Think You Can’t Afford a Golden Visa? Think Again

A client of mine through my Global Citizen service, let’s call her Caroline, really wanted to live in Europe. But she was worried she didn’t have enough money to do it.

People who consult with me generally fall into two camps. One is folks looking to diversify outside the US as a strategy to reduce future financial risk. The other is people like Caroline, who know where they want to go, but don’t know how to achieve it.

My consultations with Caroline came as countries like Portugal, Spain, and Greece were changing up their “Golden Visa” policies. Golden Visas are long-term residence permits based on investment. Typically, they allow you to come and go as you please with no time-in-country requirement. They’re ideal for people planning to move abroad eventually, but not just yet. As a bonus, because you don’t have to spend six months or more in the country to keep the visa, you don’t trigger tax residency.

Caroline had been offered the chance to invest in a Greek housing development that would have got her a Golden Visa there. But she hesitated, worrying (correctly) that she didn’t know enough about the company behind it. Then the Greek government raised the price of a Golden Visa by residential investment to €800,000 ($890,000), well beyond her means.

So, when she came to me, she feared she had missed the boat. Fortunately, thanks to my connections, I was able to help her on her way to achieve her dreams.

It turns out that there are, in fact, residential investment opportunities in Greece at the old price of €250,000. One is to buy a property in a heritage neighborhood and renovate it into a proper residence. But there’s another, lesser-known route… one that only people in the know can access.

Fortunately, I’m one of those people. My contacts in Greece told me about a unique opportunity they had created by “pre-investing” in a number of residential properties before the changes to the minimum investments. All of these properties qualified for Golden Visas, and the company had created a unique legal pathway to make those visas available to investors at the old price.

Now, I’m always skeptical of things like this. There are a lot of chancers out there who will promise the world, but who can’t deliver. They’ll take your money and leave you with nothing to show for it.

But I’ve cultivated connections in the world’s most popular destinations. I know people who know things… real opportunities that don’t make it into the headlines.

When I told Caroline about this opportunity, she was thrilled. “It’s as if you managed to turn the clock back for me,” she said.

But wait, I said, there’s more.

Caroline was also interested in Portugal. But under rules enacted a year ago, the minimum feasible investment to get a Golden Visa there had risen to €500,000. Or so it seemed.

Again, my connections in Portugal pointed out that there are in fact investment opportunities in that country that can lead to a Golden Visa for much less than that. You just need to know how to do it… and especially, who to talk to.

My consultation with Caroline solved one problem for her, but created another. She breathed a sigh of relief when she learned that affordable pathways to European residence-by-investment still exist.

But now she had another problem…

Should she choose the sunny Atlantic coastline of Portugal… or the glorious islands of Greece?