Currently, the Golden Visa scheme permits non-EU citizens who invest a minimum of £429,000 in Spanish property to live and work in the country for three years.
Are you affected by the change? Email [email protected] expats today slammed Spain 's 'absolutely crazy' plan to stop its Golden Visa scheme and warned properties could be left empty without overseas buyers.
The father of two said he was just in the process of applying for a Golden Visa when he heard the news they were being axed this morning - leaving him in limbo. He told MailOnline: 'We agreed to buy the villa off plan and were promised a Golden Visa. The lawyer was just in the process of preparing the application this very moment.
Branding the decision to revoke Golden Visa 'virtue signalling', Mr Noon continued: 'It's absolutely crazy, I have long credited the Spanish Government for their intelligence in releasing that all we Brits do is spend money when we are here. Sean Wooley is a British expat who lives in Marbella and runs Cloud Nine Spain, which sells 'prestige' properties and counts wealthy Brits and Americans on Golden Visas as his customers.
Mr Wooley noted that fewer than 10,000 Golden Visas had been granted in Spain in the last 10 years, so ending the scheme would have a 'negligible effect' on the wider property market. 'Most people believe that we are seeing an influx of Russian and Chinese people taking advantage of the Golden Visa,' he said.
Matt King, who has lived in Spain for 25 years, said he read about the news this morning in the Spanish press. He said: 'Today, 94 out of every 100 such visas are linked to real estate investment... in major cities like Barcelona, Madrid, Malaga, Alicante, Valencia or Palma de Mallorca that are facing a highly stressed market and where it's almost impossible to find decent housing for those who already live, work and pay their taxes there.'
Spain's decision follows Portugal's move to end its similar non-habitual resident visa scheme, which offered lucrative tax breaks to foreigners who spend more than six months a year in the country. 'What's being done isn't hugely different from other European countries, but it's not a positive message.'
While alternative routes to residency exist, they often come with more stringent criteria and tax implications. Mrs Heeley and her husband Brian, who voted Remain in the 2016 referendum, have now sold up after struggling with the lengthy bureaucratic process of applying for long-term visas
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