Original article address on Xinhua Net》》 http://news.xinhuanet.com/abroad/2013-02/01/c_124311833.htm
On January 30, 2013, Dr. Winner Xing, President of WorldWay Immigration, visited Xinhua Net for an exclusive interview regarding "2013 as the Year of European Immigration" and provided a detailed interpretation of why WorldWay Immigration proposed the concept of "2013 as the Year of European Immigration."
Dr. Winner Xing stated that investment immigration refers to the legal investment actions that investors must comply with to obtain immigration status in that country. In the past, the doors to investment immigration in Europe, especially in EU countries, have remained closed, and the immigration policies adopted were not conducive to immigration. Before the financial crisis, the only investment immigration option in the UK had a high threshold, requiring an investment of one million pounds and continuous residence of more than six months each year for five years to become a permanent resident, making it a niche project. However, with the outbreak of the European debt crisis following the global financial crisis, the doors to investment immigration in the EU gradually opened.
From the end of 2011 to the beginning of 2012, Ireland and Latvia successively relaxed their immigration policies. In particular, Cyprus introduced a new policy allowing families to obtain EU permanent residency by investing in real estate worth 300,000 euros. Subsequently, nearing the end of 2012, countries such as Portugal and Hungary also successively lowered immigration thresholds and launched the most favorable immigration policies in history. Currently, countries like Greece and Spain are also formulating investment immigration projects.
In addition, Dr. Winner Xing summarized three prominent characteristics of the investment immigration policies of EU countries compared to traditional immigration countries such as Canada, Australia, Singapore, New Zealand, and the United States:
First, the application speed is relatively fast. Countries like Canada generally have long waiting periods, taking 3 to 5 years. Among these traditional countries, the fastest is the United States, where the average application takes 8 months, but obtaining the project can take over a year. The characteristic of European projects is fast approval; Cyprus can approve applications in about 2 months. The recently launched investment immigration project in Portugal will also match within 2 months.
The second characteristic is that the investment risk is relatively low. Currently, there are about three types of investment methods for investment immigration. One type is investing in a specific operating entity, which usually carries certain risks. Another type is investing in financial products, which are closely related to financial conditions. The third investment method is real estate immigration, where buying property is not merely spending money but rather an investment, making it a lower-risk option compared to other investment methods.
The third characteristic is that EU Schengen countries offer the benefit that when applicants obtain residency permits, they can travel and reside freely in the 26 Schengen countries without restrictions. For example, after obtaining residency in Portugal, one can freely reside in any of the 26 Schengen countries, which is an advantage not available in other traditional countries.
Therefore, the European investment immigration projects hold significant appeal for investors from non-EU countries. If 2012 was a trial for European investment immigration in China, then this year, the doors to European investment immigration will fully open to the world. For this reason, WorldWay Immigration has declared 2013 as the Year of European Immigration.
