The changes expected to be implemented since 31 March on the Greek market for its acquisition , as the threshold increases in some areas to 800,000 euros , while in the rest of the country to 400,000 euros . The new measures of the Government, however, have caused the reaction of the real estate market, with experts saying that the country intends to put a gravestone on the Golden Visa programme, which brought to Greece from 2021 to 2023 chapters of 4.3 billion euros. Specifically, as Minister of Finance Kostis Hatzidakis announced yesterday, in the centre of Athens, in the northern and southern suburbs, in the Municipality of Thessaloniki, Mykonos and Santorini and in the areas such as Evia and Crete, the limit of Golden Visa will now be 800,000 euros. Throughout the rest of the country, the threshold will also be increased to 400,000 euros. The amount of EUR 250,000 will, in fact, only concern the remaining properties, with the government thus aiming to make use of them and to put them on the market. Also, 250,000 euros will remain in the properties whose use from professional to residential. The conversion of the use must be completed prior to the submission of the application for the residence permit. Another important change brought about by the new measures is the fact that third country investors will now be able to buy only 120 sq.m. surface properties above, which may also be the key to the housing crisis, as the smaller houses, which Greek buyers prefer, will be released. It was also announced that investors would be prohibited from using real estate through the digital short-term lease platforms. Furthermore, it should be stressed that even for indivisible ownership, the non-EU third country investor should pay at least the limit (e.g. EUR 800,000 for the Region of Attica) regardless of the ownership rate, but also the value of the property. However, these changes do not seem to have been accepted by market professionals, who in the majority of them say that the new measures aim to abolish the Golden Visa programme in Greece. In fact, many are concerned that foreign investment in residential property will be rapidly reduced and that they will turn to other cheaper countries. Moreover, continuing changes create a climate of instability and uncertainty for the Greek market that further removes foreign investment, as the country’s credibility is lost. With regard to high prices, market operators make it clear that it is not the Golden Visa that is responsible but the real estate supply deficit because the closed properties are now up to one million. The new changes promoted to the Greek programme, as they argue, are not based on real data, but this is a purely political decision that does not help the Greek real estate market. Please note that the data show that from 2021 to 2023 the funds entered the country from abroad via the Golden Visa totaled more than €4.3 billion while the applications submitted reached 14,875 and the final approvals for inclusion in the programme were set at €7,387. Steady first in ranking for buying real estate through Golden Visa are Chinese, while significant increase is recorded in the three years 2021-2023 from the Middle East countries and also from the United Kingdom. The top ten at the end of 2023 make up the following: China, Turkey, Lebanon, Iran, United Kingdom, Egypt, USA, Israel, Russia and Ukraine.
Problems cause the new limits of the Golden Visa in the real estate market
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