Investments across borders are one of the most important investment opportunities sought by high-net-worth individuals. Europe offers many such investment options to choose from for investors. However, it is important to identify which firm you can tie up with or partner with that can provide you with the cheapest investment visa Europe solution. Investments are of different types. Investments bring the investor either residency in the country or citizenship in the country where they invested. It actually depends on the kind of investment program that the investor chooses to work on that decides whether the investor gets residency or citizenship in the country. Residence itself can be either permanent or temporary depending on the country chosen to invest in.
Most of the European countries are tied up with one another as they are part of the European Union. Investing in Europe provides the entrepreneur mobility in Europe and accessibility of most of the countries in Europe. This is one of the major reasons why investors are attracted to invest in Europe. A residence permit from a Schengen country lets the investor travel within the Schengen area for up to 90 days in any 180-day period, while the right to live and work applies in the country that issued the permit. There are 3 types of investments that one can make in Europe –
-
Property investments
-
Business investments
-
Investment in government bonds or public debt
Property Investments can be made in real estate in the country where the investor intends to invest. Greece still provides residency to investors who buy real estate through its Golden Visa program, with thresholds of €800,000, €400,000 or €250,000 depending on the location and type of property. Portugal removed real estate from its Golden Visa in October 2023, and Spain ended its Golden Visa on 3 April 2025.
Business Investments can be of two types. One is where the investor invests as a sleeping investor with interest only in returns while the second one is for those entrepreneurs who intend to run a business with their physical presence and vested interests.
Investment in Government bonds/Public debts is for those who intend to earn residency of a country purely by providing funds to the Government through Government bonds or through investment in Public debts, although few European programs still offer this option.
One can earn residency by investing in Europe by investing in the below countries.
Countries like Cyprus, Malta, France, Portugal, and Greece are a few of the countries that provide residency to investors. While Greece offers a real estate route and Portugal now offers fund, research, cultural and business routes, France exclusively is for business enthusiasts who intend to grow their business in France. France invites immigrants through their France Business Investment Immigration program which is now known as France Talent Visa Program.
Malta and Cyprus are two countries that invite investors to invest in their countries for residency. Malta's Permanent Residence Programme requires a qualifying property purchase of at least €375,000 or a lease of at least €14,000 a year, alongside government fees and a contribution. Malta investments bring in a lot of opportunities for the investor who intends to spread his wings across the globe.
Most of the residency programs can lead to citizenship over a period of time, through ordinary naturalisation. No EU country now offers EU citizenship by Investment: Cyprus ended its program on 1 November 2020, Bulgaria repealed its route on 1 April 2022, and Malta's was repealed in 2025 after the EU Court of Justice ruled against it on 29 April 2025.
Another country that is famous for its investment program is Cyprus. Cyprus offers permanent residency to investors, although Cyprus is not part of the Schengen area. The Cyprus Investment program offers a varied number of benefits for the investor which includes tax regime benefits.
Countries like France and the UK, invite entrepreneurs interested in running business there. Such entrepreneurs will be provided with residency initially. Once the entrepreneur successfully proves themself in the country, he can then move on to apply for permanent residency in the country followed by citizenship. In France, naturalisation generally requires five years of residence. However, investing in France is one of the best choices that a businessman who wants to spread his business wings would want to make due to the many benefits that come with such a choice.
There are numerous other investment options that are available across Europe and across the world. However, what matters most is to partner with the right international investment immigration firm that can successfully mitigate international investments for their clients.
Visit us today to know more about which investment option best works for you.
Call: +971 52 727 5101 OR Mail at [email protected]