The best golden visa countries in 2026.

Best new option: a clean, fund-based ten-year residence reintroduced in 2024.

The EU's longest residence permit, ten years for €250,000, but the door is only as wide as the approved fund list.

From

EUR 250,000 in an approved real-estate fund held for at least 5 years

Timeline

Official administrative period of 21 days once the residence-permit file is complete, excluding cure time and the preceding guest-investor entry stage

Citizenship

Residence only

Best for zero personal income tax and fast, low-friction processing.

Long-term renewable residence in a zero-personal-income-tax hub, with no minimum-stay obligation.

From

AED 2,000,000 (~$545,000)

Timeline

1 to 4 weeks

Citizenship

Residence only

Best for globally mobile wealth, paired with a flat-tax regime and a top-three passport.

Approval before you wire a euro: Italy is the rare European residency where the state says yes first.

From

EUR 250,000 innovative startup; EUR 500,000 Italian company; EUR 1 million philanthropy; EUR 2 million government bonds

Timeline

The Investor Visa Committee decides a complete online application within 30 days; consular issuance, entry, residence-permit issuance and funding are separate stages

Citizenship

10 years

Best for speed and a low entry point into the European Union.

A real-estate-led EU residence route with three price tiers and no minimum stay for renewal.

From

EUR 250,000 only for qualifying change-of-use or listed-building restoration projects; standard property starts at EUR 400,000 or EUR 800,000 by location

Timeline

The official special-property procedures estimate 50 to 60 days for the administrative stage; acquisition, documents, biometrics and card delivery add separate time

Citizenship

7 years

Permanent Gulf residence from BHD 130,000 in property, with no minimum stay and unusually broad family inclusion.

Permanent Gulf residence from BHD 130,000 in property, with no minimum stay and unusually broad family inclusion.

From

BHD 130,000 in qualifying property

Timeline

5 working days for property-owner applications

Citizenship

Residence only

Best for the lowest cost of entry to EU residence.

Europe's cheapest golden visa, from €50,000, with a route-closing law passed by parliament but returned unsigned and awaiting an autumn re-vote.

From

EUR 50,000 share capital plus a EUR 10,000 state payment for the qualifying small-company route

Timeline

State processing service levels are 30 days, 10 working days or 5 working days by fee selected; completeness, external checks, biometrics and card delivery can add time

Citizenship

10 years

Permanent residence from day one, a fast 30 to 60 day file, and a $300,000 real estate floor that is now the standing minimum.

Permanent residence from day one, a fast 30 to 60 day file, and a $300,000 real estate floor that is now the standing minimum.

From

USD 300,000 in real estate (standing minimum, no scheduled increase)

Timeline

About 30 to 60 days to permanent residence

Citizenship

5 years

A clean, safe-haven residence for serious capital that asks very little time in country, but the price of entry is high and a passport is many years away.

A clean, safe-haven residence for serious capital that asks very little time in country, but the price of entry is high and a passport is many years away.

From

NZD 5,000,000 (~USD 3,000,000) over 3 years into Growth-category direct investments or approved managed funds

Timeline

80% of Active Investor Plus approval-in-principle decisions within 10 weeks; then 6 months to transfer and invest

Citizenship

5 years

A lifetime EU residence permit for a single 300,000 euro investment, with no obligation to actually live there.

A lifetime EU residence permit for a single 300,000 euro investment, with no obligation to actually live there.

From

EUR 300,000 plus VAT where applicable across four qualifying investment categories

Timeline

About 2 months under the official fast-track procedure once the file is complete

Citizenship

8 years

A low-cost, low-tax Indian Ocean residence that you can buy with one property purchase, but the passport at the end is slow and discretionary.

A low-cost, low-tax Indian Ocean residence that you can buy with one property purchase, but the passport at the end is slow and discretionary.

From

USD 375,000 in approved real estate; the investor Occupation Permit is transitioning from USD 50,000 to the Budget-announced USD 100,000 threshold, subject to implementing law and live EDB guidance

Timeline

2 to 6 months to a permit

Citizenship

5 years

Five-year renewable property residence from QAR 730,000, with a higher USD 1 million tier carrying permanent-residence privileges.

Five-year renewable property residence from QAR 730,000, with a higher USD 1 million tier carrying permanent-residence privileges.

