Spain residence permit for Non-EU
citizens
International investors can now gain a
residency
visa for Spain
through the purchase of Spanish
property. The visa
is available to anyone investing a minimum
of 500,000 Euros in property.
A family or a person from a Non-EU country can as investor get a
Spanish residency
Golden Visa through the purchase
of a property
or properties in Spain
.
Residency in Spain is granted under the new investor visa for
investors spending a minimum of 500,000 Euros on a Real Estate
property purchase. Residency means the right to live in Spain and
travel freely to Spain which is within the Schengen visa area of
Europe. It does not grant citizenship, which can be applied for at a
later date. Citizenship in Spain can lead to residency in other
European countries.
Residency in Spain under the golden investor visa program allows a Real Estate investor and his or her immediate family to live in
Spain. The legislation has no minimum period of residence. Hence an
investor can buy a property in Spain, travel freely to Spain at any
point and his or her family can do the same. The family can live in
Spain
permanently, with access to schools both state and private
following the English curriculum. Eventually citizenship can grant
access to study elsewhere at universities in Europe including the UK.
ESSENTIAL RULES OF SPANISH INVESTMENT VISA:
The minimum investment must be at
500,000€.
On top of the amount of investment
you need to add 11 - 12%, which goes to the purchase cost, including
tax, stamp duty, VAT, notary and lawyer.
Investments may be spread over
several properties for a total purchase price of at least 500,000€.
Spanish residence visas may be
issued to the immediate family, including spouse and children up to
18 years.
There is no requirement for
minimum stays ordering to renew the visa. This means that it is
optional to stay in Spain.
The Spanish visa does not need to
be renewed within five years.
As there is no law on minimum stay
is not necessary to be tax resident.
Permanent residence can be granted
after five years if you have followed the rules.
Your property investment can be
sold after five years when you have achieved permanent residency.
The visa allows access to
unlimited travel throughout the EU Schengen visa countries.
The entire application procedure
for investment visa applicants will not take more than twenty days.
Investments must be documented
before applying for Spanish investment visa.
Refusal of Spanish investment visa
will usually only be justified by an unclean criminal record.
Spanish citizenship can
be given after an additional five years of permanent residency.
The applicant must be able to
prove that having traveled to Spain at least once in the first two
years, and once more in the three subsequent years.
While a Spanish citizen you
automatically get an European citizenship.
After this time (2 x 5 years), the
family can live, work or study anywhere in Europe within the EU.
- We recommended lawyer to
take care of the application for residence, and the full Golden Visa
program, residence for the family, etc. The totally cost for this is
~ € 1,800 + 21% VAT.
THE APPLICANT MUST MEET THE FOLLOWING
REQUIREMENTS:
Not to have entered or stayed
illegally in Spanish territory.
Have to be 18 years or over.
Not to have been refused entry in
any of the Schengen countries.
Have public or private health
insurance authorized to operate in Spain.
Have sufficient economic means to
cover personal and family living expenses.
- Proof of the investment must be made through a Registry of
Property certificate attesting ownership. Or, if the ownership title
is not yet registered, via a copy of the acquisition public deed and
proof of filing the deed in the Registry.
RESIDENCE VISA FOR INVESTORS (YEAR 1)
First you get an ordinary 90-day visa so you can come to
Spain to search for property, and once in Spain you sign a power of
attorney giving your lawyer power to act on your behalf in
the conveyancing and residency process.
However, if you don’t have time to come to Spain, and you have
found a property that you are prepared to buy without visiting, you
can organize a power of attorney from your home country (this is not
possible from all countries) giving your lawyer power to act on your
behalf in the conveyancing and residency process. Your lawyer can
then buy the property on your behalf, so you don’t even have to
come to Spain at this stage.
One you have bought a property that meets the investment criteria
(more than €500,000 on the deeds), you need to apply for a one-year
investor visa, which allows you to spend a year in Spain, and travel
freely in the Schengen area for 90 days out of every 180 days. Your
lawyer can obtain this for you.
Once you have obtained this visa, you are not obliged to spend a
minimum amount of time in Spain during the year. However, to get the
residency permit at the end of the year, you do have to visit Spain
at least once in the year. So, do not apply for the one-year investor
visa until you are sure that you will be coming to Spain in the next
12 months.
This one-year investor visa will be authorized in Diplomatic
Missions and Consular Spanish Offices and can be issued for one, two
or multiple entries into Spain.
These visa applications shall be processed and notification sent
within 10 working days, except in case of applicants subject to prior
consultation.
RESIDENCE AUTHORIZATION FOR INVESTORS (YEARS 2 TO
5 OR MORE)
Once an investment has been made, and after the first year,
investors can apply for authorization to live in Spain for two years,
renewable for another two years after that (and on), so long as the
investment threshold of €500,000 is maintained (see below). For
this application you have to be show that you have travelled to Spain
at least once in the previous 12 months.
There is no limit to the amount of times this two-year residency
can be renewed.
Properties can be bought and sold during this period, so long as
the investment threshold is maintained.
There is no obligation to spend a minimum amount of time in Spain,
so investors can remain tax resident outside of Spain, whilst
benefiting from Spanish residency and the freedom of unlimited travel
and stays in the EU.
Processing and granting the residence will be done by the Spanish
Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Applications will be responded to within 20 working days from the
submission of the application. If there is no answer in this period,
the application shall be considered as accepted. The formal answer to
the application can take up to 6 months, but in theory the
application is considered accepted if there is no answer in 20 days.
LONG-TERM RESIDENCE AND SPANISH NATIONALITY (YEAR
5 ONWARDS, OPTIONAL)
After five years of continuous residence, investors can apply for
permanent residence in Spain.
Likewise, after ten years of residence, Spanish nationality can be
requested. In such cases, an effective justification of at least six
months of residence must be provided, (unless due cause exists).
PROPERTY INVESTMENT - INVESTMENT THRESHOLD
The investment threshold for real estate is €500,000 or more per
investor.
To apply for residency, proof of the investment(s) must be
provided with a Property Registry filing (certificate). If this
certificate is not yet available, then the notarized deeds and proof
that the deeds have been submitted to the Property Registry must be
provided.
The investment can be comprised of:
One or several properties.
Of a residential, touristic,
rural, commercial or industrial nature
- Rural land, developed land, buildings under construction, or
decrepit buildings
FINANCING
Investors must use at least €500,000 of their own funds, which
must come from transparent sources that comply with existing
legislation on money laundering and so on. Above that threshold there
is no limit to debt financing, for instance with a mortgage in Spain.
