PASOK to launch campaign against ‘golden visas’
PASOK leader Nikos Androulakis pledged on Friday to launch a campaign against the residence-permit-for-property-buys scheme of the government, widely known as the golden visa, claiming that this renders the Greek economy less Greek.
In an interview with SKAI TV on Friday afternoon, Androulakis called on Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis “not to operate his office as an estate agency” and to “abolish the golden visa … yesterday, as Ireland did.”
His reference concerned the housing problem that mainly young people tend to face in Athens and other major cities, for lack of available apartments to rent or buy at affordable rates.
“The government thinks it is dealing with the problem by raising the golden visa threshold to €500,000 in Athens, while leaving, for example, the limit at €250,000 in Piraeus. Is there anything in downtown Athens that hasn’t been bought?” asked Androulakis.
The government has raised the threshold for the issue of the five-year residence permit to non-European Union investors in property in Greece from €250,000 to €500,000 in some areas including Athens.
The head of the parliament’s third party, that is now second in opinion polls ahead of leftist SYRIZA, added that “the golden visa was a policy implemented in many European states due to the 10-year economic crisis. The measure has reached its limits, which is why [other countries] are repealing or suspending it. Ireland, Portugal, Spain did it. Mr. Mitsotakis insists on the kind of growth that makes the Greek economy less Greek. I will start a campaign to lead the government to abolish the golden visa,” he promised.
Regarding short-term rentals and the government’s recent legislative intervention based only on the number of properties, Androulakis spoke of gaps: “I asked [Economy and Finance Minister Kostis] Hatzidakis in Parliament if three studio apartments in the center of Athens are equivalent to one villa in Mykonos, which in terms of income corresponds to 10-15 studio apartments in the center of Athens,” said the PASOK leader.
Success of golden visa
In the first half of 2023 alone, the inflow of funds into the Greek real estate market from abroad exceeded €1 billion. Among these inflows, Chinese investors still contributed the largest amount. Although there has been a slight decline in the past two years, Chinese investors are still the largest contributor to Greek real estate. are the main buyers, and there has been a clear upward trend recently.
According to Greek official data, from January to October this year, the Greek authorities have issued 2,659 golden visas. From the start of the program up to October 2023, there have been 37,413 Greek golden visas issued.
Among them, Chinese investors accounted for the largest proportion, with a total of 6,159 golden visas, followed by Turkish investors with 698, Lebanese with 574, Iranians with 355, British with 339, Russians with 324, Egyptians with 313, Americans with 253, Israelis with 157 and Ukrainians with 98.
Between October 2022 and October 2023, there were 11,208 first-time applications and renewals for the Greek golden visa, of which 3,307 have been issued, 22 have been rejected, and 7,879 are pending. The majority of pending applications involve investors from China (69.6%), followed by investors from Turkey (8.1%) and Iran (3%).
The Greek “golden visa” program was launched in July 2013. According to Greek law (4251/2014), if non-EU citizens purchase real estate in Greece worth more than €250,000, investors and their families can obtain a five-year renewable residence permit. As long as the investor keeps holding the property, the golden visa can be renewed every five years.
[Kathimerini, Greek Reporter China]
