Tourism to Europe and Baltic countries has been growing after Latvia became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Overall Latvia attracts various people from all over the world. Since Latvia is a European Union country, you would have to apply for residence permit to stay in the country. Residence permit means that a person from a different country is allowed to reside in the Republic of Latvia and it is issued in an identification card form.
Different ways of obtaining Latvian residence permit
Any foreigner residing in Latvia for more than 90 days will have to acquire a Latvian residence permit. The documentation that has to be ready for application to the permit varies by the purpose of staying in Latvia.
Procedures for submitting paperwork will vary for people with different needs. For example, expat buying a real estate will have a different procedure from somebody who is going to have a treatment in the country.
One way is to get a residence permit by investing in the businesses in the country. Other ways to obtain a residency permit is to buy real estate or put in a bank deposit in a bank that is located in Latvia. In the following paragraphs, all three ways will be explained to ensure a residence permit to foreigners who need it.
Residence permit by investment
Residence permit by investment in Latvia has been called Golden Visa programme and has been made in 2010. The purpose for this type of exchange – investment for residence permit ensures that the economy of the country gains financial and other benefits.
The process of acquiring residence permit by investment in Latvia is choosing the way to invest in Latvia, such as buying a real estate, invest in share capital, and invest in bonds or in deposit form to credit institution in Latvia. These ways are a good choice for those who have a specific purpose on arriving in Latvia and it boosts the country’s economy.
Residence permit by investing in real estate
Real estate in Europe can be appealing to many foreigners as Europe has gained its popularity amongst businessmen and tourists. Latvia offers a temporary residence permit to a foreigner willing to invest at least 250 000 EUR in real estate in the country. The person could not have any real estate tax debts and the cadastral value of the chosen real estate could not be less than 80 000 EUR.
There are certain documents that have to be submitted when obtaining a residence permit in such way, like application form, photograph, document that proves the payment of real estate, proof of the foreigner not having any tax debts from real estate and lastly, the document that confirms the pay of fee to the government in Latvia.
The fee that has to be paid to the government is an additional 5 percent of the real estate value and 2 percent of stamp duty in the title of registration.
Residence permit by paying bank deposit
Residence permit that is obtained by paying subordinate liability to credit institution in Latvia. This pay will ensure the chance to obtain temporary residence permit to reside in Latvia for the foreigner.
The amount that the foreigner must deposit in the chosen credit institution is not less than 280 000 EUR. Additionally to this payment there are fees that amount to 25 000 EUR total. These fees have to be paid in order to finish the procedure of investment in bank deposit form.
Residence permit by investing in share capital or bonds
Residence permit can be obtained by investing in share capital of bonds. Share capital investment is when a foreigner invests in a new and originally founded company in Latvia. The investment should be at least 50 000 EUR and the company has to have at least 50 employees. Also, the balance can’t exceed 1 million EUR for this investment object.
Another option is 100 000 EUR that has to be invested in a company with more than 50 employees in it and the balance going above 1 million EUR. The additional fees to the government in these cases are 10 000 EUR when arriving in Latvia.
Temporary residence permit can also be obtained by investing in bonds, when the investor has to put at least 250 000 EUR to non-interest-bearing governmental bonds. The fees to this choice of investment go up to 38 000 EUR and have to be paid when arriving in Latvia.
Latvian startup visa
You can also acquire a Latvian residence permit through Latvian startup visa. This includes working or founding a team or management board of a Latvian startup that is younger than 1 year. Furthermore, a certain amount of money (30’000 or 60’000 EUR) has to be raised from qualifying venture capitalists within a specified period of time.
Read more about Latvian startup visa and its requirements.