In 2010, a national program for granting residence permits to foreigners in exchange for investment was launched in Latvia, when many Russians began to actively buy real estate in this country, receiving a local residence permit, which allows them to easily move around the countries of the European Union, which the country became part of back in 2004. ...
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Key changes in the program
The new rules came into force on September 1, 2014 - a number of changes were primarily influenced by the policy, the minimum threshold for the amount of investment was raised. It has increased significantly - from 100,000 lats (approximately 142,300 euros, the cadastral value of the object was supposed to exceed 42,690 euros) to 250,000 euros. In this case, the cadastral value of the property must be at least 80,000 euros. If this appraisal does not reach the required milestone, then the investor must order it from a certified appraiser, who will confirm that the market value of the object exceeds 250,000 euros.
Previously, the amount of investments in the regions of Latvia was needed in a smaller amount than in large cities and the Riga region (LVL 50,000). Now in the periphery, the minimum investment amount should also be at least 250,000 euros, although in this case, these funds can be used to buy not one, but two real estate objects. To obtain a residence permit, the investor must also pay a one-time fee of 5% of the value of the property. This adds to the compulsory costs of the buyer 12,500 euros when buying an apartment for 250,000 euros or 20,000 euros when the value of the object is 400,000 euros. Upon re-obtaining a permit to stay in the country (a residence permit is issued for 5 years with the possibility of extension), a flat fee of 5,000 euros is charged. These fees were introduced after the launch of the program.
However, the main impact on the decrease in the activity of Russians buying real estate in Latvia was not even the increase in investments and duties itself, but the fact that the changes were adopted in several stages, first one, then others, and no one was sure that some other changes would not be adopted. something. That is, there was no feeling of confidence that tomorrow it will work the same way as today. Also, rumors that Russia will be included in the list of countries whose citizens will temporarily stop issuing residence permits had a very negative impact. As a result, this did not happen, but many abandoned the idea of buying a home in Latvia for this very reason.
Other options for obtaining a residence permit in Latvia
It is also possible to become the owner of a document permitting temporary residence in the territory of the country if you invest in the capital of a Latvian company in the amount of 50,000 or 100,000 euros, depending on the size of the company, the number of employees and turnover. At the same time, the size of the annual amount of taxes that the company pays to the budget must be at least 40,000 or 100,000 euros, which again depends on the size of the company. This is the longest option for obtaining a residence permit, since at least a year must pass for the company to pay taxes.
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There are also options to contribute to the subornated capital of the bank in the amount of 280,000 euros (a fee of 25,000 euros is paid upon the initial receipt of a residence permit) and the purchase of interest-free government bonds in the amount of 250,000 euros (the amount of the fee upon the initial receipt of a residence permit in this case will be 38,000 euros). The basis for obtaining a residence permit can be any kind of subordinated obligations with the bank, including securities, shares, etc. This is the fastest way to obtain a residence permit, since the registration of the contract takes one day, and for this there is no need for the personal presence of the investor in Riga.
This type of investment gives the right to apply for a residence permit in Latvia for a period of 5 years, not only to the investor personally, as a contributor, but also to his family members (spouse and minor children, as well as to persons in care). The most important condition is that the contribution must be made by an individual. After 5 years, you can extend the term of the deposit or get your capital back and then choose any other method of obtaining a residence permit in Latvia.
The term for consideration of documents is from 1 to 12 months (sometimes more), depending on the person and his history, however, on average, consideration takes 2-3 months. Politically exposed persons need to provide a lot of documents and tell the whole story of their activities. If everything is in order with the origin of the funds, then there will be no problems with obtaining a residence permit. Demand is growing again every year after a sharp decline due to changing conditions. Now, most often, a residence permit is requested by families wishing to move to Latvia for permanent residence - in this case, a residence permit is given to a spouse, wife and children under 18 years of age.
Growing interest in Latvian residence permit
This year, compared to last year, interest has increased. So, a residence permit on the basis of real estate in the first 6 months of this year received 49 investors (not including family members), of which 33 investors are from Russia. During the same period last year - 35 real estate investors (21 of them from Russia).
The number of refusals when applying for a residence permit in Latvia for the purchase of real estate today is not so small. The Office of Citizenship and Migration of Latvia does not always act in the legal interests of the recipient of the residence permit. It also happens that many situations are created artificially in order to complicate the process of obtaining or renewing a residence permit. Most often, there are additional checks on the origin of the legality of funds, but it happens that there is interest in the work book, biography of parents, spouse, business partners of the company. In this case, qualified legal assistance is required. It is expected that in the near future an international public organization will be created, which will centrally work in the interests of clients from Russia and other CIS countries, providing them with legal assistance.
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However, the purchase of real estate remains the most popular way of obtaining an investment residence permit for non-residents. In 2018, 76 foreign real estate buyers issued Latvian residence permits, and Russians became the leaders in the number of permits received - they own 47 residential and commercial properties. Together with them, 121 family members received their visas. They are followed by the citizens of Iraq, Ukraine and Uzbekistan.
Of the 278 residence permits issued to investors and their families in the first six months of 2019, 103 were granted to Vietnamese. The Russians were already in second place with 98 permits issued. In total, as of July 1, 2019, on the basis of the purchase of real estate, 3,715 investors were registered, excluding family members, of which 2,648 people are citizens of Russia.
Thank you for your help in preparing the material:
Irina Alazova, head of the Mercury Group
Maxim Sitnik and Alvis Pilags, experts at Capital Property
Alexey Astupchuk, specialist of MetropolisRiga
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