London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Sep 12, 2025

Chinese investors, beware: EU targets ‘golden visas’

Chinese investors, beware: EU targets ‘golden visas’

Such passports, which some nations issue in return for investments, are popular because they effectively give freedom of movement among all EU member states.

For years, wealthy Chinese have made investments in Cyprus and Malta in exchange for European Union passports – so-called golden visa transactions. Now, Brussels wants to end the practice.

The call to stop the policy came from the very top of the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, when President Ursula von der Leyen voiced it during her first state-of-the-union speech earlier this month.

“European values are not for sale,” she said.

“The breaches of the rule of law cannot be tolerated. I will continue to defend it and the integrity of our European institutions – be it about the primacy of European law, the freedom of the press, the independence of the judiciary or the sale of golden passports,” she said.


European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has declared the EU’s opposition to “golden visa” programmes.


The commission is even considering the possibility of taking EU member states that issue such visas to court, as it applies political pressure on those countries to stop the practice.

A golden visa essentially grants its holder full EU citizenship. The passports are very attractive given the freedom of movement among the nations in the union, since holders of Chinese passports do not enjoy visa-free access to most countries.

In the decade ending 2018, the EU welcomed more than 6,000 new citizens and close to 100,000 new residents through golden visas schemes, according to Transparency International, a German NGO.

Currently, four EU members offer passports and 12 trade residency rights through golden visa programmes. The two lists overlap, with three countries – Bulgaria, Cyprus and Malta – having both schemes. Cyprus and Malta seem to be the most popular with Chinese investors.

“Due to the nature of EU citizenship, such schemes have implications for the union as a whole. The commission is looking at compliance with EU law, and will introduce infringement proceedings, if judged necessary,” a commission spokeswoman said.

“The commission has frequently raised its concerns about investor citizenship schemes and certain inherent risks, in particular as regards security, money laundering, tax evasion and corruption.”

Didier Reynders, the European commissioner for justice, had been in contact with three member states to raise these concerns directly, the spokeswoman said.


European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders has contacted three member states to discuss the EU’s concerns about their investor citizenship programmes.


The EU has been under pressure to act after an investigation by Al Jazeera last month found that dozens of people who obtained golden visa passports from Cyprus between 2017 and 2019 would have otherwise been rejected as “high risk” according to the country’s rules.

Al Jazeera’s report included naming several Chinese businesspeople who had such passports and concurrently served as advisers to the Communist Party in the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference.

Despite the EU’s hardening rhetoric, Chinese immigration agents appeared unfazed, with multiple websites continuing to promote this route to EU citizenship.

“The European Union is a loose federation, and the EU [commission] president really can’t speak for the member state governments,” said Crystal Tan, a manager at Cheuk Yuet Migration Consulting Services, an agent in Guangzhou.

Tan said she and other agents did not believe the golden passport programme would end.

“As we can see, such programmes are bringing huge revenues to Cyprus, Malta, Portugal and even Spain,” she said.

The Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus requires an investment of at least €2.2 million (US$2.6 million) but with no obligation to live there; within six months investors can have an EU passport with the right to live and work in all 27 states in the bloc – and visa-free access to more than 170 nations around the world.

In Malta, investors can receive a passport if they make a donation of €650,000 to a government national development fund, invest €150,000 in government-approved stocks or bonds, purchase real estate for a minimum of €350,000 and commit to a residence for at least five years.

Non-EU citizens can likewise be given a route to Portuguese residency if they spend at least €500,000 on a property – or lower price thresholds for less dense areas or areas marked for redevelopment.

The EU cannot ban such programmes by its member states, but is looking at ways to make these schemes illegal, including through the courts. And while there is no specific timeline, von der Leyen’s term lasts five years.

If EU countries did close their programmes, Tan said Chinese investors would have other options.

“Even if some member countries respond to the EU president by ending the golden passport programmes, rich people will just look at other places – for instance, Saint Kitts and Mexico are providing similar programmes.

“For Chinese clients, as long as the new passport can provide travel convenience or help to move wealth abroad, the demand will always be there,” Tan said.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
Pig Heads Left Outside Multiple Paris Mosques in Outrage-Inducing Acts
Nvidia’s ‘Wow’ Factor Is Fading. The AI chip giant used to beat Wall Street expectations for earnings by a substantial margin. That trajectory is coming down to earth.
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
On the Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s Death: Prince Harry Returns to Britain
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Murdoch Family Finalises $3.3 Billion Succession Pact, Ensuring Eldest Son’s Leadership
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Court Staff Cover Up Banksy Image of Judge Beating a Protester
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
Elon Musk Poised to Become First Trillionaire Under Ambitious Tesla Pay Plan
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
Burning the Minister’s House Helped Protesters to Win Justice: Prabowo Fires Finance Minister in Wake of Indonesia Protests
Brazil Braces for Fallout from Bolsonaro Trial by corrupted judge
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
Nearly 40 Years Later: Nike Changes the Legendary Slogan Just Do It
Generations Born After 1939 Unlikely to Reach Age One Hundred, New Study Finds
End to a four-year manhunt in New Zealand: the father who abducted his children to the forests was killed, the three siblings were found
Germany Suspends Debt Rules, Funnels €500 Billion Toward Military and Proxy War Strategy
EU Prepares for War
BMW Eyes Growth in China with New All‑Electric Neue Klasse Lineup
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
US Justice Department Launches Criminal Mortgage-Fraud Probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
US and Taiwanese Defence Officials Held Secret Talks in Alaska
Report: Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission in North Korea Ordered by Trump in 2019 Ended in Failure
×