di kontri and to boost di economy.
According to one research paper by Dr Kristin Surak and Yusuke Tsuzuki, published inside di Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 14.4% of Portugal direct foreign investments come through golden visas between 2013 and 2019. Di ratio na 12.2% percent for Latvia and ova 7% for Greece.
Why di schemes dey controversial?
Campaigners don warn about two main concerns ova dis schemes: corruption and say dem go fuel crisis for locals.
Transparency International wey be global NGO wey dey work against corruption for more dan 100 kontris warn say di scheme for di EU “no be about genuine investment or migration but about serving corrupt interests”.
According to Eka Rostomashvili, one campaigner for Transparency International, di kontris wey dey run such programmes get some due diligence measure in place, but dem no dey always work as dem suppose work.
“Publicised cases don dey of pipo wey don run from authorities – dem apply for golden visas or passports right bifor or afta dia investment in corruption or fraud scheme become known,” she tell di BBC.
“Evidently, dem see am as a sort of insurance policy against law enforcement action [for dia own countries].”
E get criticism wey various EU bodis bin raise as well. For 2022, di EU Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs bin vote for ban of golden passports and ask third kontris wit visa-free access to EU to end dia golden passport schemes.
Dr Kristin Surak tok say although e dey possible to launder moni wit dis scheme, “easier and cheaper alternatives dey too.”
“You fit do di same wit student visa, e dey probably much cheaper. Same tin wit business visa. No be concern wey dey unique to dis programmes.”
One Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project investigation wey dem publish for October 2023 reveal say one former Libyan colonel wey dem accuse of war crimes and one Turkish businessman wey dem give prison sentence for Turkey bin dey able to buy Dominican passports through dis schemes.
And for 2023, a review of golden visas for di UK, wey di Home Office bin commission, find say a “small number of foreign investors bin dey potentially at high risk” of having links to corruption or organised crime.
Di second main concern wey campaigners highlight na di inflated housing prices. Although various kontris dey offer a range of investments, di majority of applicants opt to buy real estate, wey dey drive property prices up.
But Dr Kristin Surak research suggest say dis get limited effect for most kontris. For example, Spain dey accept around 2,000 applications per year and she highlight say for a kontri of 48 million pipo, 2,000 real estate transactions dey negligible.
But di real estate purchases dey often concentrated for areas wey dey desirable, and certain towns and neighbourhoods wey dey popular among foreigners fit dey far more affected.
Di southern Turkish coastal city of Antalya na one of dem. Antalya, traditionally popular among Russian and Ukrainian tourists don become a permanent refuge afta di start of di war for Ukraine. Locals complain say di increase in demand for real estate bin drive di prices up.
