By Andre Bothma, Founder of D7Visa.com
Gutted that Trump won, and looking to give your family more options outside of the United States? Then this article was written just for you…
The world is increasingly an uncertain, polarized place.
And today, more than ever, rational people are seeking to give themselves and their families more options in terms of where they can live.
Look… I get it.
For a while, between the pandemic and the 2024 elections in South Africa, the country’s political life was pretty damn toxic.
That’s why I opted to get residency in Portugal…
Where I’m just another anonymous guy.
Where I am not the scapegoat in practically every political narrative.
And now, as a result, I get to go decompress in Portugal for longer than 3 out of every 6 months, whilst still enjoying the benefits of living in SA for part of the year. (And it’s a stellar arrangement.)
Moreover, no matter what “killer bug” they discover next, no matter how long any future lockdown may last, I now have the legal right to enter the EU without the need to get a visa – no ifs or buts.
But back to YOUR current problem – getting optionality locked in, and doing so ASAP:
For American folks of European descent, getting ancestral citizenship – and a second powerful passport – is an excellent option (although it tends to take several years).
But for people who didn’t win the birthright lottery, Residency and Citizenship By Investment Programs offer a viable – if significantly more expensive – alternative.
(Bonus: This route is typically a LOT faster than getting citizenship by descent.)
The 5 Caribbean Citizenship By Investment Programs are an obvious go-to for North Americans; as are the Golden Visa programs of Europe.
But there are many, many more interesting options to consider (more on this below).
Before we get into those, however, let’s recap all of the mainstream options:
8 Mainstream Citizenship By Investment (CBI) Programs For 2025
- Antigua and Barbuda: Donations priced from $230,000, properties priced from $300,000. A firm favorite amongst Americans these days (and especially those not seeking to renounce their US citizenship).
- Dominica: Cheapest Caribbean option, with both the minimum donation and real estate options priced from $200,000. Hefty fees on the real estate option though (starting from $75,000).
- Malta: The European flagship CBI program, with the cheapest option – a combination of a donation and property rental – priced from around €690,000. Meeting the program’s stringent source of funds related requirements can be very challenging if you’ve made your money in crypto over a long period of time.
- St Kitts and Nevis: The Grandfather of Caribbean CBI programs (and also the most expensive in the region). Donations priced from $250,000, and eligible real estate from $325,000.
- St Lucia: A decent middle-of-the-road option. Real estate priced from $300,000. Donations from $240.000.
- Turkey: A highly livable country with an “uncorrelated” passport. Properties priced from $400,000 – though a price increase to $600,000 is imminent in or by 2025…
- Vanuatu: A go-to for Russians and Belarus nationals – as well as applicants hailing from greylisted jurisdictions, and who wish to access international banking with greater ease. The effective donation amount for the Capital Investment Immigration Plan (CIIP) option is priced from around $115,000 for a single applicant after 5 years.
(The minimum up-front cost is $165,5000, however $50,000 is recoupable after 5 years. You can also obtain Permanent Residency here, for a family of 4, for under $20,000. - Egypt: Another uncorrelated option with excellent, value-for-money real estate options priced from $300,000. But given the conflict in the broader region, however, few Westerners are choosing this option (for now).
Solomon Island is also presently developing a CBI program, but it’s not available yet. (And I’d personally rather go for one of the more established programs.)
Note: The recent increase of all 5 Caribbean programs’ minimum donation amount to $200,000 means that far more applicants are now opting for the real estate options.
Next, let’s recap the mainstream European Golden Visa Programs:
7 Mainstream Residency By Investment (Golden Visa) Programs For 2025
“Following the herd” has, for eons, been an effective risk-reduction strategy for animals and humans alike.
Many people, when it comes to investing for residency, will therefore feel more comfortable going for well-established programs that have processed thousands of applicants successfully.
If that is you, the following options need to be on your radar:
- Cyprus: Buying a new/off-plan property worth at least €300,000 in the Republic of Cyprus gets you a permanent residency (and you only need to visit the island once every two years for it to be renewable). However, given the country’s ongoing border dispute with the (Turkish) de facto Northern Cyprus, the country’s residents don’t enjoy visa-free travel access to the EU (its citizens do though). But if you find the idea of Mediterranean island living attractive, and you already enjoy EU visa-free travel access, then this might be an interesting option to consider…
- Hungary: The first eligible real estate investment fund has just been approved under Hungary’s all-new Guest Investor Visa Program, with another 3 fund options expected to be approved before the end of 2024.
