Authorities in Greece plan to tighten the monitoring of investments for its Golden Visa Program.
Following a new decision signed by the Ministries of Development and Immigration and Asylum, new terms and conditions for granting and monitoring the investment have been introduced, Schengen.News reports.
The Golden Visa Program of Greece, allows non-EU nationals to acquire residency by choosing one of the options of investment that this program offers.
Once a residence permit is issued the Foreign Direct Investment Directorate of the Ministry of Development monitors the investment. If an investor does not meet the terms and conditions of the investment, authorities may revoke their residence permit.
New Changes in the Submission Process
According to a report from D group, the main changes include the application submission process that takes effect in the following phases:
An investor can reach Greece with a visa or already have a valid residence status. If they are outside the Hellenic Republic, they can authorize a legal representative through a power of attorney issued at a consulate or other relevant authority abroad, certified with an apostille.
The applicant submits the application for a residence permit to the Ministry of Immigration and Asylum, together with other documents such as proof of investment, and other details of other family members joining them.
The formal completeness of the application is reviewed by the Residence Permits Directorate, and then it sends the application electronically to the Ministry of Development’s Foreign Direct Investment Directorate. Then, a check is made to see if the investment is in line with the criteria required by Law 5038/2023.
The Ministry of Development examines if the investment follows Greek legislation. Once the investment is approved, the investor submits a new application to the Residence Permit Directorate regarding the issuance of the residence permit. The application is electronically made through the electronic services of the Ministry of Immigration with additional required supporting documents.
Once the residence permit is issued, the Foreign Direct Investment Directorate of the Ministry of Development monitors the investments. If the investor does not meet the requirements, the authorities may revoke the residence permit.
Greece’s Golden Visa Program is among the most famous programs of this kind in Europe. The interest in this scheme particularly increased after Spain’s announcement to terminate the program on April 3, 2025and Portugal’s previous decision to abolish the real estate investment option from this scheme.