From

QAR 730,000 in qualifying property

Timeline

No fixed government processing time is published

Citizenship

Residence only

Best for low-stay EU residence, with a longer and nationality-dependent naturalization horizon.

Europe's most flexible residence-by-investment route, now with a longer road to the passport.

From

€250,000 (cultural donation; €200,000 in low-density areas)

Timeline

Roughly 24 to 42 months from submission to the first residence card; legacy backlog cases can take longer

Citizenship

10 years

Best for direct European permanent residence from grant.

A permanent foothold in the EU and Schengen, with no path to a passport and no illusions about one.

From

Buy qualifying property for EUR 375,000 or rent for EUR 14,000 per year, plus mandatory administration, contribution and donation

Timeline

No official guaranteed end-to-end service standard is published

Citizenship

Residence only

Buy tax certainty and a Swiss address by negotiating a fixed annual tax, not by buying a passport, and only the genuinely wealthy clear the bar.

Buy tax certainty and a Swiss address by negotiating a fixed annual tax, not by buying a passport, and only the genuinely wealthy clear the bar.

From

No federal investment-for-residence minimum; tax treatment and immigration admission are separate decisions

Timeline

Canton- and case-specific

Citizenship

10 years

The world's most exclusive tax-free address, but it is wealth-tested rented residency, not a buy-it citizenship, and naturalization is almost never granted.

The world's most exclusive tax-free address, but it is wealth-tested rented residency, not a buy-it citizenship, and naturalization is almost never granted.

From

No government-defined investment minimum; suitable accommodation, sufficient means and good character are required

Timeline

Case-specific residence-permit process

Citizenship

Residence only

A new 10-year Gulf residence program with property, company, securities, deposit and job-creation routes.

A new 10-year Gulf residence program with property, company, securities, deposit and job-creation routes.

From

OMR 200,000 (about USD 520,000)

Timeline

No fixed government processing time is published

Citizenship

Residence only

The world's strongest passport, but only for proven operators who actually move to Singapore.

The world's strongest passport, but only for proven operators who actually move to Singapore.

From

S$10 million (business route)

Timeline

Staged process: EDB assessment, investment completion after approval in principle, then ICA permanent-residence formalisation

Citizenship

2 years

Sponsor-free Gulf residence through SAR 4 million in property or a SAR 7 million operating-business route.

Sponsor-free Gulf residence through SAR 4 million in property or a SAR 7 million operating-business route.

From

SAR 4,000,000 in qualifying property

Timeline

No fixed official processing time is published

Citizenship

Residence only

A long-stay lifestyle visa you buy outright or a free 10-year residence you qualify into, with real foreign-income tax relief on the LTR but no path to a Thai passport on either.

A long-stay lifestyle visa you buy outright or a free 10-year residence you qualify into, with real foreign-income tax relief on the LTR but no path to a Thai passport on either.

From

THB 650,000 (~USD 19,000) one-time membership fee for the Thailand Privilege Bronze tier; the LTR visa has no membership fee but the Wealthy Global Citizen route needs USD 500,000 placed in Thai assets

Timeline

1 to 3 months

Citizenship

Residence only

Quebec's investor program is open under strict French and residence rules; Canada's federal founder route is paused.

Quebec's investor program is open under strict French and residence rules; Canada's federal founder route is paused.

From

QIIP: CAD 1,000,000 refundable 5-year investment + CAD 200,000 contribution; CAD 2,000,000 net worth required

Timeline

QIIP: 3-year work permit, then permanent residence after the required Quebec presence and federal processing

Citizenship

Residence only

A renewable long-stay visa, not citizenship: cheap to live on, expensive to qualify for, and with no real passport upside.

A renewable long-stay visa, not citizenship: cheap to live on, expensive to qualify for, and with no real passport upside.

From

USD 150,000 fixed deposit (Silver tier) plus a MYR 600,000 (~USD 146,000) property purchase; Sarawak S-MM2H requires an RM500,000 (~USD 122,000) fixed deposit with no property requirement

Timeline

About 4 to 8 months from application to visa endorsement

Citizenship

Residence only

A real green card through investment, if you can wait out the queue.

A real green card through investment, if you can wait out the queue.

From

USD 800,000 (TEA: rural or high-unemployment area)

Timeline

Variable. Rural petitions receive statutory priority, but USCIS does not publish a durable end-to-end service standard; visa availability and later stages add separate waits.

Citizenship

5 years