The Ultimate Guide To The Greek Golden Visa

People who want to start a new life in a different country are increasingly turning to residency by investment, or eventually citizenship by investment.

Consequently, there are numerous Golden Visa programs available to choose from. The Greek Golden Visa is one that stands out to us the most.

The Greek Golden Visa option should definitely be at the top of your list if you are an EU third-country national seeking a path to residency (or even citizenship) in the EU economic area, a non-EU retiree, self-employed, or digital nomad wanting to establish a home, and you have enough money to invest in Greek real estate.

It is one of the most family-friendly options for obtaining a Golden Visa in Europe, allowing you to bring your grandparents along with you after making the investment (typically only your spouse and unmarried children are eligible).

Even though this sounds great, you should keep in mind that while it is a great option for people who want to get EU citizenship, you won’t get there unless you really want to settle down in Greece with your family and become a full member of Greek society.

In any case, frankly, on the off chance that you like great climate, laidback way of life and delectable food, it will not be extremely difficult to come by yourself feeling at ease in Greece.

There are a few good reasons to think about it:

• There are no stay prerequisites to keep the residency.
• low qualifying investment threshold
• You can qualify by buying land anyplace in the country.
• During your residency, you have access to the entire Schengen and EU region.
• Excellent route to Greek citizenship, with the world’s eighth-strongest passport.
• Greece is a secure member of the European Union with a low cost of living, affordable real estate, and a favorable climate and standard of living for expats.
• Unlike many other Golden Visa programs, the OECD does not place the program on a blacklist.
• Program of tax incentives in which foreign residents pay a single rate of 7% for the first ten years of their stay.
• In contrast to other visa programs, there is a family benefit added. The Golden Visa allows you to bring not only your spouse and any children under the age of 21, but also your parents and in-law parents.

Negative aspects:

• If you don’t have citizenship, you can’t work in Greece or anywhere else in the EU.
• You can’t sell your venture following a set number of years, so you should keep up with the speculation to save the residency for all your loved ones. As long as your family members are no longer dependent on the Golden Visa for their residency status, you are free to sell your citizenship once you have it.
• To be eligible for citizenship, one must have resided in the country for seven years in a row for 183 days per year.

In general, applying for Greek citizenship through naturalization is difficult because you must pass a citizenship test, demonstrate strong language skills, and demonstrate strong affinity ties to the country in an interview with a special naturalization committee. If you want more information so please visit this site residence-greece.com.

The beginning of the Greek Golden Visa

The beginning of the Greek Golden Visa program can be traced back to 2013. Over 15,000 dependents and over 8,000 applicants have received Golden Visas since then.

The visa program truly required off in later years. In 2017, 958 Golden Visas were issued, 1,891 in 2018, and 3,504 in 2019. However, that number significantly decreased to 403 in 2020.

This was because of Coronavirus, as at that point, it was expected to visit Greece to begin the visa interaction. The laws have changed since the end of 2020, making it possible to complete the majority of the Golden Visa process—and in some cases, the entire process—from a distance. Your temporary residence card might arrive in the mail in this scenario.

The Golden Visa has resulted in investments worth approximately 2.6 billion euros in Greek real estate and funds, according to the Ministry of Migration and Asylum. The majority of applicants have come from the Middle East, China, Turkey, and Russia.

Prerequisites for acquiring the Brilliant Visa

Who is qualified for the Brilliant Visa?

The Greek Golden Visa is open to applicants from third countries. This means that after making an appropriate investment, anyone who is not already a citizen of an EU or EEA nation can apply.

You must be at least 18 years old, have a clean criminal record, and be of “good character” to be eligible. You must also have medical insurance for yourself and your family.

What are your residency and citizenship requirements?

You must make one of the following investments in order to be eligible for the Golden Visa and maintain Greek residency:

Put 250,000 euros into Greek property. This is by a wide margin the most famous course and the speculation can be made anyplace in the country. It is not necessary for it to be a high-density versus a low-density area

Contribute 400,000 euros in Greek government bonds, Greek real estate investment companies, Greek venture funds, and Greek private equity shares, or both as a capital contribution.

Sign a ten-year rent understanding for inn convenience or an outfitted traveler home, gave that the base expense of the rent is 250,000 euros.

Contrasted with other European Brilliant Visa programs, a large number of which search for a 500,000 euros interest in land, Greece is a substantially more reasonable choice for some individuals.

What’s additionally perfect about the Greek Brilliant Visa program, is that there are no stay necessities for the residency. You can live in Greece as long as you keep your investment.

In spite of the fact that there are no stay prerequisites for residency on the off chance that you are searching for a way to citizenship you want to have invested significant energy in Greece.

To fit the bill for Greek citizenship, you probably been an expense paying occupant in Greece for quite some time, with no less than 183 days out of every year spent in Greece. There is also a Greek citizenship test and a language proficiency test.

The application process is fairly straightforward, but you’ll need a lot of documentation from Greece as well as your home country.

Although you are free to carry out all of this on your own if you so choose, it is in your best interest to enlist the assistance of a lawyer or at least a person who is fluent in Greek to complete some of the steps.

Choose a property and investment option

Choose one of the previously mentioned investment options. For the capital commitment choice, the main prerequisite is that the venture should decidedly affect public turn of events and the economy.

There are no rules regarding the project’s location or particular sectors to consider. All things considered, the most well known businesses to browse in Greece are the travel industry, food, and drink, ICT, producing, coordinated factors, drugs, and energy.

Get a Greek bank account

You will need a Greek non-resident tax number (AFM) in order to open a Greek bank account and thus make the investment. To do this, you either need to do it face to face at a Greek duty office or somewhat through conceding legal authority to a neighborhood bookkeeper or attorney.

Kindly note that an ordinary public accountant isn’t sufficient, and you are expected to sign the legal authority before a Greek department.

If you are married, you will require a copy of your passport, birth certificate, and marriage certificate. In Greece, regardless of your income or residency, you are required to submit your tax return annually once you have an AFM tax number.

You can send the investment purchase amount from a foreign bank account without a Greek bank account; however, you must use a Greek bank account to pay your property tax and utility bills. Pireus Bank is currently the only option for opening a remote bank account in Greece.

Additionally, you will need to grant your legal representative power of attorney for this. Despite the fact that the majority of banks are still firmly based in brick-and-mortar locations, Covid appears to be causing things to shift, so it is likely that more options for remote banking will become available in the future.

Procure the speculation

To get this show on the road with the visa cycle, you should get a legal counselor to assist with practicing an expected level of effort for your benefit. In the event that everything is clear and you are prepared to push ahead, you should sign a promissory deal and buy understanding.

Submit your paperwork for the Golden Visa. Because the amount of paperwork required is so overwhelming, we strongly recommend working with a lawyer, especially if you can’t visit Greece. In order to obtain a Greek residency visa, you will need to submit the following general documentation:

The only part of the Greek Golden Visa process that can’t be done remotely is the biometrics, which must be provided for all family members applicants.

Copy of all passports for you and your family members. Signed insurance contract covering all hospitalization and medical care costs. Certificate of criminal record. Certificate of medical care.

Four recent color passport photos. Proof of funds. A 500 euro fee paid through e-paravolo, the Greek online platform for paying administrative fees.

A 16 euro processing fee, also paid through e-para After you have submitted your application and received your blue papers (temporary residency permit), you will have up to a year to complete them in Greece with your family. After this, you can at long last apply for extremely durable home.

If you want your family to move with you, you can also submit their documents at the same time. You can, however, pursue their visas at a later stage if you so choose, and it is not necessary.