Author: La Vida

by

Spanish Residence and Citizenship – Requirements for Investors through Golden Visa

We have received a number of enquiries regarding the minimum stay requirement in Spain for the investor visa. Tax residency and citizenship in Spain are also questions that arise. In summary:

There is no minimum stay requirement. You can obtain the investor visa after completing on the property purchase(s) over €500,000. You do not need to spend time in Spain but you do need to be present (for a few days) to re-apply every two years.

You can keep renewing the investor visa if you retain the real estate investment. You can also apply for permanent residency. To do this you need to spend five years living in Spain. (ie over 6 months each year). Then you no longer need to retain the investment.

To apply for citizenship in Spain (and hence European citizenship allowing you to live and work anywhere in Europe) you need to demonstrate 10 years permanent residency.

You will not pay tax in Spain on worldwide income unless you are resident in Spain (ie live there more than six months a year).

Any questions please post below.

by

Spain’s “Golden Visa” Now Approved

Everything was passed and published into law today. For the key points on what the investor visa has to offer see our property visa website dedicated to investor visa properties satisfying the qualifying limit. Please note these are key points and meant as a guide. Every individual should seek proper legal advice applicable to their own personal circumstances. La Vida Spain and our affiliated lawyers can provide this for anybody wishing to use our property finder service.

by

Spain Investment Immigration Visa Limit

Just to clarify, many potential investors have asked about the visa investor limit for the Spanish immigration visa. It is 500,000 Euros and not 160,000 Euros as was originally suggested by the Spanish government in November 2012. The law has now been passed through parliament so it is only property purchases of 500,000 Euros and above that will qualify. There are several old news stories on the web that mention the initial proposal for the limit.

by

Spanish Investor Visa Law Published

The investor visa law has today been published in the official bulletin. So everything is now approved it just requires royal signature and will be entered into law hopefully in the coming days.  That means you can then apply for the visa if you have bought a property. It will be retrospective so anybody who has bought recently can then apply.

Anybody considering buying in Spain to take advantage of this should look seriously now for best choice. It takes 1-2 months to complete a purchase and 10-20 days for the visa after that. We have received many enquiries for properties over the €500,000 limit and also for investment portfolios of several apartments under the €500,000 limit.

by

Spanish Investor Visa Legislation Approved

The new residency visa legislation was approved by the Spanish Senate yesterday without change to the draft proposal.  Known as “Apoyo a los emprendedores y su internacionalización” it will come into effect on the day of its official publication in the state bulletin. Expected in a few weeks.

Any investor buying Spanish property now will safely qualify for the residency visa. A reminder of the key points:

  • Minimum investment of €500,000
  • Can be for more multiple properties
  • Visa granted to all immediate family members
  • No minimum stay requirement
  • Applications processed in 20 days (or visa is automatically granted!)
  • Freedom of travel throughout the Schengen countries in Europe

Investors interested in obtaining a Spanish residency visa through the purchase of a property please contact us. Please note we can only advise investors who are buying through our real estate agency La Vida Spain. You can visit our selection of qualifying real estate at our Spanish visa property website.

by

Visa Legislation Set For Debate in Spanish Parliament

The draft investor visa legislation is set for debate in the Spanish parliament next week. The main points of the draft have already been published and discussed on this website and lawyers don’t expect too many changes to the draft. The government in Spain is keen to push this residency legislation through. That’s why they have a 20 day limit for response to any application – otherwise the visa is automatically issued.

Once passed we expect high demand, particularly from countries such as Russia, China and India. Likewise countries throughout the Middle East. I read recently that over 1000 Chinese buyers have invested in Cyprus in the last year to obtain the investor visa!

Considering Cyprus is 1500 miles from the centre of Europe but only 100 miles from Syria and unlike Spain is not part of the EU Schengen visa zone that’s quite an achievement. Especially as conditions for the residency visa in Cyprus include investing €30,000 per family member into a bank account in Cyprus in addition to a property purchase. Followers of the Cypriot banking crisis may agree that’s not for the faint hearted!

Still, it demonstrates the incredible demand for investor visas in Europe and bodes well for demand for the Spanish “golden visa”.

by

New Spanish Visa Property Website Launched

Property Visa Spain Website

Website for Investor Visa Property in Spain.

We have launched a website to help our clients looking specifically for property for the Spanish residency visa. The website covers six areas in Spain applicable for such real estate which is over the qualifying limit of €500,000. However we have also listed portfolio possibilities particularly in Murcia. The visa qualification allows multiple property purchases to make up the qualifying limit. As many of the “super distressed” bargains (sometimes one third the original price!) are lower priced apartments offered by the banks it offers an opportunity for investors looking for capital gain. Of course those seeking a permanent home would be more interested in our selection of villas which we can now offer in the Costa Blanca and Costa del Sol. Visa investors looking for a city home can browse our selection of apartments and houses in Barcelona and Madrid.

See the new website here: Property Visa Spain

Investors waiting for the approval of the legislation should not have too long to wait. It is in parliament currently for approval and our lawyers advise it could be September. Note that the legislation can backdate so anyone buying a property “recently” can apply.  We would prefer to see this passed first and know the exact detail but one solution for clients could be our bank reepossesion properties. With these they are minimal deposit eg €1,000 – €3,000 and we can delay completion typically two or three months which should be more than enough time. So anybody keen to visit please get in touch soon. Many of the bank bargains are selling out and prices look to have turned in the last 6-9 months.

by

Investor Visa Legislation Details

We have published the main details of the legislation for investors gaining residency through a property purchase in Spain. See the investor golden visa page. We expect this law to be passed with a few months. It is also retrospective so anyone buying now will qualify. It also takes typically three months to purchase a property in Spain. Investors looking to gain a visa are advised to start the process as soon as possible. Please contact our main office on +44 208 429 7115 for further details or to arrange visits and applications.

by

Spanish Entrepreneur Law draft is published. Golden Visa Legislation expected soon.

The Spanish government yesterday published the new “Emprendedores” or “Entrepreneurs” law. It includes new rules on visas and residency, the so called Golden Visa for Spain. The limit for a residency visa through a property purchase in Spain will be €500,000. The government hopes to have the new law ready by August. It looks ambitous considering it has taken eight months to reach this point but thankfully there seems to be some urgency now in pushing this through. It was published by the official bulletin of the Spanish Parliament. So it can be trusted as an official initiative (the first official document on this law) although changes are still possible. Soon we should be able to offer solutions to clients for Spanish residence visas through the purchase of property in Spain. We will publish more here once our lawyers have had chance to decipher the proposed legislation, hopefully in the coming days. If you haven’t already done so please sign up for our blog and you will be notified as developments happen.

by

Spanish Golden Visa Legislation Delayed

We were hoping by now to see a draft of the legislation which forms a small part of much wider legislation to encourage international investment in Spain. Things are cetainly active on this within the government as we hear this from several sources. But because of the complexity of the wider legislation involving expert panels and a number of ministries this is not going to be as quick as we hoped or the government promised. Our expectation is to see a draft published sometime after the summer and then for that to be considered and passed into law sometime later this year. 

Note that it is perfectly possible to get a residence visa for Spain now without the need for such investment. Assets of just €24,000 need to be shown plus sustainability of income to support going forward. However this requires a stay of 183 days per year. But this could be considered a stepping stone by some until the new legislation or may of course suit those looking for a more permanent residence in Europe.