Listen to the news

The European Commission has said it is referring Malta to the Court of Justice of the EU because the country continues to issue passports against foreign investment, known as "golden" passports.

According to the commission, the provision of passports in return for investing certain amounts in the economy of an EU country, without the investors having a real connection with that country, is in violation of the rules.

In October 2020, the EC demanded that Malta stop this activity, as the government in La Valletta has so far issued "golden" passports to several thousand foreign investors and their families.

Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Malta suspended until further notice the issuance of such passports to Russian and Belarusian citizens, but continued to issue documents to all other foreigners, the commission reported.

The EP expects the EC to ban the issuance of "golden" passports by the end of the year

It is specified that the acquisition of a passport of an EU country enables free movement, access to the single market and the right to vote and participate in elections for MEPs.

"Golden" passports (citizenship) and visas (right to stay) affect security, money laundering, tax evasion and corruption issues, the EC notes.

It is added that, following the commission's insistence, Cyprus has stopped issuing such documents and the EC is considering the next steps in the open criminal procedure against this country.

The Commission notes again that after the criminal procedure for the "golden" passports in Bulgaria, our country has stopped issuing such documents since April 5 of this year.

Malta

golden passports