Boasting a 10+10 year residency validity, priced from just €250,000, and offering a pre-approval step before any capital must be committed, this is looking like a solid option for 2025.
You’ll soon also have the option of getting this residency by purchasing property worth €500,000. - Italy: Tech startup investments (read: “donations”) priced from €250,000. Stocks and cash-flowing real estate options in the hospitality sector priced from €500,000.
(D7Visa.com can offer convenient packaged products for both the share portfolio and real-estate based hospitality options, so drop us a line to learn more.) - Malta: This island nation’s Golden Visa type program is called the Malta Permanent Residence Program (MPRP), and it’s a seriously underrated program.For starters, it offers permanent residency. And you can get it by buying a property worth at least €300,000, or by renting a Maltese property for as little as €10,000 per year for 5 years.The latter option will set you back only about €150,000,This is half the cost of the Cypriot PR program, and it gives you 5 years worth of rental accommodation on this scenic island, as a bonus.You do need to have a minimum net worth of at least €500,000, of which €150,000 must be in liquid financial assets. But it’s English speaking, it’s Mediterranean, and it can be a highly tax-efficient option.
- Portugal: The country’s Golden Visa is the fastest route to an EU passport – after just 5 years of residency (unless you’re from an Ibero-American country, in which case Spain will naturalize you after just 2 years of residency). There are serious bureaucratic inefficiencies though, so you can expect delays.Cultural donations priced from €200,000 (in rural areas), and €250,000 everywhere else. Research projects from €400,000 (in rural areas), and €500,000 elsewhere. Investment Fund and Job Creation options priced from €500,000.
- Spain: Commercial financed options priced from €350,000, and any real estate priced above €500,000. Government is seeking to terminate the program by January 2025, so you’ll need to take action today if you wish to take advantage of this option.
- Greece: Eligible conversion properties and startup investments priced from €250,000.
Latin America is of course home to an array of pensionado and rentista type residency programs for pensioners and passive income earners. And countries like Brazil, Panama, Uruguay and Colombia offer you the ability to obtain a residency by buying property.
(Plus you won’t need to look very hard to find a service provider who can assist you with any of these programs.)
But now for the options you (likely) didn’t know existed…
6 Lesser-known Countries Where Americans Can Get Residency By Investment (Including In Real Estate)
- Andorra: Boasting a company and income tax rate of 10% each, this tiny European country offers excellent quality of life and a low-key, under-the-radar appeal.A property purchase of €600,000 gets you a Golden Visa type residency – albeit with a minimum stay requirement of 3 months (90 days) per year, and a 2.5 hour drive to your closest major international airport (in Barcelona, situated 2.5 hours away).
- Austria: While Austria doesn’t have a Golden Visa Program, we have access to an exclusive, self-sponsorship type residency program.This packaged option combines an initial employment based residency permit with a subsequent independent means type residency.Crucially, this program affords applicants access to the country’s so-called Higher Status residency permit (although annual permit volumes are capped in the low hundreds). And in addition, depending on your German language proficiency, you can naturalize in Austria after as little as 6 years.
Note: This program is a fairly pricey, sunk-cost option, and it’s priced in the standard EU Golden Visa range. But if you’ve got your heart set on Austria, then this is one option to be aware of… - Azerbaijan: Buying a property worth at least AZN 200,000 (around $120,000) gets you a permanent residency in Azerbaijan.(You also have the option of getting a temporary residency there by depositing AZN 100,000 – around $60,000 – in a local bank account.Azerbaijan is truly a place where East meets West: The Capital of Baku is a highly developed, yet distinctly Russian place, and there is some serious petroleum money there. Fun fact: Baku hosts F1 motor racing events.However, the country does have a distinctly authoritarian bent, and a patchy human rights track record, so it might not be the go-to option for everyone…
- Montenegro: Without exaggerating, Montenegro is one of the most beautiful places on earth (Google it if you don’t believe me). However, it’s small and sleepy, and direct flight connectivity there isn’t great. The country’s Citizenship By Investment program was terminated fairly prematurely. But with Malta winning its court case against the European Commission, we may see the program make a come-back in 2025…In the interim, you have the option of getting residency there by (nominally) capitalizing a new Montenegrin company. You do, however, have to spend 183+ days per year on the ground there to keep your residency renewable, in which case you’d likely land in the country’s tax net.Bonus: While prices have risen since the war in Ukraine started, it’s still a relatively affordable property destination.
