How Much Time Is It Required for an Investor to Live in Europe in Order to Obtain a Second Citizenship?

For many people, a European passport appears to be a pass to a happier, more comfortable and free life. In many cases it turns out to be that way because these countries differ from the others due to their stability, protection of civil interests, high standards of medicine and education as well as better standards of living.

It is also easier to run a business abroad. Of course, there is a competition. However, you can be sure that the company will not be taken away by raiders, it will not go bankrupt because of the collapsed exchange rate and that the inspection authorities will not paralyse the company’s work with scheduled inspections.

That is why, businessmen invest in an overseas business or in profitable properties. It brings a double benefit: reliable investment of money and residence permit (followed by citizenship) in a European country. There are investment programs with more beneficial conditions for such cases. Some of them offer citizenship by investment as soon as possible. You just need to decide what country to choose. Of course, personal preferences are important, but there are also many other criteria that are worth comparing before you make up your mind. British law firm Imperial & Legal specialists are here to helps to find all the answers.

Since you are already reading this, we are not going to go into details of why foreigners want to apply for a second citizenship in Europe. You must have your own reasons why you want to invest in a European passport.

Several countries in our continent are ready to provide generous investors with residence permit, then Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), and, finally, citizenship. In some jurisdictions, a European passport can be issued sometime after obtaining a residence permit. In other countries, an investor receives citizenship after a long due diligence check. All you need to do is to be patient and have enough money to live with in the meantime.

The dictionary of a future immigrant

We are going to clarify the terminology before starting to look for the most profitable European country for obtaining a passport.

Residence permit is a document that allows a foreign citizen to enter, leave, as well as live, study, work or run a business in another country for a long time. In most countries which provide long-term visas for residence by investment the applicant must meet minimum requirements. The applicant must have clean criminal and immigration records, also, their family must be in a good health. Otherwise, there are no more restrictions in regards of occupation, traveling or knowledge of the local language.

Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) is more complicated to get. Since the status of a permanent resident is not much different from a full-fledged citizenship, the investor and their family must meet more requirements. Most of them relate to life in another country: the applicant for permanent residence must spend enough time in a new place, and also know local traditions and the language. Of course, not all jurisdictions have such strict requirements. In most cases it is only where residence by investment programs is just an additional way to attract capital to an already strong economy.

Citizenship, at last. At this stage of legalization, the investor is equated with local residents in the rights and obligations. It is easier to travel and live in any country of the EU with a second passport, if we are speaking about a European passport. It also gives you a visa-free entry or a simplified procedure for obtaining a visa to a lot of other countries around the world. Sometimes citizenship acquired at the request of an individual is also called naturalization.

Residence permit and citizenship in Europe

As it has already been mentioned, in a number of European jurisdictions there are residence by investment programs. They attract new investment into economy and offer permanent residence. This will allow you to obtain ILR as well as a passport.

European investor programs are summarised in the table below:

Country	Minimum investment amount *	Residence permit, ILR and citizenship	Possibility to get profit out of the investments
Latvia	€ 250,000 for the property purchase	Residence permit → 2 months ILR→ 5 years Citizenship → 10 years	Yes, in 5 years
Montenegro	€ 350,000 of which € 100,000 – non-refundable contribution to the government fund € 250,000 – investment in a property in underdeveloped areas of the country	ILR→ 2-3 weeks Citizenship → 6 months	Partially, in 5 years
Portugal	€ 350,000 for the purchase of a property built more than 30 years ago, located in a historical area	Residence permit → 4-5 months ILR→ 5 years Citizenship → 6 years	Yes, in 5 years
Spain	€ 350,000 – investment in a property	Permanent residence→3 weeks ILR → 5 years Citizenship →10 years	Yes, in 5 years
Malta	€ 1,150,000, of which € 650,000 – non-refundable donation to the state; € 350,000 – investment in a property; € 150,000 – purchase of securities	Residence permit →3 weeks Citizenship→ 1 year in the status of residence permit	Partially, in 5 years
The United Kingdom	£ 2,000,000 * in the real sector of the economy, for example, in the capital of a British commercial company	Residence permit → 2 months ILR → 5 years Citizenship → 6 years	Yes, in 5 years

Notes to the table:

* Only minimum investment options are considered that a guarantee of obtaining a residence permit and citizenship, regardless of investment results.

Local features

Thanks to the table you can see how residence by investment programs differ in Europe.

Latvian citizenship will require minimum investments in a property, which in 5 years can be sold profitably. But to obtain a European passport here, it will take 10 long years and you will have to refuse from your native citizenship to get a Latvian one.

In order to obtain a Cyprus passport, you need to invest a lot, but the investments can be returned in full in 5 years.

A Maltese passport will cost less, but only if the investor does not decide to apply for citizenship for the whole family: then the amount of the donation to the state fund will increase a lot. Meanwhile, in Britain, the holder of an Investor visa can obtain a residence permit and citizenship for the family without additional large investments. Also, it is important to know that investments in the economy of England are completely under the control of the applicant. They bring profit during the period of investment, and after it comes to an end, they will be fully returned. However, it will take 6 years from the moment you enter the country until a British passport is obtained. The choice is yours to make.

Almost all the European jurisdictions listed in the table require the applicant applying for the citizenship to speak the official state language. However, in Montenegro, for the future citizen-investor it is not necessary. On the other hand, Montenegro has not yet joined the European Union and therefore the number of countries for visa-free entry is “only” 124.

There are many regional differences in the rules for obtaining a residence permit or citizenship in exchange for investments. Do you want to dominate this topic? Then immediately go and study foreign legal literature and go through all that contradictory information on the Internet.

This is the only way you can independently choose an option that suits your needs best. Or seek professional advice. A good immigration lawyer can help you to obtain a European passport with minimal waste of time and money.