In order to combat the housing crisis, Greece on Sunday March 31 tightened the rules relating to its so-called “golden visa” program, which gives a residence permit to nationals of non-European countries in exchange for an investment in the real estate.
The amount of investment required to benefit from this program, launched in 2014 during the Greek crisis when real estate prices were falling and construction was in slump, increases from 250,000 to 800,000 euros, depending on the changes presented by the Ministry of Finance on March 22.
In popular areas, such as Attica (the region around Athens), Thessaloniki, Mykonos, Santorini and islands with a population greater than 3,100 inhabitants, this amount even increases to 800,000 euros. For the Minister of Finance, Kostis Hatzidakis, “These measures are part of the government’s housing policy, which aims, in cooperation with the private sector, to guarantee affordable and quality housing for all citizens, while taking into account the need to continue investments under conditions more balanced ».
According to data from the Ministry of Migration, this program was the subject of an unprecedented demand in 2023, with 10,214 requests for acquisition or renewal. And 5,701 visas were granted over the last year, for a total investment of one billion euros.
“Golden visas” also present in Spain or Portugal
These adjustments to the golden visa decided by the government have sparked criticism from some investors. “The impact on investments (…) will be dramatic »thus deplored the Greek association of joint stock companies and entrepreneurship, in a letter addressed to the ministers of the economy, Kostis Hatzidakis, and of development, Kostas Skrekas.
However, according to the Bank of Greece, rents have soared by 20% since the country officially emerged, in 2018, from a decade of economic crisis, reducing the purchasing power of households. To respond to this real estate crisis, the Ministry of Finance has also put in place measures encouraging the conversion of buildings into housing, the protection of historic buildings and the ban on short-term rental of properties acquired through the golden visa.
Other southern European countries hit by the crisis – Cyprus, Spain and Portugal – have used similar programs to attract investment.