CITIZENSHIP BY INVESTMENT BLOG

September 2020: Changes To Be Announced Soon

As we are heading towards the end of the summer the official launch of the new Malta citizenship by investment program draws nearer. We now expect to receive the new program guidelines from the government during the last week of September / the first week of October.

As previously mentioned, the new citizenship by investment program will have several changes.

First, the government contribution (donation) will increase from previously EUR 650 000 to now EUR 750 000 for applicants wishing to receive citizenship after a 12 months residency period. For applicants who can wait for 36 months until citizenship (the EU passport), the new contribution amount will be EUR 600,000. We don’t expect applicants to be required to live in Malta full time during their chosen residency period (12 months or 36 months).

Second, the old IIP citizenship program required applicants to invest EUR 150 000 in government-approved securities to be held for 5 years. This requirement has been removed from the new program, and it is being replaced with a new requirement to make a philanthropic donation in the amount of EUR 10 000.

Third, the previous citizenship program required a property purchase of at least EUR 350 000, or a rental of at least EUR 16 000 per year. The new program will require a property purchase valued at a minimum of EUR 700 000, or a rental of at least EUR 18 000 per year.

Lastly, the old program had a total program cap of 1800 citizenships to be granted. The new program will be limited to no more than 400 applicants per year with a total maximum number of 1500 citizenships to be issued.

Given the above changes, prospective applicants who are ready to proceed and waiting for the official launch have two choices. Option number one is to wait until the new program regulations have been made public. Option number two is to start the application process already now and get a head start on collecting various supporting documents in order to be ready to immediately file upon program launch.

While the main benefit of option number one is to have absolute certainty with regards to all program requirements, the drawback entails potentially running into processing delays as we expect a large number of applicants to flood the system at the same time.

On the other hand, the main benefit of starting the application now is to be ready for submission shortly after program launch, thus being first on the list of applications to be processed while avoiding the expected bottlenecks.

Whichever option you prefer - we are here for you to start your application whenever you are ready.

Please contact us at any time with your questions or comments.

Because the Malta immigration by investment program details can change over time please contact us about the current rules and regulations.

Click here for the Malta citizenship by investment program. Click here for the Malta residency programs.

To start the application process online please register here.

For a detailed cost estimate or to schedule a confidential consultation please use our contact form.