How Can Investing In Spain Earn You Residency and Eventual Citizenship

How Can Investing In Spain Earn You Residency and Eventual Citizenship

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Looking for a Plan B in one of the world’s most desirable locations?  For those with the means to invest in a Spanish Golden Visa, the benefits of EU residency can be obtained here with ease.

 Find out how you can benefit below...

How Can Investing In Spain Earn You Residency and Eventual Citizenship

Offering world-class infrastructure, sumptuous cuisine and a leisurely pace of living, Spain is one of the world’s most sought after second home and retirement destinations – and with good reason. The Iberian country truly offers it all.  Established in September 2013, the Spanish Golden Visa has long been one of the most popular programs of its kind in Europe. While it has historically been very popular among Russians and Chinese nationals, the US has cropped up in the Top 5 source countries for the program since 2019.

Is a Golden Visa right for you?

The one key thing you get with a Golden Visa -- apart from an investment property -- is peace of mind: the knowledge that you’ll always have another place to live in, should something go very wrong in your home country. (And you can include your spouse and dependent minor kids in your application.)

The other is flexibility. Unlike with a host of other residency visas, you don’t have to spend significant amounts of time in Spain in order to maintain your residency status. In fact, Spain doesn’t enforce any minimum annual stays, whereas in Portugal, you’re in for a minimum average of one week per year.

It is important to note that most people investing in Golden Visas are looking for a “paper residency” as a back-up plan; they’re NOT looking to emigrate; at least not initially.

But not everyone needs a Golden Visa. If you’re ready to up sticks and go settle in Spain, you can get a Non-Lucrative Visawithout investing in property.

Similarly, you can get a D7 Visa in Portugal,, again without parting with several hundred thousand euro.

Yet, if you’ve got the means to invest, and your business or lifestyle requires flexibility, then a Golden Visa can make a lot of sense.

As an SMC Member, you’ll learn exactly how to:

Obtain a second residency or passport -- potentially for next to nothing

Legally and significantly reduce your taxes

Pass 100% of your estate to your family -- tax-free

Create a firewall around your assets -- and especially your home...

And much, much more!

Spain vs Portugal: Which Golden Visa should you choose?

There are alternatives to the Spanish Golden Visa, and they are worth considering.

For the vast majority of applicants, a property investment makes the most sense, although a growing number of applicants are opting for fund-based investments too.

COST: Price-wise, Spain’s Golden Visa is the most expensive in continental Europe in terms of its property based option. The minimum eligible investment amount is €500,000, whereas you can get away for as little as €280,000 in Portugal, and €250,000 in Greece. (You can find out more about the different investment options for the program here.)

PATH TO CITIZENSHIP: If you’re looking at a Golden Visa with a view to get a second passport, then Portugal wins hands-down. It offers a path to citizenship after only 5 years, whereas in Greece, it takes 7 years, and at least 10 years in Spain

Moreover, Greece is known to give citizenship applicants a very hard time, especially if you are not of Greek origin.  And in Spain, unlike in Portugal, you can’t just occasionally pop in for a few months at a time if you want to apply for Spanish citizenship. You’ll need to be present in Spain for an average of ten months per year throughout your residency period in order to qualify.

Unless you’re originally from a former Spanish colony, that is. Citizens of all of Spanish-speaking Latin America, as well as Brazil, the Philippines and Puerto Rico, can naturalize in Spain after holding residency for only two years.

  And if you’re originally from one of the above-mentioned countries, you also won’t have to give up your native nationality and passport in order to become a Spanish citizen. (Everyone else is required to give up their native citizenship in order to become Spanish, as the country does not recognize dual citizenship.)

TAXATION: Spain is not very tax-friendly. Once you start spending more than six months per year there, the Spanish revenue service will likely view you as a tax resident.

As an example: On an annual salary of €60,000 (~$70,000) per year, which is fairly moderate by North American standards, you will pay the top tax rate of 45%.

But even there you can take advantage of the Beckham law, whereby for five years, a new resident will not be considered a tax resident in Spain even if they live there full time. But for this to work, you need to be employed by a Spanish company that you do not control.

And if you come to Spain under the Non-lucrative residency (the “pensioners visa”, with no right to work in Spain) and keep paying your taxes elsewhere, Spanish tax authorities generally won’t bother you.

On the other hand, Portugal has sweetened the deal in terms of taxation. While it is far from being a tax haven, its Non-Habitual Residency (NHR) Program is open to any new residents, offering extremely attractive tax benefits. With the NHR regime, most of your worldwide income can be tax free for 10 years.

But given the appeal of the Spanish national brand, taxation tends to be a secondary consideration for most people acquiring citizenship there...

Key Program Differences Between Portugal And Spain

What are the key Golden Visa requirements for Spain?

While the below list is not exhaustive, the following core criteria apply as of February 2021. You have to:

Be a non-EU national over the age of 18 at the time you apply.

Have a clean criminal record in your country of residency.

Make an eligible investment of no less than €500,000, and this investment cannot be financed, either in part or in full.

Maintain your Golden Visa investment for the entire period of your legal residency in Spain.

Ready to apply for your Golden Visa? Then don’t delay, because...

Brussels does not like Golden Visa and Citizenship By Investment programs one bit, and are actively seeking to shut them down. In fact, two of these programs, one in Cyprus and the other in Moldova, were recently shuttered due to pressure from the EU government.

Portugal has also just confirmed some significant changes to their Golden Visa Program, so it is clear that these programs may not be around forever.

So, if you’re ready to activate this key part of your own Plan B, now is the time to take action to avoid missing out.

Yours in Freedom, Team Simon Black, Founder, SovereignMan.com