Citizenship by investment is a unique way to gain the citizenship of a country by investing in it. Many investors second citizenship by investment due to the fact that it gives them an opportunity to invest in foreign projects that might take off and give them good returns as well as the due to the citizenship that they might gain by doing so. But there are still many people who are unaware of such programs and how long it takes to gain citizenship by using these programs.
As for the time taken to gain citizenship by investment, it is important to know that different countries around the world have different legislations that allow for citizenship by investment. These individual legislations affect the time taken to gain citizenship by investment in their respective countries. Hence, it means that the time taken to gain citizenship by investment is different for every country. Below is a classification of how long it takes for different countries to provide citizenship under this program.
6 to 7 months
Smaller countries mostly have an easier and faster way to gain such a citizenship. Cyprus is one such country that can provide citizenship within a year of investment at about the point of 6 to 7 months.
2 to 3 years
When it comes to the UK the timespan for providing citizenship may vary based on the amount of money one has invested. This means that if individual A has invested more money than individual B, A would be able to apply for permanent residency or ILR (Indefinite Leave to Remain) earlier than B. As for the specifics, people who invest 5 million euros will be able to apply for permanent residency after three years whereas those who have invested 10 million euros will be able to apply for it after just 2 years.
5 years (can be reduced to 1 year)
When it comes to countries like Bulgaria, one can expect a faster way to gain Residency and citizenship. According to Bulgarian laws, one can receive the permanent residency after 6 months of their investment and subsequently came the citizenship after 5 years. 5 years can be considered a long time to wait for gaining citizenship, hence there are opportunities for investors to reduce the time taken to apply for citizenship. This can be done by investing a certain amount required by law in government bonds or real estate. This will then help the investor in getting the opportunity to apply for citizenship within 1 year of the first investment.
7 years
Greece is one such country that provides a permanent residency quite early but takes time to convert that into a permanent citizenship. One can apply for residency after 1 to 2 months of making the investment whereas to apply for citizenship one has to complete their 7 year residency in the country.
Conclusion
Hence, it should be noted that every country has different laws with regards to how quickly one can gain citizenship by investment in that particular country. Smaller countries which require higher investment from outside 10 to provide such citizenship at a lesser time to gain and attract more investors. Countries with already established economies on the other hand tend to take some time before they could provide a full citizenship.
