Malta’s “golden passports” programme for wealthy investors violates European Union rules on citizenship, the bloc’s top court ruled in a case that could have transformed the EU into a haven for affluent foreigners at a time when President Donald Trump wants to entice them to the US.
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The tiny island nation’s offer, which granted nationality to investors, among them Russian and Middle Eastern tycoons, celebrities and sports stars, contravenes EU law, the European Court of Justice ruled on Tuesday.
An EU nation “cannot grant its nationality – and indeed European citizenship – in exchange for predetermined payments or investments, as this essentially amounts to rendering the acquisition of nationality a mere commercial transaction,” the Luxembourg-based EU court said.
President Trump has recently made moves to entice rich foreign investors stateside. The so-called “Trump Gold Card” offers residency and a path to citizenship to investors who pay US$5 million to the US treasury. US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick has claimed the government sold more than 1,000 visas on a single day in March.
Malta’s investor citizenship programme, meanwhile, has allowed individuals to obtain citizenship so they can live and work there, with a minimum donation of €600,000 (US$684,400). The required investments also include buying a house, and voluntary donations are encouraged. As an EU nation, Maltese passports grant holders the freedom to live and work anywhere inside the 27-member bloc.
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