Many wealthy investors in the U.S. are exploring moving overseas via golden visas and passports due to investment opportunities, retirement plans or concerns over political unrest, investment advisers say.
Such special visas and passports — typically offering citizenship or residency in return for a substantial financial investment — have proliferated in recent years, with countries racing to offer more generous incentives to attract wealthy investors and family offices.
The recent uptick in interest really began in the wake of the pandemic, when so many people were limited in their freedom of movement.
“I think COVID really accelerated the golden-passport idea because if you weren't a citizen, it was tough to get into certain countries,” said Patrick Kilbane, a wealth adviser at Ullman Wealth Partners in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. “If you had dual citizenship, it would be much easier.”
Golden visas often offer residency permits for several years with the potential to gain citizenship. Golden passports go a step further, offering citizenship in return for a substantial investment ranging from $100,000 to a few million dollars.
Among the high-profile applicants are Peter Thiel, who has a second citizenship in New Zealand, and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, who recently applied for citizenship in Cyprus.
Some countries clamp down, others open up
Across Europe, countries are phasing out their golden visas for a variety of reasons, ranging from reducing real estate speculation to security concerns resulting from the Ukraine war.
This year, the Netherlands announced that it will end its golden-visa scheme. Portugal and Spain have tightened their requirements for a golden visa, removing real estate investment as a basis for such applications. Australia recently scrapped its golden-visa program, which required a $3.3 million investment and was popular with Chinese investors, after determining that it was “delivering poor economic outcomes.”
But other countries have jumped in to fill the gap. Hungary is announcing a new initiative that allows real estate investors to get residency permits, Greece is expanding its popular golden-visa program, and Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates are launching new programs to attract wealthy investors.
Caribbean golden passports remain popular, though they’re about to get more expensive, with four countries in the region agreeing to charge at least $200,000 starting this summer.
The top destinations for additional passports among Americans are Portugal, Malta, Greece and Italy, according to Henley & Partners.
“There’s a lot of buzz around it and certainly a lot more interest than what was the case in years past,” said Gerald Goldberg, CEO and co-founder of GYL Financial Synergies, based in West Hartford, Connecticut. He attributes the appeal to a range of factors, ranging from business opportunities and the chance to expand into new markets to new cultural experiences and real estate investment opportunities.
Political landscape could push families abroad
Wealthy individuals and families in the U.S. and elsewhere might be motivated by concerns over elevated levels of political uncertainty. “It gives them pause and they say, ‘If I can afford to move, why not? If heaven forbid things really go badly in my country, then I have an option to go elsewhere.’ ”
Another factor is philanthropic. “Can their philanthropic dollars go further in that particular country, and does that benefactor want the ease of ability to see their dollars at work,” said Kilbane of Ullman Wealth Partners.
Jon Ekoniak, managing partner at Bordeaux Wealth Advisers in Menlo Park, California, has several clients who are getting golden visas to Portugal. “They don’t have plans to move there, and they’re not doing it for political reasons,” Ekoniak said. “They just want flexibility long term.”
Tax implications also a factor
In recent years, Singapore, Hong Kong and the UAE have offered generous tax incentives to attract family offices and wealthy investors from around the world to their shores. But wealthy Americans who are interested in getting golden passports and golden visas don’t necessarily want to move their family office overseas, advisers said, due to logistical hurdles and the lack of tax advantages.
“Most of the time, the U.S. is going to tax you on your worldwide income,” said a wealth adviser based in New York City. “So it doesn’t really help you if you have a foreign corporation, unless you relinquish your citizenship.”
Giving up citizenship is a big step but might be an attractive option for both entrepreneurs and retirees, Kilbane said. “Maybe you want to avoid an estate tax problem; and also, the giving exemption is set to potentially scale back at the beginning of 2026, so you pay the U.S. exit tax and set up in St. Kitts or New Zealand or wherever.”
There is a long list of countries that have scrapped their estate tax, from Austria to Mexico.
“Many people want flexibility of where they can live now, into retirement and potentially for future generations,” Ekoniak said. “A golden passport offers them that opportunity.”