(Prensa Latina) The British government on Thursday announced the closure of the visa scheme that allowed wealthy people to obtain residence in the United Kingdom in an expedite manner in exchange for a millionaire investment in the country.
According to a statement by the Home Office, this decision, with immediate effect, was taken for security reasons, following the detection of cases of people who amassed their fortunes illegally.
To obtain the so-called ‘golden visa’, applicants were previously only required to invest two million pounds sterling (2.7 million dollars) in companies based in the United Kingdom and to have a British bank account.
According to the Times, since its implementation in 2008, the British immigration service granted at least 700 such permits to Russian oligarchs.
Although highly criticized because it can lend itself to money laundering operations or hide ill-gotten money, the scheme is not exclusive to the United Kingdom, as it is in force in some 20 countries, including the United States and many members of the European Union.
Be the first to comment