Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa July 2014 | Page 54

EUROPE

BY HILARY DINGWALL-FORDYCE

European “Golden Visas”
More than just real estate investment, a residency

A

s an additional means of attracting foreign
investment, several European countries
have introduced residency visas for non-EU
investors in return for spending a required minimum
amount on the purchase of real estate. These visas
have become known as “Golden Visas”. With a number
of countries such as Spain, Portugal, Cyprus and
Greece now “competing” for your property purchase
in exchange for a residency visa, it is important to
understand the benefits and risks of each in order to
make an informed choice.

Spain
Spain is by far the largest economy in Europe offering
residency visas for investment. Its GDP is twice that
of Portugal, Ireland, Cyprus and Greece combined.
For a family seeking permanent residence, Spain offers
excellent infrastructure, including educational facilities
and an abundance of English-speaking international
schools that can facilitate entry into universities
in the UK and other European countries. It is also
geographically well placed in Europe and has excellent
air, rail and road travel connections. Property prices in
Spain are still at pre-crisis levels and therefore represent
a particularly interesting proposition to investors.
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July 2014 SA Real Estate Investor

Finally approved in October 2013, the long-awaited
legislation for the Spanish “Golden Visa” requires
a minimum property investment of 500 000 euros.
According to El Mundo, the experts agree that the
threshold of 500 000 euros is the correct amount for
a minimum investment as “Spain is seeking quality
investors” and “with an investor who has 500 000 euros
in cash, there is the security that, in the future, they
will not make the economy suffer”.
The visa, which the government will issue within 10
days once all the normal visa requirements are met as
well, is granted to all immediate family members and
is valid for one year. Re-application is required after
three years and five years, at which point permanent
residency can be applied for.
One of the benefits of the Spanish “Golden Visa”
is that investors can buy more than one property
to make up the 500 000 euros limit. The visa is
also very f lexible and there is no minimum stay,
so investors can live in Spain, or elsewhere, with
the freedom to travel throughout the European
Schengen visa zone. Hence investors can structure
their tax residency accordingly.
www.reimag.co.za