Greece Golden Visa for Nigerian citizens

Greece Golden Visa is a residence permit by investment issued to non-EU citizens who significantly contribute to the Greek economy. Any Nigerian citizen over 18, with legal income and no criminal record, can apply for a Greece Golden Visa.

Greece Golden Visa Program

Applicants from Nigeria and their immediate family can get residence permits in Greece by investing in real estate, securities, Greek business, or opening a bank deposit. The most popular investment option is buying residential properties.

The rules under which investors are granted residence permits are regulated by the Greece Golden Visa Program, an initiative of the Greek government. Thirty thousand foreigners have acquired golden residence permits since the program started in 2014.

The Golden Visa holders are not required to live in Greece or pass a Greek language proficiency test.

The minimum investment required for a Greece Golden Visa is €250,000 (≈ NGN 123.5 million). Here and throughout the article, amounts in the Nigerian Naira are calculated on February 21st 2023.

For the minimum amount, applicants can buy or rent properties. Greece’s real estate option is the most inexpensive among EU countries that offer residence permits by property investment.

No minimum presence requirement. Nigerian citizens are not required to live in Greece to maintain and renew their residence permits.

Visa-free travelling to the Schengen Area. Greece residence permit holders can travel to other Schengen countries without a visa and spend up to 90 days out of 180.

Lyle Julien,

Investment programs expert

Nigeria has the third highest Schengen visa refusal rate after Syria and Ghana. Nigerians had 46.1% of their Schengen visa applications rejected in 2021. In addition, only 43.3% of issued visas were multiple-entry.

Greece residence permit eliminates the need to obtain Schengen visas and increases the number of visa-free destinations for Nigerian citizens from 46 countries to 73. This is significant progress towards freedom of movement.

Preparing a plan B. Investors and their families who hold a Golden Visa are allowed to enter Greece anytime, even when the country’s borders are closed to tourists. You are welcome to have vacations in Greece for as long as you want.

Be aware that there are no direct flights from Nigeria to Greece. The quickest flight takes 10 hours and has one stopover.

Relocation to Europe. Holders of the Golden Visa have the right to relocate to Greece, though it is not required. Some advantages of living in Greece are friendly locals, a relaxed pace of life and lovely weather. The crime rate in Greece is also low, so it is a safe country to live in. The Greek public healthcare system is great, especially in major cities.

EU citizenship in 7 years. After living in Greece for five years, investors can get permanent residency. They can apply for Greek citizenship after another two years.

Greece allows its citizens to hold several passports, so you will not have to renounce Nigerian citizenship if you are Nigerian by birth or descent.

Tax optimisation. New Greek residents can use one of the preferential tax regimes instead of paying income tax according to the progressive scale of up to 45%:

1. High-net-worth individuals can pay a flat tax of €100,000 (≈ NGN 49 million) annually on their global income.

2. Retirees can pay tax on their income at 7%.

3. Nigerians employed in Greece or conducting business in the country can get an exemption from tax on 50% of their income.

Yet, note there is no Double Tax Treaty between Greece and Nigeria.

Registering business in Greece to work with European customers without intermediaries or the need to pay commissions from trades to the partner.

Accounts in Greek banks. Nigerians with Greek residency can open personal and corporate bank accounts in Greek banks. It helps to avoid the foreign currency control effective in Nigeria, as well as keep savings in hard currency and eliminate losses from the Nigerian Naira decline.

Applicants for a Greece Golden Visa can include their family members in the applications. However, there are some limitations.

Family members that can join the investor:

• a spouse or partner with a Cohabitation Agreement registered and signed in Greece;

• unmarried children under the age of 21;

• spouse or partner’s unmarried children younger than 21 under the investor’s custody;

• investor or spouse’s parents, with no age limit.

Discover the advantages, terms, and details of the Greece residence-by-investment program

Greece offers several options for investors to obtain a residence-by-investment visa. Most of them have to do with buying or renting real estate.

The minimum investment amount of €250,000 (≈ NGN 123.5 million) applies to 5 options:

1. Real estate purchase. The investor can buy both residential and commercial properties in any area of Greece. It’s allowed to rent the real estate out.

2. Rent of property for 10 years. The investor can rent a hotel or a tourist residence, making a one-time payment before getting a residence permit.

3. Purchase of a plot of land. The investor can buy a plot of land to build a house or a farm. The investment includes the building contractors’ services and the site’s overall cost.

4. Timeshare for 10 years. The investor can sign an agreement that gives the right to use the property for specific periods, for example, from July 1st to 31st every year for 10 years.

5. Inheriting real estate or getting it as a gift. The inheritor must pass Due Diligence and submit the documents required in the residence permit application.

After May 1st 2023, the minimum investment in real estate purchases in Athens, Thessaloniki, Mykonos, and Santorini will increase to €500,000 (≈ NGN 247 million).

The investment of €400,000 (≈ NGN 197 million) applies to the following options:

1. Opening a bank deposit. The investor can deposit an investment amount in a term deposit bank account with automatic renewal. The initial term of the deposit is one year.

2. Capital injection. The applicant can invest in a venture capital fund, a real estate investment company or any other Greek company.

3. Purchase of securities. The investor can buy shares of mutual or alternative funds or Greek government bonds with a residual maturity of at least 3 years.

The maximum investment of €800,000 (≈ NGN 395 million) applies when the investor collects a portfolio of stocks and corporate and government bonds traded on the Greek stock exchanges with no restrictions on the maturity of the bonds.

Participation in the Greece Golden Visa Program requires additional expenses in the form of the application fee: €2,000 for the main applicant and €150 per adult dependent.

Upon the purchase of property, buyers pay the real estate transfer tax of 3,09% of its value.

The standard package of documents for the main applicant includes the following:

• application form for a residence permit in duplicate;

• four recent passport-type coloured pictures in printed form and on a CD;

• certified passport copy with a valid entry visa;

• copy of the investment summary;

• receipt on a state duty payment;

• receipt on payment of the residence permit card issuance fee;

• medical insurance;

• certificate of no criminal record;

• medical certificate confirming the absence of diseases that pose a risk to public health: HIV, tuberculosis and other infectious diseases.

For an additional family member, a certificate of marital status or a certificate confirming the relationship is required.

Each investment option requires specific documents confirming the fulfilment of the condition. For example, property buyers provide the purchase and sale agreement and the confirmation of the agreement registration with the Greek Land Register.

Nigerian Greece Golden Visa holders can apply for citizenship after living in Greece for seven years.

First, the investor obtains a golden residence permit and moves to Greece. After five years, they receive permanent residence or renew their Golden Visa. The investor gets the right to apply for Greek citizenship after another two years, with a €700 (≈ NGN 345.500) application fee.

To get a Greek passport, the applicant has to pass a Greek language proficiency test, a history exam, and take an oath of allegiance.

If the applicant’s minor children permanently live in Greece, they are automatically granted citizenship.

A faster way to get Greece permanent residence and citizenship is to marry a Greek citizen. In this scenario, an application for permanent residence can be submitted after three years of living in the country and citizenship after five years.

Greek citizenship gives you the opportunity to travel visa-free to 186 countries.

• Nigerian citizens can get a Greece residence permit by investing at least €250,000 (≈ NGN 123.5 million)

• Investors and their immediate family can get a Golden Visa through a variety of options: one can invest in real estate, Greek business, securities, or open a bank deposit

• After obtaining the Greece Golden residence card, Nigerians can travel visa-free to Schengen countries, relocate to Greece at any moment and apply for EU citizenship in seven years