- Serbia: If you’re tired of predatory taxation and excessive labor regulations in your home country, Serbia could be an interesting option with some interesting potential tax advantages.You can obtain a 1-year, renewable residency permit here by either creating and capitalizing a company, or by buying real estate. You do, however, have to spend more than 183 days per year in the country to renew your permit.
- Turkey: Whilst most Americans considering Turkey as a Plan B option have thus far opted for the country’s famous Citizenship By Investment program, there is also a mostly overlooked Golden Visa type option: You can obtain a flexible Turkish residency by buying a property worth just $200,000. And the permit remains renewable for as long as you own the property…
2 Lesser-known Countries Where Americans Can Get Citizenship By Investment
- Serbia: Serbia’s Citizenship By Exception protocol is a discretionary avenue for gaining Serbian citizenship (with the added perk of visa-free access to the EU). Whilst Article 19 – the legislation serving as the basis for this program is typically used to naturalize Olympic athletes, or people who have made a significant contribution in the country’s national interest, it can also effectively serve as a citizenship by investment type pathway. To be clear, the country does not have any formal CBI legislation, so the government enjoys full discretion in terms of whom they’ll naturalize in the public interest (and whom not). Provided that you can meet the program’s requirements, expect to make a non-refundable donation of at least €250,000 (and frequently more).
- Somewhere in the world there is another country that offers a top-tier, fast-track Citizenship By Investment Program (but we’re not at liberty to publicly disclose which one): If you’re looking for a fast, discrete, A-grade alternative citizenship and passport, and you’ve got at least $2 million to invest in low-risk, low-yield securities for a minimum of 5 years, then feel free to get in touch. Note: This discretionary option is not for everyone, and we reserve the right not to engage with you in this regard should we be unable to confirm your bona fides…
And Then For An Interesting, Cheap, English Speaking PR Option…
- South Africa: At the risk of jinxing things, South Africa’s political situation has stabilized remarkably since the 2024 national elections: The new governance structure, known as the Government of National Unity or “GNU”, contrary to what the name suggests, is not a pan-party structure:Instead, it is effectively a power-sharing agreement between the ANC and the DA – and it is holding despite fears to the contrary.Independent electricity here has ramped up to such an extent that the power outages which hampered economic growth for the past 2 decades are effectively a thing of the past. Plus, thanks to a major clean-up effort at the Home Affairs Department, visa processing timelines have radically improved.And whilst the country, too, has seen significant inflation in the past few years, it still offers unrivaled affordability and value for money when it comes to living costs, property prices, as well as dining out, etc.(When I am in South Africa, I’m based in Cape Town, and it’s an excellent place to live.)The country’s Financially Independent Permit Program offers applicants with a net worth of ZA R12 million (just over $680,000) Permanent Residency – without the need for property (or any other) investment, and with zero minimum stay requirements.
Apart from the net worth requirement, you only need to pay the government an application fee of ZAR 120,000 (around $6,800).Note: Given that this is South Africa, though, it’s highly advisable to work with a professional service provider to help you navigate the country’s bureaucratic complexities.
Feel free to get in touch if you’d like to explore this option.
Don’t wait too long before pulling the trigger on your Plan B…
If you’ve read this far, you’ve likely been researching your options for a while. We therefore don’t need to preach to you about how options are disappearing, and/or getting a lot more expensive, etc.
By now, we’re pretty confident that you’ve reached the point where you’re overcoming “life inertia” and wish to take decisive action.
If anger and disappointment brought you here, then we encourage you to use it as rocket fuel to propel you forward, to galvanize your resolve, and to follow through with your Plan B ambitions in 2025.
Because we don’t know what setbacks the new year will bring.
But we do know which solid options are still on the table today.
Until next time,
Because you deserve to have options,
Andre
Founder: D7Visa.com.