For applicants interested in starting the process to secure a second passport for Malta, there is just one month until deadline for residency.
The EU country’s citizenship by investment program – the Individual Investor Programme (IIP) – is set to reach its cap of 1,800 applications.
While applications for citizenship under the IIP can be made until September 30, for those who already have residency, applications for residence under the same programme are only being accepted until July 31.
The first EU-approved citizenship by investment program, Malta’s IIP requires significant residency and travel requirements with applicants granted residency first before obtaining citizenship following a 12-month period of residency on the island. However, physical presence is not required with such residency, but simply owning or renting a property in Malta.
Its residency requirements have certainly raised controversy therefore with the European Commission, and Malta’s IIP was due to be ditched once it received its 1,800 cap, which it is close to achieving. However, the programme has given the government’s revenues a necessary boost and it seems likely that the Maltese government will extend the IIP.
Not just that, the IIP’s proponents argue that the program is focused on attracting talent and individuals of high moral standards and those granted residency and subsequently citizenship are individuals who have proven they can add value to the country.
While the financial investment in securing citizenship in Malta via the IIP is heavy, requiring a total investment of €1,150,000, and the process is long, a single three-level investment strategy taking up to 14 months, the programme has proven to be popular, mainly due to its many benefits, including being part of the EU.
Along with Austria, Malta’s citizenship investment program offers the greatest freedom of movement of any programmes with visa-free access to 184 countries as well as the ability to live, work and study anywhere in the EU. In fact, according to the Henley Passport Index and Global Mobility Report 2019, Malta scores 7th out of 109 countries for freedom of mobility.
It also helps that Malta is one of the strongest and most stable economies of the EU, delivering a high standard of living with high life expectancy and safety levels and offering one of the best universal free healthcare systems worldwide.
To find out more about Malta’s IIP or to apply before the deadline of July 31, visit https://iip.gov.mt/malta