London
CNN
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Europe may soon welcome a wave of wealthy Americans as Democratic voters face the prospect of another Donald Trump presidency seeking refuge abroad.

Interest in “golden visas” has skyrocketed among U.S. citizens since the election, according to consultants who help the wealthy emigrate. Golden visas allow people to effectively acquire foreign citizenship or residency through large investments, including real estate, government bonds or start-ups.

Henley & Partners, which claims to have invented the concept of citizenship by investment in the 1990s, said that surveys of US citizens through its website increased by almost 400% during the election week compared to the previous week.

However, most of these individuals do not plan to move to a new country permanently. “The real focus for most Americans is just having the optionality, like an insurance policy,” said Dominic Volek, head of private clients at Henley & Partners.

Arton Capital, another investment immigration consultancy, said it received more than 100 inquiries on the day Trump’s decisive victory was announced, five times the typical daily average.

“A very small percentage of these people actually relocate, but they all want to have that option as a Plan B,” CEO Armand Arton told CNN. “We will definitely be very busy in the US market for the next six months.”

An Italian village is trying to do this make the most of it Reasons for the sudden rise in demand: Following the election, the village of Ollolai on the island of Sardinia launched a website offering ultra-cheap homes in the hope that those upset with the result would snap up one of the vacant properties.

Demand from the USA is increasing

Historically, citizenship by residence and investment programs have attracted emerging market elites, including Nigeria, South Africa, China, India and the Philippines, who often face higher levels of political and economic instability in their home countries or want a second passport. Enable visa-free travel.

Americans weren’t a major source of demand for golden visas until the pandemic, when Covid quarantines meant they couldn’t visit Europe without a European passport, even if they had second homes on the continent or could travel by private jet, according to Volek.

“A lot of the very wealthy families…were a little bit more exposed than they thought they were,” he told CNN.

Demand has been increasing ever since due to increasing political division and social tension in the United States According to Henley & Partners, it is also increasing interest report It was published earlier this year. Since 2020, U.S. citizens have been the largest group of applicants for the firm’s investment immigration programs.

Golden visa requests from Americans are up 33% so far this year Compared to the same period last year, programs in Europe seem to be the most popular.

Portugal’s Golden Residence Permit Program is at the peak of popularity It is included on this list because it is relatively affordable and requires a minimum spend of €250,000 ($265,000) to support the arts or national cultural heritage. It also offers a path to European Union citizenship after just five years, as opposed to seven to 10 years in countries such as Greece, Spain and Italy, which are also popular choices among Americans.

According to Volek, the super-rich with a net worth of $50 million and above tend to choose Malta or Austria, which offer immediate citizenship but have much higher prices.

Malta’s program calls for a non-refundable payment of €600,000 ($636,000) to the government, significant additional spending on real estate in the country, and a donation of €10,000 ($10,600) to local charities. Austria typically requires a direct contribution to the economy, such as an investment in a local business, starting at around 3.5 million euros ($3.7 million).

With golden visas out of reach for most Americans, social media platforms are ablaze with conversations about other ways to move abroad.

A. YouTube video An article titled “Countries for Americans looking to leave the U.S.,” shared less than two weeks ago by a couple who helps people move abroad, has received more than half a million views and more than 4,000 comments; Among them are Americans who say they are urgently exploring options. to live abroad.

Elsewhere on Reddit, a thread titled “Immigration after US election results” received 1,300 comments in less than two weeks.

A user in an LGBT Reddit group shared that shortly before the election, she and her husband thought “it might be necessary to leave the US as refugees if Trump wins.”

Flannery Foster, an American who lives in Spain and helps other Americans travel, work and study abroad, has heard similar stories.

“I’m talking to people whose lives are at risk and their livelihoods are at risk,” Foster told CNN, referring to women, people of color, parents of transgender children and the LGBTQ+ community. “These people are not your golden visa people,” he added.

Foster, who has been in the process of obtaining Spanish citizenship since the election, has seen: He says there has been “exponential growth” in questions and that he is currently working with about 50 people interested in living outside the US.

However, these people do not want to give up their US citizenship. “There’s a sense of, ‘I’m leaving because I have to, and I want to make sure my vote still counts.'”