REQUIREMENTS FOR "GOLDEN VISA"

Every third country national who becomes a "GOLDEN VISA" holder, as well as his/her family members (spouse, children of him/her or his/her spouse up to 21 years of age, parents of the beneficiary and parents of his/her spouse) are entitled to the following benefits:

• Right to enter Greece for five (5) years.
• Permanent residence in Greece for five (5) years.
• Right to renew the "GOLDEN VISA" every five (5) years under certain conditions.
• Right of free movement and residence for 180 days per year in European countries belonging to the Schengen Treaty, inside or outside the EU.
• Free access to education like any Greek citizen.

NEW DATA ON THE ISSUE OF GOLDEN VISA

By Article 64 of Law 5100/2024 (Residence permit linked to real estate investments. Replacement of Article 100 and Paragraph 100 of the Law 5100/2024), the European Union has been granted a residence permit for the purpose of obtaining a residence permit in accordance with the provisions of Article 64 of Law 5100/2024. 49 Article 176 of Law No. 5038/2023), the provisions concerning the limits for purchasing real estate and obtaining a Golden Visa residence permit are amended.

In particular, as follows from Article 64.

a) "In particular, for the Region of Attica, the Regional Unit of Thessaloniki of the Region of Central Macedonia, the Regional Units of Mykonos and Thira of the Region of South Aegean and for the islands with a population, according to the last census, of more than three thousand one hundred (3. 100) inhabitants, the minimum acquisition value of the immovable property at the time of its acquisition, as well as the total contractual rent for cases where a long-term lease or timeshare contract for tourist accommodation is concluded, are now set at the amount of eight hundred thousand (800,000) euros. In addition, it is stipulated that in the case of investment through the purchase of real estate in the aforementioned areas, this shall take place in a single property, while in the case of built-up real estate or real estate for which a building permit has been issued, a minimum surface area of one hundred and twenty (120) square metres of main premises is required".

b) "For the other regions of the country, the minimum acquisition value of the immovable property at the time of its acquisition, as well as the total contractual rent for the cases of conclusion of a long-term lease or timeshare contract of tourist accommodation, shall be set at the amount of four hundred thousand (400,000) euros. Similarly, it is stipulated here that in the case of investment through the purchase of real estate, this shall take place in a single property, while in the case of built-up real estate or real estate for which a building permit has been issued, a minimum surface area of one hundred and twenty (120) square metres of main premises is required".

• Investment amount from 800.000€ and above in Athens, Thessaloniki, Mykonos, Santorini and islands with a population of more than 3.100 inhabitants
• For the rest of Greece, investment amount from 400.000€ and above
• Investment in one (1) property only
• Minimum floor area of 120 sq.m.

Two (2) explicit exceptions are set out in paragraphs c and d:

c) "Specifically in cases of investment through purchase in real estate and if the main premises are changed into a residence, the minimum acquisition value of such real estate at the time of its acquisition shall be set at two hundred and fifty thousand (250,000) euros. The conditions of the first subparagraph shall also apply in cases of investment by purchase in real estate consisting of an industrial building or part of an industrial building or within which an industrial building is located, exclusively if no industry has been established and operating therein for at least five (5) years. The investment of the preceding subparagraphs is made in a single property and the change of use must be completed prior to the submission of the application for the granting of the investor's permanent residence permit".

(d) "In particular in cases of investment through the purchase of real estate consisting of a listed building or part of a listed building to be restored or reconstructed or within which a listed building is located, the minimum acquisition value at the time of its acquisition shall be set at two hundred and fifty thousand (250,000) euros. The investment referred to in the first subparagraph shall be made in a single property".

Therefore, on the basis of par. c and d, we see that the minimum investment amount remains at 250,000€ in the following cases:

• Property where a change of use to residential use is allowed
• Property that is an industrial building or part of an industrial building, provided that it has not been used as such for the last five (5) years
• A listed building or part of a listed building to be restored or reconstructed and if the restoration or reconstruction is completed
• This exemption applies to the whole Greek territory. In addition, an important change brought about by Law 5100/2024, in par. 7A, is the following:
  "Real estate acquired in full ownership and possession by third country citizens for the initial granting or renewal of an investor's residence permit is prohibited from being leased out on a short-term basis in the context of the sharing economy, as well as from being subleased out. In addition, real estate acquired in full ownership and possession by third-country nationals for the initial granting or renewal of an investor's permanent residence permit under the conditions of paragraph c) of the present Article shall be subject to the following conditions 2, may not be used as the headquarters or branch of a business."
  The above paragraph introduces a restriction on the way in which the investments made are exploited, by introducing a prohibition on short-term letting in the context of the sharing economy (i.e. Airbnb), as well as on subletting. This ban obviously tends to limit the use of short-term rentals in order to put more properties on the market for long-term rentals and to reduce prices for prospective tenants.