Immigrate to Spain

Oulang.com reported on May 12 (Reporter/Advocate) that since November last year it was reported that the Spanish government plans to implement a "buy a house and get a residence" policy for foreigners, and set the minimum price for buying a house. After 160,000 euros, relevant news has been the focus of attention of many Chinese, especially compatriots at home. According to the news, they may increase the minimum price of the "buy a house and get a residence permit" policy from 160,000 euros to 500,000 euros. In other words, foreigners must purchase real estate in Spain worth more than 500,000 euros in order to be eligible to apply for Spanish residence.

While many Chinese people are discussing the specific content of this policy and the possibility of its future implementation, relevant agencies of the Spanish government have also been subject to numerous criticisms and questions from home and abroad. Among them, the main objection in Spain is that "the price of 160,000 is too cheap." The attention of many overseas people, especially the huge enthusiasm of some Chinese people and media on this matter, has also made the Spanish government realize that the price threshold for buying a house and getting a residence permit is a bit too low.

Under such circumstances, there has been news recently from relevant Spanish government departments that they may increase the minimum price of the "buy a house and get a residence permit" policy from 160,000 euros to 500,000 euros. In other words, foreigners must purchase real estate in Spain worth more than 500,000 euros in order to be eligible to apply for Spanish residence.

“The price of 160,000 is too cheap”

In fact, the policy of getting a residence permit when buying a house is only one of the contents that the Spanish government will amend to the Aliens Law. Since last autumn, various departments of the Spanish government, including the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Labor, Ministry of Taxation, Ministry of Development and other departments, have begun to transfer manpower to form a temporary comprehensive department responsible for the drafting of amendments to the "Aliens Law" . Among many policy plans, how to effectively attract foreign businessmen and foreign investment is also one of the important considerations.

The policy concept of “buying a house with 160,000 euros and getting a residence permit” was revealed by Jaime García-Legaz., Spain’s Secretary of State in charge of economy and trade, in November last year. The purpose of his disclosure of this news is, to a certain extent, to examine the reactions of all parties in society so as to make corresponding adjustments to the government's policy concepts.

After the relevant news was announced, there was a lot of criticism in Spain. Among the many objections, "residency is sold cheaply" is one of the main contents. In this case, the Spanish government has begun to plan to increase the price to more than 500,000 euros.

Not only did the domestic reaction in Spain make the government feel that its asking price was too low, but the unusual attention paid to the policy abroad also prompted the Spanish government to decide to raise the threshold for "buying a house and getting a residence permit." In fact, Spain's previous policy concept of "buying a house for 160,000 euros and getting a residence permit" has attracted the attention of a considerable number of people in China. In addition to Spain's good environment, its status as an EU member and other factors, the price of 160,000 euros is relatively high. House prices in major domestic cities such as Beijing and Shanghai are simply too cheap. After the relevant news reached China, there were also sighs about "cheapness" in relevant domestic comments. In this regard, many people even cannot believe the authenticity of this news.

It is understood that the draft amendment to Spain’s Aliens Law will be officially introduced in June this year. The new content in the draft regarding investment promotion includes, in addition to “500,000 Euros for buying a house and getting a residence permit,” it also includes some other preferential treatment for foreign investment. For example, if a foreigner invests more than 1 million euros in Spain and creates more than two jobs, or if a foreigner invests more than 500,000 euros in Spain and maintains this investment for a long time, he will be granted residence.

In addition, those who invest in Spanish stocks and bonds reaching a certain amount, as well as those who have studied for a master's degree or above in Spain and want to start a business here, will also be eligible to apply for residence.

Although the price threshold for "buying a house and getting residence for free" and "investing for residence" in Spain is much higher than before, it has a high degree of flexibility in terms of execution.

It is understood that in order to attract foreign investors, especially Chinese investors, many other European countries have also introduced relevant policies to encourage investment and home buying. In Portugal, the relevant new immigration policy has taken effect and has begun to be implemented. Compared with this, the pace of Spain is obviously much slower. For this reason, many people in the Spanish real estate industry feel that Portugal has taken away the Spanish market.

According to statistics from the Spanish Notary Council, the volume of housing transactions involving foreigners in Spain has been increasing in recent years. Of the 300,000 vacant homes sold in the country in the past year, 10 have been bought by foreign investors. For Spain, this means at least more than 8 billion euros in revenue. Just the taxes and fees paid by foreigners when buying houses can earn the Spanish tax authorities 2.5 million euros in revenue. However, in the eyes of real estate industry insiders, this is just the beginning.

Faced with the surging tide of foreigners buying houses in Spain, local real estate professionals also hope that the government will increase the price standard of "buying a house and getting a residence permit" in order to attract more investment. In this regard, they also urge the Spanish government to launch a new immigration policy as soon as possible and implement it, otherwise the opportunity will be snatched away by others.