If you are wealthy or have special skills, countries all over the world are offering tempting residency deals and tax breaks to lure expats to their shores.
The special golden ticket deals are prompted by many countries seeking younger talent to shore up aging populations or to generate wealth for investment in businesses to create jobs for locals.
Whatever the reason, many governments are putting the welcome mat out for selected expats.
What’s on offer
Here are a few of the offers:
- Portugal hands fast track residency to individuals buying properties worth at least 500,000 euros, with at least 10,000 expats taking up the offer
- Spain is ready with a residency programme for expats from outside the European Union willing to spend more than 500,000 euros on property
- Antigua and Grenada are inviting expats who can invest £245,000 in the Caribbean sunshine paradises
- Mauritius gives residency to expats buying homes worth more than £305,000 in specific resorts. The government also offers tax breaks for spouses and families – including no capital gains tax and no inheritance tax.
- Barbados has an exclusive residency offer for the extremely wealthy who have cash and investments worth more than £3 million – even if their income comes from overseas – that provides an income tax rate of just 2.45%
- Malaysia attracts a lot of British expats with the government’s second home program. Expats aged over 50 with £190,000 to buy a home, another £95,000 in cash savings and an offshore income of at least £18,000 a year.
The deal is a 10-year residency visa and allows for spouses, parents over 60 and unmarried children under 21 to accompany the expat qualifying under the scheme.
Other countries with residency schemes for expats with special skills include Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Britain and Canada.
Malta under fire
Malta’s new residency scheme has come under fire from the European Union as a cash-for-passports offer that lets expats who can pay into Europe through a back-door.
Travel rules mean the holder of an EU passport has the freedom to move and live anywhere within the EU.
Expats, mainly from Russia and China, could pay between 220,000 euros and 400,000 euros, depending on where they settle on the Mediterranean islands. The scheme also comes with tax breaks allowing expats to pay less income tax and capital gains tax on local and foreign earnings.
