This month, Greek president Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced that the minimum spend requirement for the Greece golden visa will be raised in selected areas to €800,000.
Get your golden visa update.
The areas that will see the increased limit will most likely be the highly sought-after areas of Athens, Mykonos, Santorini and Thessaloniki. Last August, the minimum spend in these areas was increased from €250,000 to €500,000. The areas selected for increase have highly pressurised rental markets. It is thought that raising the minimum spend will provide a further boost for the economy. Additionally, the government might make those who buy properties through the scheme agree to rent out their homes for a long period of time.
In areas where is not residential pressure, the minimum spend to qualify for a golden visa will remain at €250,000.
In response to the 2023 decision to increase the minimum spend caused an influx of overseas buyers. 4,231 new licences were issued last year, almost double the number issued the previous year.
Since its introduction in 2014, the Greece golden visa has resulted in more than €5.54 million into the country’s real estate. Furthermore, it is possibly more, as some property purchases will have taken place since August 2023. According to Schengenvisainfo, the number of permits issued or soon to be stands at 22,298.
Don’t spend any money on your move abroad until you’ve read The Currency Guide to Emigration, free to download.
Many European countries have a version of a golden visa. However, they have been criticised by the EU for enabling the wealthy to buy the right to residency and as a potential security risk. Last year, Portugal changed the rules of their golden visa program, so that applicants could no longer apply via a real estate investment. Now, they can only qualify through capital transfer, scientific research and job creation.
Find homes in Greece via our property portal.
Requirements:
The golden visa is a residency through investment scheme, for third-country nationals. There are multiple options for this investment to be made, such as a capital investment into a Greek company or a deposit into a Greek bank of €400,000. However, the most popular route remains through purchasing a property. Either a home worth €500,000 in a desired area (potentially soon to be €800,000) or just €250,000, if you are interested in a less sought-after area.
In addition to the investment, you’ll need to be aged over 18, have no criminal record and have health insurance in Greece.
Benefits:
- Since Brexit, without a visa, British second homeowners are only able to spend 90 days out of every rolling 180 in the Schengen Area. One of the key benefits is visa-free travel throughout the Schengen Area.
- The right to live, work and study there.
- Plus, you can include your spouse and dependents under the age of 21 on the visa.
- There’s no minimum stay requirement for this visa. If you can only stay for summer holidays and a long Easter weekend – or less, or more – it doesn’t impact your visa.
- You are free to rent out the property.
- If you fall head over heels for Greece, you can apply for citizenship after seven years of residency.
What does this mean for your property plans?
As of now, this is just an announcement. However, it might feel like the encouragement you need to get cracking on your property plans, especially if €800,000 puts out of budget.
Alternatively, if this makes you a little less sure of Mykonos or Athens, why not look into an area that you hadn’t considered before? Even if the change goes ahead, plenty of gorgeous areas still have (and will continue to have) a minimum spend requirement of €250,000 for a golden visa. Perhaps, your dream home lies in Kefalonia, Corfu or Crete.
Get legal guidance and advice from our of our trusted solicitors.
Other articles on this topic:
