Law 1/2025, of 2 January, on measures in terms of efficiency of the Public Justice Service, puts an end to the Golden Visa as of 3 April 2025.

The Golden Visa, introduced through Law 14/2013, of 27 September, on support for entrepreneurs and their internationalisation, offered the possibility of obtaining a residence visa to foreign citizens who made significant capital investments in Spain, with the aim of promoting investment in strategic sectors and contributing to economic development. In this way, investments could materialize in the following scenarios:

1. Financial investments:

• In Spanish public debt: €2 million.
• In shares or shareholdings: €1million in companies with a real activity in Spain.
• In investment or venture capital funds: €1 million.
• In bank deposits: €1 million in bank deposits in Spanish financial institutions.

2. Real estate investment: purchase of real estate in Spain for at least €500,000.

3. Business projects of general interest: with the fulfilment of at least one of the following conditions:

• Job creation.
• Relevant social-economic impact in the geographical area in which the activity is to be carried out.
• Important contribution to scientific and/or technological innovation.

The granting of the visa authorized the person to reside and work in Spain during its validity. The duration of the initial authorisation was 3 years, and renewals were contemplated for successive periods of 5 years, provided that the conditions that generated the right to the granting of the visa were met.

Law 1/2025 puts an end to the granting of new Golden Visas, although a transitional regime is established by virtue of which:

1) Applications submitted before 3 April 2025 may receive the corresponding visa or authorisation in accordance with the regulations in force on the date of submission of the application.
2) Renewals of visas and authorisations for investors for the acquisition of real estate, valid on 3 April 2025, will be kept for the time for which they were issued and renewal applications will be processed and resolved in accordance with the regulations in force on the date of granting the initial authorisation.

ALEJANDRO PUYO
Business Immigration/Tax Area