Spain Officially Ends Golden Visa Program After 12 Years

The Spanish Golden Visa Program will officially cease from being effective.

It means that non-EU nationals will no longer be eligible to invest financially in Spain in exchange for obtaining residency and visa-free travel to all Schengen Zone countries, Schengen.News reports.

Since 2013, when the scheme was launched by the government of Mariano Rajoy, a total of 14,576 golden visas have been issued, thus significantly boosting the Spanish economy, after the minimum amount requirement for this program was €500,000.

In spite of the program offering several options, the majority or 95 per cent of all golden visas were issued through the real estate investment route.

Program Terminated in Effort to Deal With Rising Housing Cost
The high demand for the real estate investment option brought difficulties for Spanish residents and the housing market, particularly in Madrid and Barcelona.

In addition to the above-mentioned, the majority of the golden visas were issued to Malaga, the Balearic Islands, Alicante, Girona and Valencia.

The top beneficiaries of this scheme were nationals of China, the United States and the United Kingdom, among others.

Investments, in particular through the real estate investment route, led to higher property prices, thus making housing less accessible for Spanish residents. As a response, in April 2024, Spanish President of the Government, Pedro Sanchez, said that his country would take all the needed measures in order to ensure that housing is a right, not a speculative business.

Abolishment of Golden Visa Program Approved by Congress of Deputies
The Congress of Deputies in Spain approved the termination of the Golden Visa Program in December 2024. The proposal was passed with 177 votes in favour and 170 against.

On January 3, 2025, the Organic Law 1/2025 was published in Spain’s Official Gazette (BOE) thus confirming the termination of this scheme.

The law highlighted that the decision would take effect three months after being published in the Official State Gazette.

The statistics from Local Spain reveal that from January until October 2024, a total of 780 golden visas were issued, the majority of them after Sanchez’s announcement to terminate the scheme.

In spite of the fact that there are no official statistics provided, the real estate sector in Spain suggests that in the first three months of this year, about 500 golden visas have been issued.

Source: https://schengen.news/spain-officially-ends-golden-visa-program-after-12-years/