Golden visas that closed — and what's still open in 2026

Spain's property-based golden visa was abolished on 3 April 2025, with the decision published in the BOE in January 2025. The government cited housing affordability as its reason. No new applications are accepted. People who applied before the deadline and existing holders are grandfathered under the prior rules.

Spain still has residency routes for people with income or remote-work arrangements. The Non-Lucrative Visa requires $2,600/month in income. The Digital Nomad Visa under the Startups Law sets the bar at $3,050/month. Neither involves a property purchase, and neither grants the same fast track to permanent residency that the golden visa offered — that's a real trade-off worth understanding before choosing a route.

Separately, nationals of Latin American countries, Portugal, Andorra, the Philippines, or Equatorial Guinea can access a 2-year residency fast track based on heritage or nationality ties — not a pure bloodline test. Details are at the Ministry of Justice.

The European Court of Justice ruled on 29 April 2025 that Malta's citizenship-by-investment scheme breaches EU law and must be discontinued. The ECJ's reasoning, published in case C-181/23, found that selling EU citizenship — with all the free-movement rights that come with it — is incompatible with the EU Treaty framework. Malta is replacing the scheme with a merit and contribution-based framework, though no replacement program with published rules is currently active.

Malta's residency options remain open. The Nomad Residence Permit requires $3,750/month in income. The Malta Permanent Residence Programme (MPRP) requires a $175,000 investment or deposit — that's permanent residency, not citizenship, and it's a meaningful distinction. Every golden visa still open, ranked includes the MPRP alongside other active investment routes.

Portugal's revised Nationality Law, promulgated on 3 May 2026, abolished the Sephardic citizenship route. The Lisbon Jewish Community stopped accepting new certifications the following day, on 4 May 2026. Applications filed before that date continue under the prior rules. From April 2024 the route had already tightened, requiring three years' residence plus demonstrated community ties — so the final closure was the end of a longer contraction, not a sudden reversal.

Portugal's other routes remain open and are more broadly accessible. The D7 Passive Income / Retirement Visa requires $990/month. The D8 Digital Nomad Visa requires $3,950/month. For investors, Portugal's Golden Visa still exists in its investment-fund form, requiring a $585,000 investment — the direct property purchase route was removed earlier, but the fund route survived. And for those with Portuguese ancestry, a grandparent route exists: a Portuguese grandparent (or great-grandparent) who did not lose their nationality can be the basis for a citizenship claim, with the grandparent line requiring proof of ties.

Spain's special Sephardic naturalisation law closed to new applications on 1 October 2019. The program drew a large number of applicants before it ended, and no replacement Sephardic route has been created. Sephardic descendants who want Spanish residency or citizenship now face the standard options: the 10-year residency path, or the 2-year Ibero-American fast track if they hold an eligible nationality.

This one makes the list because it still appears on active immigration sites as a viable option. It hasn't been viable for years.

For readers who landed here because a specific country was on their shortlist, here's a summary of what's actually open. These are the routes we track with published, verifiable requirements — not estimates.

• Spain — Non-Lucrative Visa: $2,600/month income
• Spain — Digital Nomad Visa (Startups Law): $3,050/month income
• Spain — Ibero-American 2-year fast track: nationals of eligible countries (Latin America, Portugal, Andorra, Philippines, Equatorial Guinea)
• Malta — Nomad Residence Permit: $3,750/month income
• Malta — Permanent Residence Programme (MPRP): $175,000 investment/deposit
• Portugal — D7 Passive Income / Retirement Visa: $990/month income
• Portugal — D8 Digital Nomad Visa: $3,950/month income
• Portugal — Golden Visa (investment fund route): $585,000 investment
• Portugal — Citizenship by Descent (grandparent route): Portuguese grandparent or great-grandparent who did not lose their nationality

Each government makes its own admissions decisions, and published requirements can change. Cross-check any route you're seriously considering against the official source before acting on it. Every golden visa still open, ranked keeps this list current and links to primary sources for each program.

The closures follow two distinct patterns. Spain's golden visa and Portugal's Sephardic route were ended by domestic governments responding to political pressure — housing costs in Spain's case, and concerns about the integrity of the citizenship process in Portugal's. These are legislative decisions that can, in theory, be reversed, though there's no indication either country plans to do so.

Malta's case is different. The ECJ ruling applies EU-wide legal principles to citizenship-by-investment schemes, and it sets a precedent that other EU member states with similar programs are watching closely. A program shut down by a court ruling faces a higher bar to revival than one ended by a parliamentary vote.

The practical takeaway: investment migration programs are politically exposed. They attract scrutiny from housing advocates, tax authorities, and — in the EU — supranational courts. The routes that have survived longest tend to be income-based rather than purchase-based, or they're structured as residency programs rather than direct citizenship. That's not a guarantee of permanence, but it's the pattern the published record shows.